Penny

Our family forming decisions have been made. Until I am finished with college, it just isn't a good idea to add such a high level of stress and commitment to our plates. I want to enjoy our children when we finally get them. Having a workable plan in place with a solution that doesn't rely on my broken body, gives me great peace. It doesn't cure the ache, but it does ease it.

Until then, our home is quiet and a bit lonely. For a long time we have relied on our pups to fill the empty spaces in our lives. People laugh and we joke with them about the way we refer to our babies. They are for now, our children and they get treated that way. If one of the pups is sick, one of us takes a day off to care for them. If we go on vacation, they come with us. They are our family.

When we first moved back here, I had a cat. I loved that cat. I rescued him from the cardboard compactor where I worked. He had some issues, and he and Hubby did not get along at all. When someone shot him, I was resigned to never owning another kitty. Hubby didn't particularly like them and I didn't want to bring one into a place that couldn't give him or her unconditional love from both parents.

A couple of weeks ago, we went to this big pet store to get some things for my aquarium. It was a Saturday, adoption day, and there were doggies everywhere. Beside the aquarium supplies, there was a spot where they house kitties that are available for adoption. We played with them through the window, laughed, and went on. I had almost forgotten about it until last week when Hubby brought up a bribe. If I went with him to dinner, he would get me the kitty we looked at. I of course went to dinner with him, but refused the idea of getting a kitty.

During supper, Hubby continued to convince me that we needed a kitty. I thought he was nuts. He really wanted one. We weren't sure we could even have another pet in our apartment. We agreed to look into it and left it at that.

Wednesday night all night I dreamed over and over about asking the manager of our complex about a kitty. On the way home from work I decided that if she said yes, it was meant to be, if she said no, it wasn't. I had reservations about adding another member to our family and another level of responsibility. While Hubby really wanted one and I knew I should take advantage of this, I didn't know if I wanted one right now. The manager would make the decision for me. I nervously walked into her office and waited for her no. I reminded her that we had two puppies, not one, but she still said it would be perfectly fine. I asked her how much the deposit would be, expecting that to be the negative factor. Hubby would never want to pay another $150 deposit. She continued to surprise me by waiving the fee.

I raced up the stairs to tell Hubby. Without hesitation he told me to grab my laptop, we had a kitty to find. We did a Pet.finder search and found a shelter nearby. Hubby had decided he wanted a long haired kitty this time around. This shelter had two long haired kitties. A kitten and an adult. We didn't want a kitten and neither of us were really that in love with the adult at first sight, so I figured we would just keep looking. I looked at the shelter's site and realized they had a large number of kitties at the moment and they were waiving the adoption fee for their fixed kitties.

We took another look at their available kitties and Hubby took a second look at the adult long haired they had available. She was the one he wanted. I thought she looked a bit funny in her pictures, but I thought if he wanted this one, I needed to go with it. We threw shoes on and raced to the shelter but it closed early on Wednesdays, so on Thursday I took a half day off work and went to get the newest member of our family.

The place was tiny and they had lots of cats and dogs. I didn't even look at any of the other kitties there. I asked about the one, they opened her cage, and I just knew. She was beautiful. For whatever reason, she was supposed to be ours. It's hard to explain that to a lot of people, but I just knew. I brought her home and although there are still issues with the puppies, and she exhibits classic signs of a shelter or rescue kitty, she is settling in and quickly adjusting. She is getting very used to an endless supply of love and petting. She has even begun to explore and establish her own places in the house. I am head over heels in love and more importantly, so is Hubby!

This is how I view adoption, be it animals or children. I think God already knows how our family will work out. He knows who will be here and when. Our child or children, when they finally come, no matter how they come, were always meant to be here. I love that.

Penny was an unexpected surprise, but she is definitely where she is supposed to be. It is amazing to me how she just fits here. She is just one puzzle piece that has found its place.