This is Sundae. He began showing up this summer, staring at us from his perch under Sam’s truck. He was skinny and skittish but curious and clearly wanting to connect.

Slowly, Sam was able to get him to come a little closer, and one day, Sundae decided Sam was a good guy. It took a little longer for him to warm up to me, but over the past couple months, we have become good friends, and he purrs loudly with cheek scratching and food love.

On Halloween night, Sam entertained the neighborhood when he chose “trick” instead of — actually in addition to — “treat,” and kids had to come up with jokes or songs or dances before they got a Fun Dip or Snickers. Two sisters who live a couple blocks over showed up at the door well past the rest of the crowd. It was 30 degrees outside and they had no gloves, so we invited them inside to warm up for a minute while little sister chose her candy. They noticed the food dish with cat food just outside the front door, and we began telling them about a cat we were feeding that just seems to hang out sometimes.

“Yeah, we have an outside cat, too. He’s orange and we call him ‘Billy.’ He roams the neighborhood.”

I whipped out my phone and showed her this picture of Sundae.

“He’s CHEATING on us?!”

We all laughed and laughed and laughed…and feel a lot better knowing Sundae, or Billy, or whatever his name, is very loved and seen.

This little guy has grown on us. We look for him morning and night and get excited when he is at the door, waiting on dinner. We have gone so far as to take him to the vet to see if he is chipped – he isn’t.

We, as in Sam and I.

Banana and Split, not so much. Actually, not at all. Banana wants to be outside so badly, but he wants to dominate and repel this intrusion into his sacred space. Split is wide-eyed and completely mortified, escaping to hide under our bed if there is a HINT this horrid creature is about to come inside.

Of course, as the weather has begun to change, we have contemplated about Sundae’s comfort and joy. I made the ridiculous decision to order a heated crate for him. He refused to enter the crate, but if I put the heating pad in a Costco cardboard box with a towel, it was like a palace. A few weeks ago, we had a brilliant idea to create a covered shelter because rain was forecasted. We didn’t want to spend a fortune, so we skimped and rigged this contraption:

It was not our shining moment.

The next morning, the towel was sopping wet, and poor Sundae was nowhere to be seen. I don’t blame him.

So, back to the drawing board. It would have been easy to just order a doghouse from Amazon, but, we don’t always do easy. Instead, Sam did his Sammyness, and on his own, he began designing a prototype in his head.

In the meantime, the cardboard Costco box came back onto the patio, and we were ingenious by putting a plastic storage container lid over the top of the box to shield it from the rain. Who woulda thought. It worked, although it looked very, “Arkansas,” and I apologize to those of you who are offended by that…but if ya know, ya know.

This afternoon, Sam revealed his Sammyness:

Underneath that towel, there is a heated pad. The whole Sundae house smells gloriously like pine, and tonight, when Sundae appears for dinner, he will be handed the keys to his new palace.

I cannot think of a sweeter anniversary gift, and after 10 years, I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is true love…

I am grateful today for a new home for Sundae.

I am grateful today for a beautiful afternoon to get it all set up and ready.

I am grateful today for sweet surprises that spark comfort and joy.

And I am MOST grateful today for my husband of 10 years tomorrow.