Well, they say that cats choose you.  We've been chosen!  While sitting on the porch a couple of nights ago, minding our own sweet business and sipping a nice glass of wine, a young cat appeared from nowhere and jumped up in my lap.
     I picked it up and put it back down on the porch decking.  Up it came again, down it went, up it came....  There was a pattern here. 
     After about the 5th attempt to remove the cat from my lap, I turned to hubby and said, "I guess we now have a cat."
     Gracie, our older Border Collie was raised with our cat, Franz, from the time she was a baby.  They got along well.  Franz passed away long before Sam came on the scene.  Sam has only ever seen (and chased) the neighbor's cats in Texas.  This will be an experiment for certain!
     IT's a SHE!  We brought her (now named Sophie) into the laundry room to get the dogs used to her.  Gracie was over the whole thrill in about 15 seconds, completely ignoring Sophie, the cat.  Sam was Mr. Curious.  We decided to give Sam a job; he is, after all, a Border Collie! His command was, "Sam, guard Sophie."  Sam took it to heart.  He follows Sophie everywhere,stares at her endlessly, licks her, and herds her. 
     Turns out our neighbor was present when Sophie was born to a neighborhood stray in the barn next door.  So we have her "birth" photo!