Sam Popped my Balloon!!

When my parents were in town visiting, we had lunch at Red Robin. Anyone familiar with Red Robin knows that as a kid, the highlight of the visit is getting a balloon.  After Alaina was good and finished what I evaluated as an acceptable amount of her lunch, we let her pick a balloon from the hostess stand at the front.  We were very careful to hang on to it outside and it made it all the way home safe.  As most know, balloons quickly loose their novelty.  This balloon was no exception! By that evening it was already floating ghostlike around the family room at eye level and by the next morning it was grazing the floor.  The appeal, other than occasionally unnerving the dog, was lost. The balloon floated around a few more days and received the occasional kick to get it out of the way.  Finally after work one night I scooped it up and handed it to Daddy and asked him quietly to deflate and dispose of the balloon.  He took a pair of scissors to the balloon and let the air out and then placed the balloon on the desk next to him to be thrown away.
Unfortunately, the balloon got left on the desk overnight and the next morning, Sam, our cat, noticed the dangling ribbon hanging down.  Being the playful cat he is, he latched onto the ribbon with his teeth and took off across the room, pulling the deflated balloon after him.  After a conversation with Daddy about why we do not leave deflated balloons lying around with little ones, I asked him to take it away from the cat.  However, before Daddy had a chance, Alaina entered the room and spotted her prize balloon in the clutches of a large feline.
Alaina: "SAM! YOU POPPED LAINA'S BALLOON?!?" (Yes, she talks about herself in the third person...frequently)
Sam: *Look of confusion*
A: "Sam!!  You NAUGHTY kitty! You no pop Laina's balloon! You go to TIME OUT!!!"
Daddy: "Alaina, Sam is a kitty.  He doesn't go to timeout."
A: "Sam popped Laina's ballon! *And other Alaina-isms we can't quite understand about eating her lunch and getting her balloon.*"
D: *Talking to Sam* "Sorry buddy, you're just going to have to take the heat for this one..."


Even though Sam had nothing to do with the popping of "Laina's Balloon" we had to let him to take the hit on this one.  Nobody wants to confess to their child that they popped their 'beloved' balloon.  Thankfully in the future there will be another trip to Red Robin, and I am sure, another balloon...