So now I have a cat...

I've been reading this recently:

If I Have to Tell You One More Time...: The Revolutionary Program That Gets Your Kids To Listen Without Nagging, Reminding, or Yelling

It contains very interesting ideas that I am trying to put into practice.

First advice is to spend 10 minutes, twice a day, with each of your kids (face-to-face, as we like to call it). You need to play with him exactly the way he wants to. It's called Mind, Body and Soul Time... and the purpose is to completely focus on each kid and give him the attention he need on a regular basis. This should help decrease their kind (or not so kind) requests for attention when you are trying to do something else. So I would be less likely to want to scream that often during the day. Win-win, right?

Now why did I talk about a cat in the title of this post? It is because since this week-end we really have one. A cat, yes. I am really really happy about that, as I love both cats and dogs and our current lifestyle (meaning about twelve hours out of our homes every day - I hope robbers do not read my blog!) does not allow us to have a dog. So a cat is the next best thing to having one of each (I heard you gasp, mister!)

All this to say that this morning, looking at the cat I realized it also needs attention. And I was wondering if I should schedule it in the 10-min routine. Like it was my third kid.

Then I started thinking why I prefer a cat to a third child.

• I do not care if it "cries" in the middle of the night. I can ignore it and not to prison or whatever.

• It knows where to "do its business" on its own - no diaper-investment, no running around the house "I'll catch you to change that smelly thing stuck to your a@#!"

• It knows how to eat (and doesn't throw food everywhere when it's not what it wanted in the first place)

• Can't ask for chocolate. Or cartoons. Or toys. Or more chocolate.

• Seems happy when you are there and just scratching its head.

• Doesn't mind if you shout, ignore or move them somewhere they don't want to be (like: out of my way, out of the bedroom, or not on my curtains)

I think this list is potentially infinite. Does this make me a bad mother?!