Chong loved to follow the boys every where they went. She was the only cat I know that would run after a ball when you threw it. She didn't mind at all when the boys would run around with swords or drive their little vehicles close to her. She LOVED our boys and our neighbor boys too. When Mike did yard work she was right there with him. She proudly caught mice, moles and birds. She was awesome.
The best part was she gave us kittens. It was an experience our boys (and Mike and I) will never forget. Did I really want to deal with kittens? No. But the joy they brought us was more than I could imagine.
Watching the kittens grow, learn and discover new things and play and play and play. 
All 4 of us would sit at our kitchen counter that overlooks our yard and laugh while we watched them all play together. The boys dreaded the day we would give the kittens away. But we all knew that a home was a better life for them than living outside, especially near a busy road. 
About 3 weeks ago we said "goodbye" to the kittens. The gray one, named "Sophie", went to a friend from work. And the black and orange one went to a friend that I worked with at E-town many years ago. We've already gone to visit the black and orange kitten (named Niko and Bella). They are inseparable. I'm so glad they get to be together. Both of my friends send frequent pictures of the kittens and we LOVE seeing them happy at their new homes. We all still miss them a lot, but we know being inside a loving home is a much better life.
About a week after the kittens left the boys and I were sitting at the kitchen counter making a birthday card for our neighbor. I looked out the window and saw a dog with Chong in its mouth. A stray pit bull came into our yard and went into the spring house where Chong spent a lot of time. It ate Chong's food and then attacked her. It was very traumatic to see. Chong looked like a chew toy in the dog's mouth and the worst part is... the boys saw it happen. Mike tried to get the dog, but it ran off. We called the police, but they weren't able to get it.
Chong lived, but wasn't doing well. It was Saturday evening so vet offices were closed. My mom drove with me about 45 minutes away in the pouring rain to an emergency pet clinic. The vet thought Chong looked good for what she had been through. She got an antibiotic shot, a shot for the pain, and she had 4 "little" puncture wounds that the vet cleaned out. She sent us home and gave us hope that Chong would be OK. When we got home and I got her out of her cat carrier she started walking backwards. She didn't seem OK. We made her comfortable and hoped for the best. The next morning when I went to check on her she was no longer living. I think she had a lot of internal damage and bleeding. We were all very upset. We miss her so much. The only positive thing I can think of is at least it wasn't one of the kids walking in on the dog in the spring house. I really believe the dog would have attacked one of them. The next few days were awful because we didn't know where the dog was or if it was coming back. The boys were not allowed outside without one of us watching. Poor Adam is still really struggling. He was my kid that really didn't worry about much and now he has a lot of anxiety. He won't walk upstairs by himself because is is "scared of a dog or bear up there". He won't leave my side when we are at home and it gets frustrating, but I feel so sorry for him at the same time.
We buried Chong by the creek because she loved to go down and get a drink of fresh spring water. I caught a glimpse of this a few days after we buried her...
