There are a couple of facts when it comes to cats – one being, unfortunately, that there are millions of them at any given moment living in shelters in need of a good home, and two, that it’s been proven cats can decrease our depression, stress and anxiety levels, lower our blood pressure, and decrease the risk of heart attack and stroke by having them around. With our current COVID landscape, defined by stress and anxiety, and June being Adopt a Shelter Cat Month, it seems the purr-fect time to bring that feline shelter companion to your life and household. Save a cat’s life and they save yours. Seems fair to me. Read more

Zoey back in 2008 with kitten, Rolz. Happy Mother’s Day to her, too, because she’s a mom, too!

Mom. Three little letters, but three little letters that are unique in meaning to all of us. For me, I’m a mom to my sons, Chris and Joe. I’m a daughter to my mom, and a step-mom to Dan’s kids – Crystal, Michael, and Jackie, as well as a daughter-in-law to his mom. I’m also a mother-in-law to Chris’s husband, Jason, and I’m a grandma to not only their dogs Rick and Rocco, and cat Rose, but a first-time grandma to their adopted son, Calvin. And, of course, I’m a cat mom to my gang – Zee, Zoey, Mia, Peanut, Rolz, Kizmet, Jazmine, and our newest feline family member, Shadow.

Through all these roles, there have been good times and bad. Highs, lows, ups, and downs. That’s what life is – a kaleidoscope quilt built of memories and relationships. Whatever the day is for you, I hope you make the best of it. For me, I’ll be spending some masked time with my grandson and I can’t wait. Take care everyone and I hope you enjoy my Mother’s Day photos.  

Christmas with my boys – Chris and Joe.

Enjoying summer vacation with Crystal and Jackie in Key West.

Me and my beautiful mom.

Hanging out at the Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood a couple of years ago with my step-son Michael who was visiting from Boston. I was made fun of for being a Dolphin Fan, but we won the game the next day against the Patriots!

Me with Chris, Jason, and my grand-dogs, Rick and Rocco.

Celebrating Mother’s Day a few years ago with Dan’s mom, Dotty, along with Jackie.

One of my all-time favorite pictures that truly represents the bond between me and my cats. This was all seven before we added Shadow to the mix.

Can’t forget my newest feline sweetie to capture my heart this Mother’s Day – Shadow.

My favorite mom role? Being grandma to my first grandson, precious Calvin.

It’s a Blog Hop!

Happy 1st birthday dear Shadow!

The new journey started on November 8th, 2019, at 5:45 a.m. I know this because that’s 10 minutes after my then seven cats began the unnecessary preamble of meows and paw pats to my face to get me out of bed at 5:35 a.m. to feed them breakfast. It takes me about 10 minutes to accommodate the individual feeding needs of each of them before I plunk their bowls on the floor and move on to my next task of servitude, scooping their litter boxes and bringing the bagged contents to the trash bin in the garage. Read more

I shared this graphic a couple of weeks ago on a Friday but it remains true to the landscape of COVID-19. Just what day is it anymore?

The dichotomy is interesting and not one I’m entirely capable of expressing or even understanding. I’m living in the present, going through the motions of life, but somehow, I’m detached from it all, as if perhaps it’s happening to someone else as I watch it from the sidelines. Each day runs into the next with no real beginning or end, time seemingly defined by body counts, not days, with the only real marker of time the loud and persistent daily reminders from my cats who demand meals with regularity, showing no regard for my malaise or inability to comprehend the newly defined COVID-19 landscape all around me. Read more

Easter Sunday, as it’s known in Christianity, marks the anniversary of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven and is typically a day steeped deep in traditions to celebrate the miracle – most of them involving social gatherings, whether groups of people at church or family celebrations at home. But today, amid a global pandemic, tradition is replaced with social distancing, cleaning and disinfecting taking precedence, and the holiday will have to be reinvented. We can still celebrate and look for the deeper meanings of love and hope in a very scary and uncertain world, but we must keep safety and smart cleaning in mind, especially in those households with cats who are cooped up in close quarters with us. Read more