A goodbye and a hello...

It's been quite some time since I posted. 

 I'm afraid I have a sad update on our sweet Midgie girl.

 We adopted her on August 28, 2016. She was 10 years old. Silly me assumed she would be with us for at least six years since most of our cats have lived to be 16.

That was not meant to be. She got very sick in May and test showed she had severe kidney disease. Despite ours and her Vet's best efforts, in less than a month's time we had to have this little beauty put to sleep. It had become clear that no treatments or fluids or medicines were going to help her and she was clearly not enjoying her life here on earth any longer.

She is now in the arms of the angels, but will always live on in our hearts.

Truthfully, I didn't know when, or even if, I would ever adopt again. It is just so hard when we lose these beautiful, furry companions.

 After Midgie's passing my aunt, who is a huge animal lover, sent me the most beautiful condolence card, kitty magnets (including a black one), and a paperweight with the most beautiful sentiment. The note inside the card she sent encouraged me not to wait to adopt again. She reminded me that there are so many kitties in shelters waiting for homes, and that adopting another cat would in no way lessen my love for Midgie or her memory; rather, it would be a beautiful tribute to Midgie, also a shelter cat, to give another shelter cat a home.

So the search began. And then ended.

I spotted this handsome guy and made arrangements to visit him on July 7th, which was my Dad's birthday. I took that to be a good sign.

Meet Mr. Buffy!

Enter this boy, a 10 year-old buff-colored kitty who'd had a very, very hard life. This sweet guy was found as a stray and needed a lot of loving care to get him looking this good. He had to undergo several hours of anesthesia to shave his extremely matted fur. In addition, he was missing half of his teeth; and the teeth that he did have left were so infected and abscessed that they all had to be removed. As a result, his little tongue sometimes hangs out of his mouth. And if all that wasn't enough, he was FIV+.

This is a photo of poor Buffy, taken before he was rescued. Somebody was putting out cans of cat food for him so he could at least have something to eat. This photo was taken in the dead of winter, which can be brutal here in New England. 

Well, after going to the shelter and meeting him, it was a done deal. 

My heart melted for this boy and all he had endured in his life.

These are some of the first photos I took of both Midgie and Buffy when they came to live with us. It was like deja vu. Both adopted my studio office as their home base, and both Midgie and now Buffy plunk themselves down next to my chair and stare up at me when they want to get my attention. It's almost like Midgie was channeling through Buffy.

 And just like my Midgie in the very first photo, Buffy's favorite place to be is on top of my desk.

Buffy and his catnip toy.

I think he's quite happy here in his new home. I think I even see the hint of a smile!

(He also has a very drooly mouth due to stomatitis, a very painful mouth full of ulcers that is taking a very long time to clear up due to him being FIV+.)

Here he is sleeping soundly on the window seat in the family room.

He is very content to just hang out in the studio, especially if I'm in here.

Now you might be asking how he and Baby are getting along...

 I wish I could say they immediately fell in love, but that's not the case. Baby is not all that keen on our new resident and she has let him know by hissing and spitting at him. At first he ignored it, then he started to get annoyed by it. Thankfully, for the most part, they just stay clear of each other. I hope in time things will improve but, if not, they will just need to accept the fact that neither of them is going anywhere! 

So that's what's been going on here! But one more thing before I go!!

Within the next day or two I'm going to host a giveaway -

These beautiful hand shaped earrings, inspired by the earrings that Picasso gave Frida Kahlo, were designed by my Amanda and created by RA HA jewelry as a limited edition of 50 pairs. Right now Amanda still has the choice of Sterling Silver or 14K Gold Filled in her shop. At the time of the drawing (one week from when I post), you will have your choice if she still has both colors left; if not you will receive the color she has left in stock. She is definitely going to hold onto one pair for the giveaway. If you'd like to read more about them, or if you want to purchase a pair rather than wait to see if you win, you can check them out in Amanda's Etsy shop. Here is a link to the earrings. They'd make a fabulous gift for the upcoming holiday season!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/561261013/hand-earrings-artist-collaboration-with?ref=shop_home_active_7

I'll be back soon with the give-away!

Donna