My beautiful senior cat, Mr. Jazz – the inspiration for the book, Purr Prints of the Heart, and Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day. This was him in early 2013 – each day I was given with him at this point was a precious gift.

I’m in the process of going through pictures of our cats with Dan to determine which one’s I’d like to use for my upcoming book. We have thousands of images – each one more beautiful than the next – but it’s a bittersweet process because it always inevitably happens when we look at pictures – a random one will pop up and hit me painfully in the gut, reminding me of days gone by. This time it was a picture of Jazz. But what’s most interesting, was that it was a picture of him I hadn’t seen before. Considering I combed through what I thought were all of his pictures when I wrote his meow memoir, Purr Prints of the Heart, last year, it was all the more perplexing. Read more

Mia is not amused with my assessment of her…

My Mia is the definition of a finicky cat when it comes to food. I’m sure if you went to the dictionary and looked up the word finicky, her picture would be featured front and center. She’s such a pain in the butt when it comes to feeding her that I have to concoct something exclusively for her because she won’t eat what the others do. And when I come home from blogging/writing conferences with a suitcase full of kitty treats, she snubs them all, looking at me like how dare I even try to give her something that every other cat in the world would want to gobble up. Read more

First off, Dan and I rarely go to the movies. On Oscar night, we could watch the entire show and say to ourselves we didn’t see a single movie nominated for an award. So, when we decided to see the widely publicized Secret Life of Pets, I was excited to say the least. And just so you know, when I go to the movies, I’m the kind of person that doesn’t read reviews, preferring to appreciate the movie on its own merits without prior judgement. Quite frankly, I’m just happy to be out, so I tend to enjoy a movie for the sake of a nice evening with Dan, rather than critiquing and pulling it apart. Read more

Jazz was always in the hallway of the living room, looking at me before he’d jump up onto the couch to snuggle with me.

It’s almost too hard to comprehend, but my beloved Jazz has been gone nearly three years. He’s never left my heart, but recently I’ve felt him all around me in a very strong sense. I don’t know if it’s because his Rainbow Bridge anniversary is August 28th and that’s been in the back of my mind, or if it’s because lately I feel as if Jazmine is “sharing” him with me via herself. Read more

Mia and Peanut sharing some cuddle time!

This picture of Mia and Peanut was taken back in 2009. While I certainly had my share of setbacks back then, I often find myself yearning for those days when life seemed simpler. Everything is just so hectic and stressful nowadays. But for a cat, they seize the moment and take the time to relax. Wise lesson that I hope to learn one day…

I hope this Sunday will give you pause to relax. At the very least, I hope these pictures gave you a smile and a bit of happiness in your day!

Mia and Peanut with mama Zoey. They’re all grown up now, but they still know how to relax!