Thanksgiving Gratitude Countdown Day 6

As you can tell from the title of my blog, my kids have all grown up and are living in their own apartments. So I am living in the "empty nest". I had a really hard time dealing with this as my "baby" went off to college and I was definitely in a funk. I am doing much better now as I focus on their success and independence rather than the loss of my babies.

To help fill the nest a bit I adopted a cat, Hunter. If you have ever had a cat, you know that they are great company and don't need to be walked in the middle of a driving rain storm or a winter blizzard. Everything was going on fine, and then my youngest daughter got a job working for the Humane Society in Laconia, NH.

My home then became refuge for cats that no one wanted for one reason or another. I fostered several, and adopted many..... A few that I took in were sick and I only got to live with them a short while before they passed away. Maya was the first of these ill cats; she had a severe heart defect and couldn't be adopted out. I took her in and about 6 months later I found her dead. I called my daughter crying and crying! I was just so upset. But she helped me realize that Maya had 6 months of living in a loving home, with plenty of food and a warm place to sleep. I helped make the end of her life a happy time for her. This made me feel a little better and helped me cope several years later when the same thing happened again with another ill cat.

Maya

Adopting a pet can be a heartbreaking experience. BUT it has brought me so much joy as well. Two little kitties I took in had severe digestive problems and were SO skinny. Took a long time to get them feeling better but today they are plump and happy and still living (and loving) with me! (Their pic is below)

Georgie & Ellie

Harry is the cat in the title of my blog. He is a handful and if he had been adopted probably would have been shuffled from one home to another as people got tired of his antics. When I first brought him home I couldn't leave a loaf of bread on the counter as he would rip it open and take bites out of all the slices. He still chews on any piece of plastic he can get his teeth into, but he is a love bug too, and I could never give him up.

So today I am thankful for my furry friends. I may have given them a home, but they have given me so much more in return. I see their smiling faces in the window when I come home from work, and they race each other to the door to greet me. I always have a furry bundle to snuggle with when I am sleeping, and when I am sick they all climb into bed to comfort me.

My empty nest may be full of cat hair, but my life is fuller because of the kitties that put it there.