Well, actually her name is Lily, but when Carol Benner’s seven year old great- niece Ariana first saw the pale bundle of fur, she christened her “Potato Baby,” and the name stuck. “She DID look like a serving of mashed potatoes,” Carol allows.

Lily was born in Virginia, and met Carol and husband Alan Doelp via Facetime. When she was eight weeks old, they rendezvoused in Tampa, and soon the happy trio were at home in Pelican Preserve.

Lily is a Siberian Forest cat, a hypo-allergenic breed. A quick genealogy tutorial: The cat allergen (Fel D 1) is actually produced in the cat's saliva and in the sebaceous glands. When the cat licks itself, the allergen gets on the skin. The cat sheds off dander and some people start sneezing and have watery eyes. Fel D 1 is very low in the Siberian breeds.

”She was just a two pound snowball,’ Carol recalls, but now she looks like she rolled around in the gutter after the snowplow went through!” In addition to being a social butterfly, Lily is quite a contortionist and acrobat.

One of her favorite forbidden foibles is jumping onto the kitchen counters or table. Carol recalls her attempts to teach Lily that those areas are off limits:

 a. Spraying her with water - she loves water. Gets in the bathtub.

b. Double sided tape - what a mess that was

c. Aluminum foil - doesn't work

d. Time outs - that was her way to tell us she wanted to go to the lanai

e. Spike mats from Amazon - she learned to walk on them

f. Boat horn - current deterrent - scares neighbors more than her

Lily enjoys socializing with neighboring guinea pigs Pixie and Pie, and also cats Brandy and Pinot Noir. She is very playful, and if you are visiting while wearing sandals, you should expect your toes to get nibbled. She knows when it is 8 pm, as she gets a “Squeeze Up" treat every night, and she is quick to inform Carol and Alan if they are tardy with the tribute.

One might think that Lily is the de facto queen of the home, a perception that seems more likely than not. As additional proof, SHE decides where she will sleep, and it is usually between Alan’s feet. But her roommates are certain of one thing - Lily knows how much they love her!