I don’t care for cats.

Forget that. If we’re being honest, I kind of hate them — but I have good reason.

They can kill me.

Literally.

And it’s not their claws or teeth that would do the deed, but their fur. Bottom line: I’m severely allergic. 

But cats are cute enough from a distance and, as a kid (before I developed this issue) I was a cat fanatic, playing with my aunt and uncle’s felines like they were dogs, tossing a ball, wiggling string and watching them pounce on the catnip.

Now I spend my day rolling around on the floor with a baby and have realized infants are a lot like cats.

10: They love shoelaces, especially when said laces are attached to a foot. Little C will scoot around, reaching for my laces for far longer than she’ll play with any of her toys. I like to keep inching my foot away as she reaches out, letting her grab on on the third (or fifth) try. Some mom critics will say I’m messing with her. I call it challenging her to keep trying, a skill we all need as adults.

9: They’re fascinated by ceiling fans. She’ll lay in her crib and watch that fan go ’round and ’round and ’round and will crane her neck to check out the fans in other rooms of the house. I, on the other hand, feel nauseated watching it make one rotation. I also think they’re as ugly as wall paneling, so I try not to look.

8: She recognizes her Gerber Organic Oatmeal the way a cat knows that Fancy Feast can, and she grunts and kicks her legs when the box comes out of the cabinet (or, when we’re in the baby food aisle at the grocery store). Once she starts walking, I’m kind of expecting her to jump around my legs, tripping me on my way from the fridge to the table.

7: That food — be it from a 9 Lives can or a Plum Organics packet — doesn’t look terribly appetizing. And, as you’d expect, it pretty much looks the same coming out. (Yes, I went there.)

6: Balls are almost as exciting as ceiling fans. And, like a cat, she won’t retrieve it, but she will pounce on that textured, blue toy and gnaw as it till her shirt is drenched with drool.

5: She’s drawn to my computer, regularly pounding on the keys and staring at the screen. Photos in my Facebook newsfeed suggest cats do the same. Could I have a future writer on my hands?

4 They both get in trouble if you look away for 1.5 seconds. The other night, Little C knocked her bowl and spoon on the floor when I turned to get another Ella’s Kitchen packet. More than one friend has lost a vase, or other glass or ceramic decor, thanks to their cat. If only Little C could reach the ceiling fans giving me the perfect excuse to replace them with … nothing.

3: Odd sleeping positions reign. Cats, like babies, spread out as if they’re making a snow angel in their bed while snoozing. This is cute, but also frightening because sometimes they look dead.

2: Naps are heaven-sent — for baby, cat and mom and dad.

1: They both like to curl up in your lap — and the lap-owner may love that even more than the baby or the cat.