Happy Easter from all of us at Zee & Zoey’s!

I’m feeling a bit nostalgic this Easter. I remember years ago, when my kids were young, how we’d have a house full of company. My brother, Dave, and his wife, Kathy, would visit from up North and they’d bring their 3 kids, as well as Kathy’s parents. My Mom lived nearby and we also had a revolving door of resident cats, dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, and more. We’d spend the time coloring eggs, swimming, going for walks, going to the beach, grilling outside, and whatever else we could think of.

No matter the event, there was always one of my cats helping out. This was Jazz along with my youngest son, Joe, and my niece, Allison back in 2000.

It was hectic and crazy and all kinds of nutty, but it was also wonderful. It seems everyone is all grown up now – my kids are long since moved out, Dave and Kathy’s kids are all in college, and the extended family I now share with Dan are also all grown up and we normally don’t see them around Easter. I’ll still be celebrating the day – thankfully my boys both live near me, as well as my Mom, and they’ll be coming by for dinner, but it’s a much quieter time now.

My sons, Chris and Joe, back in 1998 when we were in the backyard preparing for an Easter egg hunt. Also with us is Bailey and Bandit – no matter what we were doing, we always had a parade of dogs following us!

The cats will probably be the only ones crazy – typically signified by jumping up on the counter while I’m trying to cook, or on the dining room table while we’re trying to eat (insert feigned shock that the cats do this – “oh my goodness, I’ve never seen them do that before!”). And of course, if Chris brings his dog, that will also cause some nutty behavior with my cats, along with a few nose swats, hisses, and general displeasure from one or two of them.

Cats on the table? I don’t see any cats on the table…

It doesn’t mean we won’t have a good time, or that I’m unhappy, it’s just different, that’s all. I guess I had imagined by this point in my life I’d have grandchildren as opposed to grandpets, but as long as I have love in my life, that’s all that matters, and I’m surrounded by lots of that – both in human and fur form!

Easter is a calmer time now and instead of a house full of kids, we celebrate with a house full of furbabies!

And much as my cats might appear to be annoyed by the company, deep down they’re not. Zee and Peanut revel in the attention (obsessively so) and Rolz and Jazmine have quite cleverly figured out that having a dog in the house increases the chances of treats and snacks happening more frequently.

Keep Easter safe for your cats by avoiding dangerous temptations such as curling ribbon, cellophane grass, chocolate, and Easter lilies.

What kind of day will you all be having? Whatever you’re doing, I hope it’s a day filled with blessings. And don’t forget how curious our feline friends can be  – Easter is a wonderful time but there can be many things dangerous to cats. Curling ribbons and cellophane grasses if ingested could become entangled in their intestines, causing them to twist and close off requiring dangerous surgery. Chocolate is highly toxic to cats and so are those beautiful Easter lilies we are all familiar with. And if a cat eats a small toy or decoration, they could possibly choke on it, so really the best thing to do is keep these types of temptations away from your cat. To be safe, keep both the phone number of your veterinarian and the pet poison helpline programmed on your phone in case of emergencies (poison helpline is 855-764-7661).

The CWA conference will be June 7 -9 this year and will be held at the Hyatt Regency North Houston.

I sound like a broken record lately – between the issue with my eye and other things, it’s been one physical ailment after another, most recently a nasty flu bug that had me bed-ridden for a couple days. But it’s not all bad, in-between the blurriness, a fever, coughing, sniffling, and a massive headache; I got the wonderful news that I was the recipient of six Certificates of Excellence from the Cat Writers’ Association. Read more

Pre-order your custom-created shirt today!

As cat lovers, we’ve all been there – listening to the blah, blah, blah of a conversation we have no interest in until the topic of cats come up. If that’s you, reserve your custom created T-shirt today! Pre-orders will be taken between now and April 9, 2018, with orders scheduled to ship on, or before April 24, 2018.

The shirt comes in a super-soft, charcoal black tri-blend of 50% poly, 25% combed and ring-spun cotton, and 25% rayon. They are a ladies fashion fit AND RUN SMALL. If you prefer a looser shirt, please order a size up. To determine your size, take your favorite tee, and with the shirt flat, measure from armpit to armpit, and from top of the shoulder to the hem – then compare it to the specs below:

♦ Small – Width approx. 15.75″ / Length 26″ (Size 2 – 4, bust 31.5”)
♦ Medium – Width approx. 16.5″ / Length 26.5″ (Size 6 – 8, bust 33”)
♦ Large – Width approx. 17.5″ / Length 27.13″ (Size 8 – 10, bust 35”)
♦ XL – Width approx. 18.5″ / Length 27.75″ (Size 10 – 14, bust 37”)
♦ XXL – Width approx. 19.5″ / Length 28.38″ (Size 14 – 18, bust 39”)

Shirts are $23.50 each, sizes S – XL, and $24.50 for XXL and come with a complimentary copy of the custom-illustrated, full-color, limited edition cat book, The Chronicles of Zee & Zoey – A Journey of the Ordinarily Extraordinary (retail value of $21.95). More than one shirt can be ordered, but special book offer is limited to one book per order, U.S. residents only. The book will ship after you place your order via ground parcel service and when the shirts are available, they will ship separately via First Class mail.

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Show the world how disinterested you are, unless it’s a conversation about cats!

Thank you and for more about the book, please visit here.

The Chronicles of Zee & Zoey – A Journey of the Extraordinarily Ordinary

So, it’s St. Patrick’s Day…or in my world, St. Catrick’s Day. I had hoped to put together a fun new graphic for the day, but unfortunately, life has stepped in with different plans. You may recall I had emergency retina surgery for my left eye back in January. Well, things have been a bit blurry lately and I might need additional surgery to take care of a wrinkle that has developed in the retina.

I’m trying to stay positive. My eye doctor is fantastic, so paws crossed it’s just a minor blip and I won’t need surgery. I’ll know within the next few weeks, but until then, it’s me at my computer, squinting as I type, hoping I’m not making too many typos!

Have a great St. Catty’s Day all!! Enjoy some of my favorite pictures from years past and have a wonderful, green day!

Peanut is more like a lamb than a lion in personality, but she gives it her all for this blog post!

Considering we’re not even two weeks into March yet and the northeast has already been hit with flooding, severe winds, brutal temperatures, and now a major snowstorm, this month has no doubt roared in as a lion. We’ve had chilly temperatures here in Florida, ranging from 50 – 70 degrees and when you’re a cat, that can mean only one thing:

It’s window whiffing season!!

Will today be our lucky day?

I don’t know about your house, but at ours, there’s not much better than an open window that allows for the intoxicating smells of the outdoors to come wafting indoors! As soon as the cats hear the window being opened, they are drawn to it like a magnet and if they’re lucky, they might happen upon a visiting bird or squirrel!

Score! It is our lucky day!! A squirrel sighting!

I love being able to open the windows because cats can easily get bored of the same old, same old routine, especially if they’ve been cooped up all winter with no open windows. If it’s safe for you to open your windows, it’s a great way to provide some stimulation and enrichment for your cat, as they are wild by nature and this gives them a wonderful opportunity to take in all the sights and smells around them.

And don’t forget, it’s Daylight Saving today, so our clocks need to be set one hour ahead, which means more time for window whiffing! Whoo Hoo! Have a great Sunday everyone and stay safe and warm! Hopefully, our friend the lamb will be here sooner than later!

More sunlight equals more window whiffing! Whoo Hoo indeed!