I'm Gonna Need Some Shades #SundaySelfies

We're joining our friends at The Cat On My Head for the Sunday Selfies blog hop!

National Coffee Day #CaturdayArt

Visit more artsy kitties at Athena's Caturday Art blog hop!

And now our weekly answers for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, hosted by 15andmeowing and Four-Legged Furballs!

Mudpie's answers:

1. A cat's love will last forever. Even when we're no longer by your side, we'll always live in your heart.

2. It’s all fun and games until someone gets scratched.

Mommy's answers:

3. The best time of the day is late in the evening when Mudpie and I can cuddle while I watch TV or read.

4. Patience is not my strong suit. I always say that when it was passed out I skipped the line.

Mommy & Me Selfie Gone Wrong #PetPhotoFails

Meows from Mudpie!

Today we're super excited to be joining our sweet friends Paisley, Webster and Miss C from The Cuddlywumps Cat Chronicles for the Pet Photo Fails blog hop!

On the morning of Mommy's birthday a couple weeks ago she wanted to take a special "Mommy & me" selfie. Let's just say it went downhill really fast because she has no idea how to take a selfie.

Mommy, what were you thinking??? I'm SO embarrassed. Thank Cod I still look amazing regardless.

Remember Me Thursday 2018

Meows from Mudpie!

I was once a shelter cat. Through circumstances we'll never know I ended up at a rescue in western New York, and when I didn't get adopted there I was transferred to Vermont where I found my forever home.

I was one of the lucky ones, but millions of kitties just like me aren't so lucky. They live without food, warmth, and love, and then either die on the streets or in a shelter because no one ever shows up to adopt them.

It's hard to believe, but...

Each year in the United States over 2.7 million orphan pets lose their lives without finding a home.

Yet only 30% of pets in US households come from rescue facilities.

That's why animal-lovers and animal welfare organizations across the globe will unite today with a Remember Me Thursday pet candle-lighting ceremony. The candles, which will be lit on the exact same day across the world, will honor the millions of pets who lost their lives without the benefit of a loving home and shine a light on the millions of healthy pets who are still awaiting adoption. The Remember Me Thursday global awareness campaign encourages individuals to light a candle this day (literally or virtually) and to opt to adopt, reducing the millions of orphan pets euthanized each year.

Orphaned pets can't speak for themselves. We are their only voice. Spread the word about Remember Me Thursday on Facebook, Twitter and other social media channels. Don’t forget to use hashtag #RememberMeThursday to share your thoughts and feelings about the importance of pet adoption.

CONTEST: This year, you can win life-saving funds or food for a rescue or shelter of your choice! Take a photo of your rescue pet and tag the picture with #RememberMeThursday and @hwac on Twitter and Instagram to be entered into the challenge!

Today we're shining a light on a cat who stole Mommy's heart when he crossed our Facebook feed, and is currently available for adoption at Homeward Bound, Addison County's Humane Society in Middlebury, Vermont.

Formerly feral Phillip (say that 3 times fast!!!) has now been brought back to the shelter twice due to "changing circumstances" within his adoptive families. Phillip arrived at Homeward Bound through a TNR clinic - he was trapped on a farm with several other cats but they soon realized he wasn't a barn cat like the others. His unique ears could be his breeding, could be the result of living outside through tough Vermont winters, or both! Phillip is about 5 years old and gets along well with other cats.

The third time simply must be the charm for this sweet boy!!! Contact Homeward Bound if you think you might have the purrfect forever home for him.

Last year at this time we shared this adorable post on our Facebook page. As a former shelter cat I know the words are true. My greatest wish is for that precious little guy, and every other homeless kitty to find a loving home just like mine.

Please remember: Animal shelters are full of kitties who are in need of a second chance. They are homeless due to no fault of their own. If you have room in your heart and your home for a new best friend, one is as close as your nearest shelter. If you're not in a position to adopt right now, share these precious babies' stories. They are counting on us...let's not let them down.

Hairballs in the Hampurr

Meows from Mudpie!

A couple weeks ago we told you about the "Stuff with Cat Hair" laundry hamper we got in our latest CatLadyBox. Mommy mentioned using it for storage...once I was through with it.

Here's what she meant!

Blurry blooper...but, raspberry shot!!!

Book Review: Prancie's Prayer by Ellen Pilch

Prancie's Prayer is the first picture book written by Ellen J Pilch and published by Mirror Publishing. It is about an orange cat who finds herself homeless one cold winter. She has trouble finding something to eat and a warm place to sleep, but with a little help from above she finds all of that and more in her wonderful forever home. The story is loosely based on how the author's cat arrived at her doorstep. You can read more about Prancie and her family at 15andmeowing.com.

Ellen Pilch is one of the sweetest, most giving cat ladies I know in the cat blogosphere, so I was beyond honored when she asked me to review her first book. The story starts when a sweet orange cat named Pumpkin gets into a little mischief by knocking trinkets off a shelf to wake her humans for breakfast, but when something breaks she's dumped out in the cold. Now in search of a new home she stumbles upon a family decorating for Christmas and invites herself inside. Is this truly her forever home this time? Pumpkin knows how she can find out!

This book is beyond adorable, both the story with its simple but important message, and the delightful illustrations. I can't think of a better stocking stuffer for animal-loving children this Christmas, but it can also be enjoyed year round. Pumpkin/Prancie is sure to steal your heart!

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. As members of the Amazon Associates affiliate program, if you click on our links and buy something Mudpie gets a little money for her piggy bank!

Welcome Back, Cuddle Weather! #SundaySelfie

Meows from Mudpie!

Guess what? Cuddle weather has finally returned, and I'm snuggling up with anything sitting still, whether it's Mommy, my grandparents, or a good ol' stuffie pile. I couldn't even bother to raise my head from this cozy stuffie pile to take a selfie, so I hope you don't mind my laying down on the job! I look pretty dreamy, if I do say so myself!

We're joining our friends at The Cat On My Head for the Sunday Selfies blog hop!

Caturday Art

Visit more artsy kitties in Athena's Caturday Art blog hop!

And now our weekly answers for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, hosted by 15andmeowing and Four-Legged Furballs!

Mudpie's answers:

1. The last time I panicked was Wednesday night. It was very late and I was batting my favorite new crumpled piece of paper across the floor, when it landed under the portable air conditioner!!! I tried to be very adult about it - I analyzed the situation by looking under the AC from all angles, even behind it, but my little arm wasn't long enough to get it out! Thankfully Mommy saw what had happened, and after oohing and aahing over how adorable and smart my reaction to the tragedy was, she moved the AC to free my toy.

2. My favorite word is LOVE.

Mommy's answers:

3. Loving cats isn't simply what I do. It's who I am.

4. Tough times are a blessing in disguise. They teach us to appreciate the good times more...at least that's what I try to tell myself.

Fall Must-Haves from Triple T Studios

Mudpie and I can hardly believe that fall is finally knocking on our doorstep. This has been such a hideously long and hot summer here in Vermont (the 2nd hottest in history) that at times it seemed like we might never be able to cuddle again. Thankfully the last few days have felt heavenly chilly and Mudpie has already asked me to pull out her Santa blankie, which I was more than happy to do.

With fall comes a reemergence of my favorite cozy things - cocoa, hoodies, and snuggling with my fur baby while I read or watch TV. It's a time to start thinking about the upcoming holidays of Halloween and Christmas. It's also a time to think about updating your cold weather wardrobe and planning your holiday shopping list!

With that in mind, here are our fall picks for both cat ladies and their feline friends from one of our favorite online shops,  Triple T Studios...

Embroidered Cat Tunic

Cat Snap Cardigan

Pink Cat Scarf

Sleeping Cat Night Light with Remote



Cotton Rope Cat Bed



Halloween Bat Cat Scratcher



Halloween Cat Toys

Are you ready to go shopping? 
What's your favorite thing on our list?

This post contains affiliate links.

Meow Like A Pirate Day

Pirate Mudpie is very protective of her toy box...

(Please don't tell her she's way too cute to ever be scary...)

Exciting News from Author Gwen Cooper

Last week I had the exciting opportunity to chat on the phone with Gwen Cooper, author of Homer's Odyssey, Homer: The Ninth Life of a Blind Wonder Cat, Love Saves the Day, and the Curl Up with a Cat Tale series. Gwen asked us to share some exciting news about her brand new release, My Life in a Cat House.

Here's what you need to know, straight from Gwen!

MY LIFE IN A CAT HOUSE comes out on October 30th, and I'm donating 100% of my royalties on all pre-orders and first-week sales (through November 4th) to Blind Cat Rescue and Sanctuary in Raleigh, NC. Also, if you pre-order a copy of the book from your local bookstore (including chain bookstores, like B&N), you can enter to win a visit from me! Just email me at gwen@gwencooper.com with your name, your city/state, the name of the bookstore you pre-ordered the book from, and the number of copies you pre-ordered. Each pre-ordered copy counts as an entry, so if you buy two you double your chance of winning! And, of course, the more people who pre-order in the same town, the likelier that the winner will be in that town--so call your local bookstore TODAY, and get your friends to pre-order, too!

Online pre-orders from Amazon, etc. will not count for contest entry unless you pre-ordered online September 16th or earlier. I will, however, make the same 100% donation to Blind Cat Rescue regardless of where the book was ordered/sold.

Please take note -- for your donation and contest entry to count -- if you pre-order the book from your local bookstore, you then must actually go to the store and purchase your pre-ordered copy or copies between October 30th and November 4th. If you pre-order but don't buy and the bookstore has to ship their copy back, I will get charged for that out of my royalties, and it will take money away from the Blind Cat Rescue donation.

I'm also looking for a SMALL group of people to help me out in rallying pre-orders/donations to BCR. This SMALL group of people will get my private email address and home phone number (as we'll be in touch quite a bit), and whichever one rallies the largest number of pre-orders in their area will also get a personal visit from me. Anybody who's interested in being a part of this (small) group of Homer's Heroes can contact me at gwen@gwencooper.com. :)

Jukebox Junkie

In addition to being a country girl I've always enjoyed the early rock & roll music of the late '50s and early '60s. (This is one of the many reasons why I love Conway so much...he's the best of both worlds!) I'm crazy about that whole era and have often felt that I was "born too late."

While I was in the market for the Victrola record player I bought this summer, I was not in the market for a new CD player...until I saw this Victrola Retro Desktop Jukebox CD player. As far as I'm concerned, Conway's music just belongs on a jukebox, and I knew it would make the purrfect addition to my collection. In fact, back in 1990 he was one of the inaugural 10 artists inducted in the Jukebox Hall of Fame on the occasion of the jukebox's centennial birthday!

It arrived on Friday and I love it even more than I thought I would. It is SO impressive looking and the sound is amazing.

View this post on Instagram

Crazy in love with my new toy...because Conway belongs on a jukebox ❤️❤️❤️ #conwaytwitty #countrymusic #countrylegend #countrygold @victrola_com

A post shared by Melissa & Mudpie (@mochasmysteriesmeows) on Sep 14, 2018 at 6:00pm PDT

Instagram limited me to one minute, so here's the whole song I posted. It's one of my favorites because it shows how unreal his voice was.

Some of you have said you really enjoy Conway's rock music, so here's a few more songs you would've been likely to hear on a jukebox back in the day!

There will be loads of sounds from that era coming from my jukebox because in addition to having 95% of his country catalog on CD and vinyl, I just bought this amazing 8-CD, 202 song box set that encompasses his entire rock career...Mudpie's poor little ears!!!

Do you love the nostalgia of a jukebox as much as I do?

Up Close & Purrsonal #SundaySelfie

We're joining our friends at The Cat On My Head for the Sunday Selfies blog hop!

Autumn Is For Torties #CaturdayArt

Visit more artsy kitties at Athena's Caturday Art blog hop!

And now our weekly answers for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, hosted by 15andmeowing and Four-Legged Furballs!

Mudpie's answers:

1. Being ridiculously adorable is hard work.

2. If all the love I receive was worth money, then I would be rich.

Mommy's answers:

3. I am proud of this article I wrote about torties for the Cole & Marmalade website. Cole and Marm have 2 new adorable tortie sisters, Jugg and Zig Zag, and after they shared my article again on social media this week it has practically gone viral!

4. If I could time travel, I would (re)-visit the 1970s and 1980s when Conway was dominating the country music world. I was born in 1977 so I was alive during much of this time, but I was just too young for it to have any meaning for me, like it would today. Now I would give anything to go back to those days.

Unboxing September's CatLadyBox

The theme of September's CatLadyBox was "Glitz and Glampurr"...here's what was inside!

Featured Cat Lady Artist Mandy Lau: Mandy is a fashion illustrator and I just adore the fashionista felines on this card!!!

"Cat Hair" Laundry Hampurr: This laundry hamper is almost too cute to put dirty clothes in! I'm thinking about using it to store other things...once Mudpie is through with it, of course. (More on that next week!)

Shiny Cats Scarf: Simple and stylish, this navy scarf with sparkly cats goes with any fall outfit.

Pretty Cat Earrings: I don't have pierced ears so these little darlings will probably be some lucky friend's Christmas gift!

Cat Bling Rings: As much as she loves playing with anything and everything, Mudpie has never gravitated towards milk rings, but I'm hoping these cute cat head-shaped rings will catch her attention once the weather cools off enough that she feels like playing again.

Posh Peacock Catnip Toy: The feathers on this toy caught Mudpie's attention before I even pulled it from the box! It was a total home run.

Not a subscriber yet? Visit CatLadyBox today!

Interested in purchasing individual items from past boxes? You can do that too!

Disclosure: I receive a discount on my CatLadyBox subscription as a thank you for my monthly review. Regardless of compensation received, we only share information we feel is relevant to our readers.

The Case of the Mysterious Shrinking Bed

Meows from Mudpie!

Do you see a problem here?

For comparison, this picture was taken in March 2016. The bed fit me purrfectly back then with room to spare! Do you know what could've happened?!?!?!

Note from Mommy: Before you start thinking I'm a horrible cat mom allowing Mudpie to sleep in such discomfort, I've tried replacing the bed with a larger one and she refuses to use it! I put the pink donut bed back down and she jumps right in...

9/11: We Remember

I don't think you realize how fast time goes by until you think back on something as monumental as 9/11 and can't believe it happened 17 years ago. Everything about the world as we know it changed that day and it's nearly impossible to remember life before.

I don't have a compelling 9/11 story. It was just an ordinary day, but it was a beautiful day, the sky just as clear and blue in Vermont as it was in lower Manhattan. I went into work for 9, turned on my computer, checked out the news as I always do, and read reports of the first tower being hit. I immediately picked up the phone and called my mom to tell her to turn on the news. Then my boss called out from his office that the second tower had been hit. My co-workers and I all went into his office because his was the only computer able to stream live video and everyone immediately understood the gravity of the situation. Somehow we managed to get back to work, but as the Pentagon, Shanksville, and the collapses happened we all gathered together again.

At lunchtime I went to the grocery store and a television was even set up in there. Everyone was so quiet, just going through the motions. I went home, turned on the news, and didn't turn it off for days. I became a news junkie, watching as we lost our innocence and became a nation at war.

Every year since the television airwaves are flooded with memorial specials, and I watch them all. I don't ever want to forget the horror of that day and how our lives changed because of it. Time marches on and we can't live in the past, but allowing ourselves to forget the magnitude of what happened can never be an option.

************************************************************

"And on this day, in the year 2001, deals were made high in the sky, meals were bought and eaten on the move, trains arrived, keys were cut, clothes were bought and returned, thousands came and went, and the nation enjoyed the final night of peace." 

The Fox Report with Shepard Smith, 9/10/03

Two of Mudpie's Biggest Fans

Meows from Mudpie!

Yesterday was Grandparents Day, and appropriately the theme of the Mewsic Moves Me blog hop this week is songs about grandparents and/or growing older.

As you can see in these photos, I'm especially close to both my grandma and my grandpa. They both adore me (naturally) and I feel the same way about them!

I asked Mommy to help me pick out some songs to fit the theme...here's what she came up with!

*************************************************

Too soon you'll see how suddenly tomorrow becomes the past
Life's too short no matter how long it lasts.

You Are To Me, from Conway's final album, makes me tear up every time I hear it.
It's the story of an overheard conversation between an elderly couple as they lament getting older.
It's incredibly beautiful, and delivered as only he can.



A few more...

Do any of our choices catch your ear?