Anybody want a cat?

Of course, I don't really mean that.  We love our cat, Penny.  It's just that lately we've developed a love/hate relationship.  Ever since Eleanor became mobile, Penny prefers to stay outside.  Unfortunately, if we leave her food out there it attracts raccoons, so we keep it in the kitchen just inside the back door.  I should add that this is about 4 feet from my side of the bed.  Here's a typical day with Penny:

5:45 AM - Penny eats

5:50 AM - Penny meows, loudly, to go outside.  I get up and let her out.

5:51 AM - Eleanor wakes up thanks to me opening the sliding glass doors.  Eventually we both go back to sleep.

6:00 AM - Hunter's alarm goes off

6:40 AM - Penny sees Hunter in the kitchen eating and meows to be let in to eat.

6:43 AM - Penny eats three bites then meows to go back outside

7:30 AM - I get up and go in the kitchen.  Penny sees me and meows to be let in to eat.

7:32 AM - Penny eats three bites and goes back outside.

7:45 AM - Eleanor gets up

7:55 AM - Penny meows to be let in.  I open the door, Penny somehow senses Eleanor's presence, and walks away.

This last scenario repeats about 10 more times throughout the day, no exaggeration.  Occasionally she actually comes in to eat for a minute, but that's rare.  The frequency increases throughout in the day, peaking around 5:30 when she sees me fixing dinner and meows loudly for about 20 minutes while I'm cooking.  Will she actually walk inside the house and eat?  Of course not.

8:00 PM - Eleanor goes to bed

8:02 PM - Penny meows to be let in and eats.  Occasionally she'll come up to one of us and purr sweetly for a couple of minutes, reminding us why we keep her around.  Then she goes to sleep under our bed or somewhere hidden, and the cycle repeats the next day.

*Sigh*  We've had Penny for over 9 years now, since she was a tiny little kitten, the runt of the litter abandoned by her mother.  Of course we're not going to give her away.  Hunter actually used to joke when I was pregnant with Eleanor about what would we do with the baby if she turned out to be allergic to cats?  (Meaning, where would we send Eleanor because of course we'd be keeping the cat.)  She's an important part of our family, even if she is a pest sometimes...