"The Rest of the Story..."

(The cat story that is) Several had asked what happened to our lesson-teaching cat, Molly. I did respond in "Comments", but not everyone might have read that. Because Molly was firm in her refusal to use the kitty litter, we decided that she needed to become an outside cat IMMEDIATELY! So, I took her to the kids' log cabin playhouse (where we feed our other cat), showed her the food, and the lovely accomodations, and left her there hoping that she had been with us long enough to realize that this was home. I did warn Katie that she might not see Molly again. The next morning we went out to check on Molly, but she was nowhere to be found. We called and called and put extra cat food out just in case she was in hiding - this did seem to be the norm for her. Five days later, Mike saw Molly at the end of our lane in a driveway, but she was quickly gone again. Then tonight -1 week later!- I had gone outside around 9:30 when I heard a cat "Meow". I knew it wasn't Cloudy because he was standing in front of me, so I quickly looked to my left, and there, by the woodpile, was Molly. I was shocked! I was happy to see her, but what shocked me more was how happy she was to see me. I sat down, and she climbed and rubbed and licked - I was stunned. Was this the cat who wouldn't let me near her and seemed terrified of me. It seems that we both learned a lesson in trust! That is "the rest of the story".
Now, the rest of the rest of the story is...Since we thought Molly was lost to us, one day this week when we walked out of the store, someone was giving away a kitten. A 7-week old black, female kitten with a white belly and feet. You guessed it! The picture at the top of this blog is our new(est) kitten, Mittens. She is litter-trained, and likes to be held and petted, so she makes a better pet than Molly. I suppose you could say we have received a "double blessing" as far as cats are concerned.
And that, my friends, is...the rest of the story!