Scratchy Claws

We decorated the tree last night.

Well, Bill and the kids did that while I rolled out and cut out springerle. 

I’m a bit behind in my baking.  I know I’ll get it done, but as usual, I’m creating a crisis situation for myself.

But that’s not what this post is about.

Decorating the tree is always fraught with danger.  Scratchy and Softie are fascinated by all the dangly, shiny, jingly things we put on the tree, but they’re even more enamored of the tree skirt.

As soon as it’s wrapped around the tree stand, a cat is sitting on it.

The night before last, after Bill had wrapped the strings of lights all around the branches and we were sitting back, enjoying the crackling fire and the scent of fresh pine in the air, Scratchy parked his considerably-sized self on the tree skirt.

We watched him.  He sat there, content, for a moment, until he noticed a bit of movement on a branch directly opposite his current position.

His ears pricked up and his muscles tensed, and then he jumped across the tree skirt and climbed up onto the arm of the loveseat. 

And then Softie took Scratchy’s spot on the tree skirt.  Scratchy stared at her for a minute, and then hopped down and convinced her to move.  Not sure what he said, but it worked.

He sat where he’d been, and Softie hopped up onto the arm of the loveseat – same place Scratchy had just been.

They stayed like this for a moment or two, and then, by some unspoken agreement, they switched spots.

Weird creatures, these two.  But at the same time, so typical of most of the cats I’ve had.

Anyway, this morning, it was Scratchy’s turn for the tree skirt.  Softie was snoozing on a nearby chair.  I was checking email in the other room, and I heard Alex moving around in the living room. 

A minute later he came to get me.

“Mom – this is a perfect Christmas card picture – you HAVE to see it!”

I have learned not to hesitate when Alex summons me like that, so I got my camera and followed him.

He had put each Softie’s Christmas stocking on her back, and Scratchy’s on his.  Softie was busy trying to grab it with her teeth, but Scratchy just lay there, a large, pillow-like mound, with a little green and red stocking resting on his broad expanse (or, as Alex heard from a friend at school yesterday – his “big enchilada” – the source of much giggling when I picked the kids up after school).

“Is it edible?”

I dutifully shot a few pictures of the cat and Alex is going to want to use one of these for this year’s Christmas card.

“Do these stripes make me look fat?”

I’m now thinking we need a picture of each cat AND each child, lying under the tree, with a stocking on his/her back.  I could line them up and stitch them together (electronically) and that could be the card.

Not sure Softie will cooperate, though. 

She’s our Grinch.

I wonder if I could get the lizard to cooperate, too…..