It all comes back to me now

We have been empty nest in this house for a while.  If you aren't familiar with the term, "empty nest" refers to a household where the children have grown up and left home to have their own independent lives.  

We were totally empty nested for quite a run there.  Our two great kids have grown up and moved out (which we are all mutually happy about) and after a period when we'd gone through what was essentially an animal hospice phase where we found our lives dominated by the demands and peculiarities of ancient dogs and then cats, even our menagerie of family pets had all gone to that great boarding kennel in the sky .  

Finally, it was my husband and me.  Alone again, naturally.

Until last weekend that is when we were adopted by an abandoned kitten.This little sweetheart is a total delight except for the parts where she is determined to prove she has the sharpest claws and the strongest will in the universe and also the bit about not seeming to want to use a cat litter box.

It is clear she finds the litter uninteresting especially when compared to a lovely garden bed. Once out and about it is no worry for her about that small broccoli plant or the cilantro sprouting.  She is generously willing to overlook such nuisances and simply digs her way past them in her willingness to provide some very fresh fertilizer.

So now besides keeping an eagle eye out for any potential furniture shredding, I am also trying to gently herd this small in stature but large in spirit critter away from those plants that will want to shrivel and die when exposed to fresh cat poop.  

All by way of saying that I am suddenly remembering what it is like to have that dinner time crunch when it is suddenly half past meal time, at least one other person is justifiably expecting something reasonable to eat in a medium to short time frame and yet there are unmet kitten demands  requiring a certain amount of attention.

So I want to take a moment to salute all of you out there who are scrambling night to night to get something nutritious, much less delicious on the table while simultaneously attending to the needs of multiple others in the household.  

One dish wonders are a great help in such a situation but I am remembering my husband doesn't really like casseroles.  Never has.  

We may be eating a lot of sandwiches for a while.