Nasty Cat

When we graduated from college, Mike bought me a combo birthday present/college graduation gift.  We got a blue point himalayan cat.  We named him Bailey, although we called him MISTER Bailey, as his regalness and grace demanded it.  Over the years, Mr. Bailey has been a colorful member of our household.  However, last year, Mr. Bailey went to live with a former coworker of mine, Cheryl.  My allergies had finally gotten the best of me, and Mr. Bailey found a new owner to love.

Mr. Bailey did not like old people.  He used to chase after my Grandma Gant and swat at her when she walked by.  He also did not like children - although I think that may have been related to the fact that our nieces and nephews terrorized him when we first got him. 

One of Mr. Bailey's most . . . endearing . . . qualities was his shedding.  It didn't matter how much you brushed him, Mr. Bailey shed.  He would leave random hairballs all over the house.  Mike was not too fond of Mr. Bailey's shedding.  He had a more colorful word for Mr. Bailey, but when I pointed out that Sammy might start picking up his words, he changed it to a simple "Nasty Cat."  When we would get home and Mike found a hairball on the couch, Mike would yell "Nasty Cat!"  When we would get home and Bailey had shed on Mike's pillow, Mike would yell "Nasty Cat!"  I'd like to think it was a term of endearment, but honestly maybe it wasn't.

Either way, Sammy picked up Mr. Bailey's nickname.  Anytime he saw something that remotely resembled a hairball, he would yell "Nasty Cat!" as well.  This would include spider webs.  Many a spider web has been mistakenly called "Nasty Cat" by Sammy.  But it also meant actual balls of hair - including those taken from my own hair brush. 

When we were at the obstetrician for my 30 week appointment while I was pregnant with Sophia, Sammy was crawling around on the floor.  I kept telling Mike to pick him up, that I thought it was totally nasty that he was crawling around on the floor of the OBGYN's office. But it wasn't until Sammy looked under the examining table and announced "OOOOOHHHH, Nasty Cat went to the DOCTOR!" that Mike actually thought it might be a good idea to pick him up.  This, of course, was after Mike announced that he hoped it wasn't a black cat that had gone to the doctor.

It's been almost a year now since Mr. Bailey has gone to live with Cheryl, Mommy's friend.  Yet, Sammy still talks about Nasty Cat.  We have a walk-in attic area off our game room that has insulation inside of it, and Sammy calls it the Nasty Cat room.  I'm sure you can picture the resemblance. 

So, today, Sammy was sitting in my lap, getting ready for bed, and he turned to look at me.  He had such a sweet expression on his face, and a big smile, and then, he dropped his bombshell.  He looked at me and said, "Mommy, your hair looks like Nasty Cat."  Seriously? 

Thank you so much, baby - that is awesome!  I think that is probably the best compliment I've ever received.  At least Daddy and Sophia think Mommy is pretty . . .