For years upon years we have told our children "NO!" whenever they would ask for a pet of some type. We have had goldfish (they died in a week or so) and a stray dog that slept on our carport, but nothing that we have really considered a pet of our own. They have begged for a pet until I believe they lost all hope.
Well . . . while visiting in NC, my aunt Deb offered me one of their kittens. The kitten had been playing around me and kept climbing on my lap. She was awfully cute and after all the sweet pets that I had been with for the previous week (Hope, Stella, Finn and yes, even Winston, but not Elbows the snake. Sorry.) I found myself wanting a pet for the very first time. A day or so later, Paul mentioned that he saw a box of cute kittens at the hardware store and thought one would make a fun surprise for the children. He also said he thought I would kill him, so he left the cute kitten where he found him. After several days of talking and considerations, I decided to go for it. I called Deb 30 minutes before we were leaving NC and asked if her offer was still good. She said yes and that she would have her ready in a few minutes. She and Kara were so sweet to trust us with their little Tabitha.
I planned to keep her name Tabitha, but I met opposition within my family. We discussed it and decided it would be nice to name her after her mother, Serafina. So we now have a very sweet kitten Serafina. She rode very quietly all the way home without making any noise, mess, or smelly excrement. Yeah! Honestly, I was a little nervous about that part.
The only problem I think we might have is that I'm not sure she knows that she is a cat. The first week we had her home the children were away for the night at Jane's, and Serafina kept barking outside our bedroom door. We thought that was odd. She also prefers to have a light on in the middle of the night, and she enjoys the girls using her for their baby doll. I was always led to believe that cats kept to themselves, but this is not so with Serafina. She enjoys playing with the children and following Paul and I around at night.
We were all packed up and saying goodbye to the family when I told the children about my surprise for them. They thought I was playing a cruel joke at first, but once I convinced them I was serious, they were in shock for a while.
Shock and amazement!
Yes, these are tears. She really didn't see this coming. I asked her why she was crying and she said, "I thought this day would never come."
On our way home we stopped at the Birmingham Temple. We tried to get Serafina to eat, but she was too overwhelmed to try. 
The pictures don't do her justice! She is so beautiful!
No, I'm not choking her!
Thank you Deb and Kara for allowing us to care for Serafina. We thoroughly enjoy having her in our family. I have been converted to a pet lover.
