Happy Easter!

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You may remember Tony & Tiger from a post last September:  Feline Funday 5.  On March 5th, Tony joined Tiger at the Rainbow Bridge. On Saturday, March 23rd, Tony & Tiger crossed the Rainbow Bridge and entered heaven together, following a memorial service where friends and family gathered to celebrate the life of one very sweet soul and to say, “Good-bye,” – for now.

I met Tony during July of last year.  I stepped aboard Viva Mas, greeted by the crew.  Myself, two scared cats, and an anxious, irritated human in tow – I was especially thankful for one of the new faces welcoming us. I was also taken aback by the striking good looks of said face.  ”Don’t worry; I’ve got them,” he said with such confidence and sweetness. Tony took the kitties to the master stateroom and returned, ensuring that we were able to easily settle in.  He quickly became a friend to AJ, Marlin, Papa Bear & myself.

Tony was one of the highlights of my 2012 summer, a summer during which I encountered a surprising number of rainbows . . . they were seemingly everywhere!  I saw a good many of those rainbows with Tony.  No doubt, I’ll always remember my sweet friend when I see rainbows in the future, knowing that Tony and Tiger are together just on the other side, patiently awaiting a family reunion.

I will always remember Tony for his warm smile, kind heart, love of cats, and undaunting adoration for his mother.  Tony lived life to the fullest, thankfully, as his time here was short – a mere 33 years.  During that time, he touched many hearts & elicited many a smile!  We can all learn from this . . . live life to the fullest and be kind to all we whom we encounter!

“Life is short, break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, and never forget anything that made you smile. Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” –Mark Twain

Thoughts, prayers, peace, hugs & belly rubs to Tony’s family!

VIVA MAS!

Rest in peace, Sweet Tony.

Captured memories that will always make me smile & think of Tony . . .

A special delivery from Grandma…

Easter is right around the corner and I hope everyone enjoys a wonderful day with family and friends!  I wanted to share photos from my first Easter (2007).  I was an only grandcat for quite some time and Grandma spoiled me rotten (she still does!). Grandma is a very special lady who makes everyone around her feel special, too!  Check out my super special surprise Easter delivery, lovingly packaged by Grandma!

Happy Easter!  There’s no love like belly rubs.

Gotta run; catch ya’ later.  –AJ the Kitty Boy

In January, we learned that Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium was a possibility in London.  At the time, it was one cat lady’s fanciful feline dream, unsure if the funds could be raised.  When I checked a day before the crowd funding campaign closed, the campaign was still shy the necessary funds.  However, when the time came, there was an excess of funds & it appears that Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium will be a dream come true for its founder, the team she’s assembled, many who call London home, and the more than fifteen million international tourists who visit London annually.

What can you expect to find at Lady Dinah’s?  The vision is a quaint cafe where guests may relax and feel special, spending time with the resident cats while also indulging and unwinding in “a comfortable wingback chair” with “a hot cup of tea, a book, and a cat.”  To better gauge what Lady Dinah’s has to offer, take a moment to peruse Lady Dinah’s Shopify Store where you may purchase the same experiences you’ll find in the cafe itself!

Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium will be located in East London, though the exact location has yet to be found.  My brothers live in London so I inquired with them about the area they defined as “big and varied pockets that are hip and trendy; the entire are is gritty-up-and-coming.”  Certainly sounds like the purr-fect area for this venue!

When will the cafe open?  May, perhaps.  In addition to securing the exact location, the brainchild of this venue, Lauren Pears, must apply for a Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa.  She’s Australian and must return to Australia to do so.  Lauren is most hopeful the visa will be granted; otherwise, the team she’s pulled together is poised to make her dream come true.

I’m excited about following this project as it progresses and cannot wait to visit Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium once it opens!

I’ll update you again soon, but if you want to read up on Lady Dinah’s yourself, check out the links below:

Lady Dinah’s Shopify Store

Lady Dinah’s Blog

Lady Dinah on Facebook

Lady Dinah on Twitter

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First Cat Cafe in London:  Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium (Funding Needed)

Anthropologie’s classic “Here and There” Tee:  BIG CATS

My personal favorite:  Chartreuse with asymmetrical shapes and BIG CATS!

Have you ever wanted to be on the prowl with the big cats?  I certainly have!  And, with this Anthropologie tee, you can be!

In a recent newsletter from Anthropologie, the cute turquoise tee with dachshunds was featured.  As Anthropologie often has animal prints, I scrolled through to see what else might be there, hoping for cats, finding big cats, a terrier, and not one, but two nautical prints.  Big cats & nautical; it doesn’t get much better than that (for this girl)!

Available online and in stores, the Here and There tee ($48) will provide you comfort and style.

100% cotton and machine washable with sleeves just above the elbow and a detailed boat neck with complementary buttons on either side. Love the wildly spotted big cats!

A fun tee fun in which you can be on the prowl with the big cats!

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Purr-fect Little Black Cat Dress

Be sure to count your blessing; we kitty boys certainly do! We’re thankful for one another & we’re thankful for you!

It was late Spring 2010 and I was on a mission to adopt the purr-fect little brother for AJee.

One Saturday afternoon, we ran across an adorable silver kitten named Niko with bright blue crossed eyes (we really wanted a blue-eyed kitten.).  Not ready to make such a big decision, we did not adopt Niko that afternoon.  On Monday, I contacted Furkids, to inquire about Niko, learning that he was a Tabby/Siamese mix, but had been adopted over the weekend.  I was heartbroken.

As we had talked about adopting Niko, Papa Bear commented, “He’s really cute and so sweet.  Plus, he just looks like a ‘Marlin.’ He’s the perfect good luck Marlin kitty boy.”  Papa Bear can always use a good luck Marlin!  His hobby is sportfishing – for big game; and blue marlin are the prized catch (and release)!  So, now the mission was to find the purr-fect Tabby/Siamese kitten with blue eyes, our purr-fect good luck Marlin!

We looked for months before we ran across SlyMarlin on Petfinder.com.  The morning we found him, we had driven 90 minutes to look at a litter we just didn’t bond with.  I came home, jumped on Petfinder.com and there he was, 90 minutes in the opposite direction!  But – we knew he was the one…it was LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!

When Marlin and I left the animal shelter and stopped at PetSmart, a lady stopped me, saying, “Your kitten looks so much like the kitten I recently adopted.”  She had adopted Niko!  I was elated to learn that Niko was doing well in his fur-ever home with three kitty siblings.  His mom adored him.  We had all found our purr-fect matches.

“No doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.”  –Max Ehrmann

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:

Wordless Wednesday 15:  Love at First Sight!

Love at First Sight: Not Just Another Cute Kitty Face

Love at First Sight: Bonding with the Kitten Hiding in the Corner

Love at First Sight:  Not for the Cats!

Wordless Wednesday 20 / Name This Creature!

Definitely NOT a Cat…

Check back tomorrow to learn how this photo is relevant!

We miss all of our friends in the Blogosphere greatly! Our home Internet has a glitch that’s yet to be uncovered / resolved & Mama Bear’s been so busy with her “day job” that there’s no time during the day to catch up with everyone. Hugs & belly rubs from AJ, Marlin & Mama Bear!