Happy Father's Day 2020

The photo I am sharing below is one of my all time faves. I was a tiny little kitten, so young that my eyes were amber and hadn't changed to the glorious green that they are today. I just love this photo though because it shows how my love affair with Dad started right from the time I was first adopted!

Happy Father's Day to the BEST DAD EVER!!!!

We  would like to wish all Kitty Dads, Doggy Dads, Uncles, Brothers, Grandfathers, anyone who has taken on the role of "Dad" (even WOMEN who have to take on the role of "Dad" !) a Happy Happy Father's Day!!!

Veterinary Appreciation Day, Medical Updates and Thank you #VeterinaryLove #Trupanion

How things change. Usually this day is a joyous one for me to blog about but this year it sure isn't.

First, Happy Veterinary Appreciation Day to our Vet, Dr.Lewis (also known as "Dr.Smiley") and the entire staff at DePorre Veterinary Hospital. The love, caring and professionalism they have shown to my boys for 13+ years has been unsurpassed. My husband and I ARE and will ALWAYS be grateful.

This is an old collage but I love it,
so I'm using it again.

Veterinary Appreciation Day™ was created by Trupanion in 2015 (Trupanion happens to be the company we have pet insurance with but this is NOT a sponsored post, nor was I required to blog about it). This special day was founded to recognize veterinary professionals and the wonderful work they do. From the front desk to the exam room, veterinary teams offer compassion, advice and care for our furry family members. Veterinary Appreciation Day offers the animal-loving community the opportunity to come together on a single day to show their appreciation to the compassionate veterinary professionals dedicated to helping their pets live the happiest, healthiest lives possible."

The challenges of caring for our pets during the COVID-19 nightmare has been extra trying for all Veterinary practices. Every day these caring Angels have risked their lives for their love and concern for our pets and we are grateful! 

To DePorre Veterinary Hospital, Trupanion Pet Insurance, and ALL OF YOU....THANK YOU. (We sent a fruit tray to DePorre today to show our appreciation and bought the staff lunch approximately a month ago)there are tons of ways to show gratitude for your Vets!

Thank you Ann so much for this gorgeous graphic

Now, on to the bad part. A quick update:

Our beloved Dakota has cancer. It's on his heart. It all happened suddenly. He was diagnosed on June 8th. He is happy, eating super well and rest assured neither my husband, myself, or  our Vet will have him suffer. We will all know when it is time. We are cherishing each and every day we have left.

Thank you again Ann!

For Cody, he is having a biopsy of his intestines done on June 25th.  Dr.Lewis feels there is a strong chance it is NOT Lymphoma, but we will know for sure after the biopsy.

I want to give a HUGE thank you to Trupanion as well. We have had pet insurance with them for years and I have never called them as much during those years as I have in the past two weeks! They are super efficient, professional and compassionate.(They have even put up with my crying on the phone).

A few of you have reached out to me via email and phone and I THANK YOU! I didn't (and still don't)_ want to post about what is going on because while some find blogging about things like this to be cathartic, I am not one of those people. Maybe down the road I will be, but definitely not now. I felt that all of you deserved an update for showing so much concern and love for my boys, THANK YOU!

I am grateful for both of my boys, whatever will be is in the hands of a power much greater than any of us. Life just completely sucks sometimes. Our beloved Dakota has the biggest heart I have ever seen on a dog and he doesn't deserve something as ugly as cancer sitting on it, and our crazy Cody, we hope with all of our might that he has a number of years left with us. I can't bear the thought of losing them both.

Enough sadness, we are enjoying taking slow, short walks with Dakota, Dakota is enjoying that he can eat whatever he wants and he is eating hamburger whenever he wants it and he is gobbling it up. I kiss that handsome face every day and tell him how much he is loved, and every night Cody sits with me on the couch and I pet him, kiss his crabby face (lol) and tell him how much I love him as well. 

Do me a favor ok? Kiss all of your babies from us!

Much love from Caren, Dakota and Cody

A Cat Named Cody

We saw this over at our friend's blog, Indulged Furries  and we found out it is a special meme that our furiend Cathy Keisha was purrticipating in and we decided to follow along. Be sure to check out Cathy Keisha's here:  Stunning Keisha with the A Cat Named meme.

Here we go!

My name is:    Cody, when I was adopted my name was Prince. Mom says I am "The Cat Formerly Known as Prince." When my Mom told my foster Mom she was going to name me Cody, my foster Mom begged her not to! She said: "All pets I know named Cody are CRAZY!!" Mom says now 'Nuff said!!

My age when adopted: 8 weeks old.

My nicknames are:   Codester, Codalicious, Co-dependent, Cuddle Bug, (before I lost a ton of weight, Jelly Belly), Dad calls me "Cody Boy." 

My breed is: American shorthair, Tabby cat.

My main color is: gray.

My age is:  13.

My favorite human food is: CHICKEN, CHICKEN, CHICKEN!!

My biggest fear is: Basically nothing, I am not a fearful kitty. I am brave.

My favorite thing(s) to do: now it's pretty much eat. I eat and I eat and I eat...and I keep losing weight. My thyroid tested borderline. Mom is nervous and I am going to the Vet this Friday again :(

Where do I sleep?  Usually on a chair in the living room, or my play house, or my PTU, or the cot in our spare bedroom, or the couch, or my cat tree!

Do I like car rides?: I tolerate them.

Do I purr?: quite a bit!

Do I snore?  Sometimes!

Now here's the part of the meme where I should post a photo of me:

Mom loves this photo of me so I thought I would share!!! 

Today is also NATIONAL BISCUIT DAY so I thought you would enjoy this video from a few months ago (yeah Mom should have shot it horizontal but whatever!!) of me making biscuits!!!

Mother's Day Greetings!

Happy Mother's Day

To all of the purrfect Mommies, 

as well as men who have taken 
on the role of "Mommy"


and all of the other fabulous
"mothering" role models
  out there, that may not
have textbook "children" of their own!

It doesn't matter if the babies are

 2-legged minus fur,

or 4-legged with fur,

or if the babies,

swim, slither, 

fly, crawl, gallop or hop...

a Mother's love is just the same!!

National Tabby Cat Day!!

To all of our Tabby furiends everywhere!

HAPPY NATIONAL TABBY CAT DAY!!!

I have been in love with tabbies since my first kitty, Bobo, who was an incredibly handsome tabby:

 (Bobo was found as a stray when he came to live with me, he was 6 months old at the time)

And of course our precious and crazy Cody

Tabby cats will ALWAYS have a special place in my heart!!

FROM WIKIPEDIA: "A tabby is any domestic cat (Felis catus) with a distinctive 'M' shaped marking on their forehead, stripes by their eyes and across their cheeks, along their back, and around their legs and tail, and (differing by tabby type), characteristic striped, dotted, lined, flecked, banded or swirled patterns on the body—neck, shoulders, sides, flanks, chest and tummy. "Tabby" is not a breed of cat but a coat type seen in almost all genetic lines of domestic cats, regardless of status.^[1] The tabby pattern is found in many official cat breeds and is a hallmark of the landrace extremely common among the general population of cats around the world. The tabby pattern occurs naturally and is connected both to the coat of the domestic cat's direct ancestor and to those of their close relatives: the African wildcat (Felis lybica lybica), the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris) and the Asiatic wildcat (Felis lybica ornata), all of which have similar coats, both by pattern and coloration. A genetic study of tabbies found five genetic clusters to be ancestral to cats of various parts of the world.^[2]"

Since today is also National Adopt A Shelter Pet Day I also wanted to include a photo that was taken in 2007 a week or so after I adopted Cody after a Petco adoption drive. So hard to believe it was 13 years ago!!

"A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not." Ernest Hemingway

"What do you mean I can't have more Turkey?" (Wordless Wednesday)

sorry about the poor photo quality.
 Had to crop it
 and was also trying to juggle
eating my turkey sandwich at the same time

Sending Purrs and Prayers to Dad Terry of Brian's Home

Mom and I were reading  blog posts yesterday and were extremely sad and worried to read that Dad Terry of Brian's Home is in the hospital with heart issues. We want to thank Sandee at Comedy Plus for letting everyone know.

We deeply believe in the Power of Prayer so Mom and I went through our archives and found this old photo of me that looks like I am praying. Mom, Dakota and I are praying with all of our might that Dad Terry is ok!! He is extra special to us and to sooooooooo many!

Mom is blessed to have met him many times in person, and we consider him to be one of our bestest furiends in the blogging world.  He is just as nice as you would imagine that he would be.

Please take good care Dad Terry, we need you in our lives! We also send our love to his wife Celesta and to all of their kitties and the ferals. 

Much love and many purrs and prayers,

Caren and Cody

Earth Day 2020 (50th Anniversary)

"The theme for Earth Day 2020 is climate action. The enormous challenge — but also the vast opportunities — of action on climate change have distinguished the issue as the most pressing topic for the 50th anniversary."

"Climate change represents the biggest challenge to the future of humanity and the life-support systems that make our world habitable."

"Over the 24 hours of Earth Day, the 50th anniversary of Earth Day will fill the digital landscape with global conversations, calls to action, performances, video teach-ins and more."

"While Earth Day may be going digital, our goal remains the same: to mobilize the world to take the most meaningful actions to make a difference."

"Visit earthday.org on April 22 as we build an Earth Day unlike any other — We’re flooding the digital landscape with livestreamed discussions, a global digital surge, and 24 hours of actions that you can take, right now and from wherever you are."

FROM CAT CHAT WITH CAREN AND CODY:If there are any positives to come out of the Corona Virus nightmare, it is that the animals at Yellowstone are no longer hiding from people, they are resting in the roads and roaming freely. I have read that in California, (in the L.A area), you can actually SEE THE SKY instead of smog.......you can hear the birds.....I am sure there is less pollution in the oceans/rivers, etc. Out of any negative there is always a positive, we just have to look for it!

"I Am Not A Skunk" a Fun Children's book Written by Ellen J. Pilch that is PURRFECT for "National Look-Alike Day"

A number of weeks ago, (make that QUITE a number of weeks ago!), the sweet and most THOUGHTFUL friend-to-many, Ellen J Pilch,  book author as well as the author of the darling blog, 15andmeowing, surprised me with a copy of her latest book "I Am Not A Skunk", which she  sent to me to gift to my cat-loving, almost-2-year-old granddaughter. I am HAPPY to do so!

She will LOVE it!

I was under no obligation at all to feature this darling book, but am more than happy to do so! When I noticed that today is "National Look-Alike Day" I decided it was the PURRFECT day to feature "I Am Not A Skunk" because this day is all about "look-alikes"

You know how they say we all have a twin out there? I am certain that most of you can recall an incident where someone approached you and told you "Oh my you look just like my dear friend such-and-such!!"  (I have had that take place many, many times and all I can say is, Heaven help whomever looks like me...but I digress),

"I Am Not a Skunk" fits this day purrfectly because it is about a homeless black and white (also known as a "Tuxedo kitty), who is excited to find a family, but she has to first convince skeptical Uncle David that she is indeed NOT a skunk. Sarah and her "Auntie" discovered the black and white kitty when they were out planting flowers in their garden. When they told Uncle David about the kitty, he was CERTAIN that it had to be a skunk and NOT a kitty!  When you read "I Am Not a Skunk" you will learn about the ingenious plan that Sarah and "Auntie" devised to prove to Uncle David that the black and white visitor was INDEED A KITTY AND NOT A SKUNK!! 

"I Am Not a Skunk" is loosely based on how Ellen's cat, Emmy came to live with her.

Photo of "Emmy" Graciously provided by Ellen J. Pilch

From the darling illustrations which were done by Nicolas Peruzzo, to the precious story involving mistaken identity, it is certain to have the little ones giggling with delight! It's just precious and I urge you to pick up a copy today! I will be sharing it with my granddaughter soon, (paws crossed), as soon as we are permitted to visit her face-to-face again!

I give it 5 paws up!!

Thanks so much again Ellen, I will be sure to let you know how she likes it! xoxo 

Available on Amazon

It's ok to go a little bananas!!!!

That's why we pulled this photo out of our archives and dusted it off because today is

 BANANA DAY!!!!

It's the day to celebrate bananas in every form. In the above photos Cody was lounging after a "banana high" from his Nip Nanner!!! 

From Days Of The Year:  Banana Day is a bit like a heady mix of April Fool’s Day and Halloween (without the sweets or vandalism) and with a helpful portion of healthy eating thrown in for good measure.

The origins of Banana Day, which is aimed at celebrating bananas in every conceivable sense of the word, are murky. However it’s known that every year students at many prestigious American universities use Banana Day as a way of celebrating this humble lunchbox standard. They eat and share weird and wonderful banana concoctions (banana punch, anyone?), they dress as bananas and they generally go a bit…well…nuts. And bananas too, of course

Throughout these crazy times in which we are all living, I am certain that each and every one of us at some point has felt like we were going (or are about to) go bananas at any time!

Hang in there all, there IS a light at the end of the tunnel!

Lots of love from us to you!

"Brothers Are We" #NationalSiblingsDay

Happy National Siblings Day All!

I know Dakota and I aren't "brothers" in the traditional sense, but we all know that sometimes those who aren't your blood (or species) oftentimes make the BEST siblings of all!

Happy 13th Birthday to our Crazy Cody!!!

HAPPY, HAPPY 13TH BIRTHDAY 

TO OUR  PRECIOUS, CRAZY, INDEPENDENT,

BRAVE, FEISTY, CUDDLY, LOVING BOY!!!

If the above photos look familiar to you, they should! I used them last year. Poor Cody, with everything going on, the constant cleaning and washing of our paws, etc., I decided not to add any more stress for ANY of us and didn't want to make Cody sit through another photo shoot!

It's so hard to believe that Cody is 13!!! He was only 2 when this blog began. Our crazy cuddle bug has brought us so much joy in 13 years, he helped heal my broken heart when my Bobo passed. He is special beyond words. That being said as the years go on he is way more mischievous than he was when he was younger!

With all of the madness in the world right now, when Cody comes to sit next to me on the couch, (which he has done EVERY night), just his presence helps to sooth me. We are blessed to have this crazy cuddle bug and cherish each day with him.

Happy, Happy Birthday my Cody, Dad and I adore you and Dakota does too!! 

We also want to send a HUGE thank you to Timmy, Dad Pete and family for this PAWESOME card!!! We send them TONS of love and hope they are staying safe! Be sure to visit their  blogs here and here!

 Stay safe and healthy everyone, going to try and be better about visiting everyone's blogs.....some days I just can't motivate myself to get it together but I promise I will try and do better! Love to all of you!

Social Distancing Cat Style

Hi All! We are still here (thank COD) and doing well (knock on wood!) First, in the photo above that is NOT a stain on the carpet, it's the shadows :)

Thinking of all of you and everyone affected by the invisible demon plaguing us all.

I am grateful that my life was pretty boring long before the virus gripped the world. We don't eat out often, haven't seen a movie in the theater for quite some time. After having lived alone for many, many, many years being alone (or just with my husband, Cody and Dakota) isn't upsetting to me.

I have been busy cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, washing my hands incessantly, taking walks, and keeping up with people via facebook and when I can, I visit as many blogs as possible.

In the coming weeks I am praying for my family, friends and everyone to stay healthy. I am hoping to start drawing again and do some things that I always said I didn't have time for.

Be sure to take care of yourselves, be safe, stay healthy, and as Cody and Dakota are doing above, practice social distancing!

Lots of love from us to you!

Thankfully I Nap EVERY DAY!

Hi all it's Cody! Well, it appears that Mom dropped the ball again! In our daily planner it states that National Napping Day is today when in fact it was this past Monday! (Shame on you Mom for not checking!) "National Napping Day is observed annually the day following the return of daylight saving time.  National Napping Day provides everyone with the opportunity to have a nap and catch up on the hour of sleep they lost due to the spring forward time change."

"Numerous studies have shown that short 10-20 minute naps are the most effective when midday fatigue hits.  Improvements in alertness, productivity and mood have all been shown to improve with this type of snooze." 

"William Anthony, Ph.D., a Boston University Professor and his wife, Camille Anthony, created National Napping Day in 1999 as an effort to spotlight the health benefits to catching up on quality sleep.  “We chose this particular Monday because Americans are more ‘nap-ready’ than usual after losing an hour of sleep to daylight saving time,” Anthony said"

My Mom is screwed because she stays up til all hours of the morning watching mindless TV and  then gets up at no later than 7am. She will be crabby for at least a week because she NEVER takes naps! 

I just think it's funny because they made a day named after what kitties are smart enough to do EVERY DAY!!

Love, Cody

We Love You Dr.Seuss! #ReadAcrossAmericaDay

A version of this  post first appeared on our blog on March 2nd, 2013....each year we repeat it, why? Because we LOVE it! 

Today is the day,

it's truer than true,

today is the day 

we tell Dr.Seuss

"WE LOVE YOU!"

We GRATEFULLY
THANK GLOGIRLY DESIGN
FOR DESIGNING OUR GRAPHIC!
YOU CAN HAVE ONE TOO BY CLICKING HERE

It is also Read Across America Day
which is ALWAYS celebrated
on Dr.Seuss's birthday


"Across the country, thousands of schools,
 libraries, and community centers
 participate by bringing together kids, teens, and books"
Visit Seussville for all sorts of activities!

Cody won this hat
that was made by
Ms.Ellen over at 15 and Meowing 
March of 2018

Mom first discovered Dr.Seuss

as a child of age 4,

When she would "read"

The Cat In The Hat

she would shout

"I want MORE!"

March 2, 1904

is a date to be remembered

evermore! 

Write it on your wall!

It is  the birthday

of probably the most

popular children's book author of all!

courtesy of cracked.com

He wrote Mom's faves,

oh how she  LOVES those green eggs!

Mom's first long word,

that she ever read,

was "Bartholomew" 

it was in one of Seuss's books

and at age 6,

 Mom figured it out

just by using her head!

It is only appropriate on this

most special day,

that we wish 

Dr. Seuss the
 HAPPIEST

of BIRTHDAYS!!

Happy Birthday to Dakota!!

Hi everyone! It's Cody and today is a super special day! It's my Sheltie brother's 13th birthday!!!!

Mom is all teary-eyed but Dad is his usual self. I came into the living room to see what all of the fuss was about and look at what I saw!

"Yo bro, what is that goofy thing you have on your head? I am turning 13 in April and Mom better not think of putting that on MY head!!"

"OMC you want a kiss? Seriously! OMC I will never live this down....I'll do it today, ONLY because it is such a special birthday,  but NOT any other day!"

"DO NOT TELL ANYONE I did this, OK???"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST SHELTIE BROTHER EVER! YOU ARE MY BESTEST FURIEND AND I LOVE YOU FUREVER AND ALWAYS!

LOVE, CODY

"I'm NOT the Daddy!!" #WorldSpayDay

"World Spay Day—the last Tuesday of February—provides an opportunity for shelter and rescue organizations to highlight their spay/neuter programs and win more community support in the form of donors, volunteers and clients. Created by the Doris Day Animal League in 1995 as Spay Day USA, World Spay Day has been recognized by nearly 70 countries, shining a spotlight on the power of affordable, accessible spay/neuter to save the lives of companion animals, community (feral and stray) cats and street dogs who might otherwise be put down in shelters or killed on the street."

Click to read about the  reasons why you should spay/neuter your pet 
Click below for
All You Need To Know

About World Spay Day

STOP UNWANTED LITTERS WHICH LEAD TO UNNECESSARY DEATHS. LEARN MORE!

I'm Thankful for my "Boys" National Love Your Pet Day"

Today is National Love Your Pet Day

Yes, Yes I KNOW it's every day of the year and every day of the life of your pet. 

“An animal’s eyes have the power

 to speak a great language.” — Martin Buber

This year both of my boys will turn 13 and will become  "teenagers." (in HUMAN years). Dakota on February 28th and Cody on April 1st. (My husband thinks we should have Bar Mitzvahs for both of them!!!) As both of my boys age, they are each experiencing some health issues. Dakota's was primarily his blood pressure (and some hearing loss and arthritis), Cody still possibly has a thyroid condition (he was borderline again when last checked in late 2019 and he will return to the Vet in the next couple of months),  he has lost a bit of weight (I so miss the days when I made fun of him for being chubby!), but they are both as loving as ever. They don't play together as often as they used to but occasionally I will see Dakota strolling over to Cody and planting a kiss on his "I just ate some kitty food" mouth.

I am thankful for each and every day with both of them and am trying not to think too much about the future. I love them both more than I have words for and am hoping that I am giving them  comfortable and HAPPY  senior years. 

It seems as if they both arrived yesterday........where has the time gone?

We are happy to be participating in the: