Whiskers & Purrs

Flashback Friday: An Angel to Watch Over Mazie

As many of you are aware, our sweet Jimmy Durante Graves III passed away quite unexpectedly back in October.  Apparently he had heart disease and we were not aware.  His wonderful heart just simply gave out.  Jimmy and Mazie Grace were buddies...he watched over her and made sure that she wasn't afraid, especially after each of her eye surgeries.  I have a feeling he's with her right now at VRCC and is whispering in her little ear to not be afraid and to not worry...a message that is quite fitting, I would say.  

Here's a Flashback Friday post from September 2008...I think it's most appropriate as we await the results of her biopsies.  I will update the blog and Facebook as soon as I talk with the vet to see how my sweet girl is doing this morning.

September 18, 2008
A Kiss for Mazie Grace

Seriously, baby sister, don't worry 'bout nothin'...everything is gonna be okay.  I will lay here with you and kiss you 'til you feel all betters.

Very truly yours,
Jimmy Durante Graves III

 

Mazie Monday

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Mazie Grace speakin'.  It is now times for Mazie Monday!  We have all been kinda sads over the weekend.  The vet's office called mommy on Friday and said our sweet Jimmy's remains was back from the crematoriums.  This is the hardest part for mommy...she says it's almost like havin' the kitty die all over agains.

Mommy bringed Jimmy home Friday night after work...

(You can click to biggify.  The engravin' says "Sweet Jimmy")

Mommy cried when she saw the urn...she said it was quite fittin' for this to be Jimmy's final restin' place...he loved sleepin' more than anybody we have ever meeted.  And...he drove mommy nutso tryin' to play with the string when she would nit.  So...havin' a sleepin' kitty layin' on a ball of yarn was perfect for Jimmy.

For those of you that watched us on The Learning Channel (TLC) special we was on, you know that we have a special place in our house for the urns to be placed...it's mommy's Grandma's antique cabinet.  It is real old and real pritty with shelves behind glass doors.  Jimmy is now next to Ricky, Lucy and Felix.

We is all so relieved to have Jimmy home...but so sad he can't play with us anymores.  But he is watchin' over us from heaven, along with the others, and we know that he knows we love him and always will.

That's it for today.  Remember on Mazie Monday your beans have to stop what they is doin' when you walk into the room and start hummin' "Hail to the Chief"!

Very truly yours,
Mazie Grace 

Top Cat Tuesday

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Elsie Fallulah Graves checkin' ins with our Top Cat Tuesday report. Last night mommy had to go by the vet's office to pick up some medicines. She talked with the vet that actually got our sweet Jimmy ready to send to the crematorium. She said when she took one look at Jimmy, her first thought was "Oh no...this is a heart disease kitty."

She seems to believe that our Jimmy died of "acute massive heart failure due to heart disease". Apparently, heart disease can be sneaky...a kitty can have it and the vet not be able to pick it ups. And, it don't have nothin' to do with diet or exercise in us kitties the way it does with humans...it's
primarily hereditary and tends to strike male cats between the ages of 5 - 7 years old. The vet says Jimmy more than likely just up and died 'cause his heart just stopped.

That helped mommy to feel a little better...she has been so worried that she just somehow missed some symptoms from Jimmy...but the vet says there was probably no way to tell this was agoin' to happens. Mommy picked out Jimmy's urn yesterday...and he should be comin' back home to the Whiskers & Purrs House in a week or so...well...it's not really Jimmy...he's still with us...we just can't always see him. But he's watchin' over us from heaven and knows how very much we loves him...and always will.

Everything else is goin' okay...we are all very busy eatin' suppers, makin' sleeps, purrin', kissin each other and tryin' to take care of mommy. I hope all of our friends on the innernets has a wonnerful week and comes to visit us as much as possible.

Very truly yours,

Miss Elsie Fallulah Graves
Top Cat
Whiskers & Purrs Gang

Mazie Monday: The Messenger Visits Again

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Mazie Grace speakin'. Today is Mazie Monday. I was so excited 'bout gittin' to write my Mazie Monday post that I almost couldn't make sleeps last night...I've got somethin' big to tell our friends on the innernets!

I know everybody knows that we had to say goodbye to our sweet Jimmy last week...he went to heaven very real unexpectedly. Mommy had no idea he was even sick...he was playin' and eatin' real good...and gived no indication that somethin' was even wrongs. We is all terribly sads but mommy is particularly sads. She feels so guilty...like she shoulda picked up that somethink was wrongs. She cried almost the whole dang weekends even though we was all on our bestest behaviours and gived her lotsa headbonks.

She was out in the back yard rakin' leafs and mowin' on Sunday. Somethin' 'caughted her eye...our backyard looks pretty much like crap 'cause mommy just did not have times to work on it this summer since she had to go to West Virginia to take care of her parents and her Aunt almost every weekend. The ivy has taked overs and weeds is everywheres. But she saw this...



See, back when our dear sweet Ricky Eugene Graves went to heaven (2004), lotsa mommy's friends gived her flower bulbs to plant a memory garden. Her sister gived her some real exotical bulbs called a Spider Lily. Mommy planted it when Ricky passed but then it didn't come up...until...2 years laters...it popped outs of the ground on the very day our sweet sister, Lucy Margarite Graves, went to heaven. Mommy had been so upset when Lucy died...her passin' kinda came up outta the blue, too...we knowed she had been sick but...we didn't think it would cause her to go to heaven. Mommy thought maybe them flowers bloomin' was a sign... a message from Lucy and God that everything would be okay...that she was happy and gonna watch over us. You can read all 'bout the dramatical event of how mommy found the spider lily bloomin' the first time here.

So...back to yesterday...mommy was workin' and cryin' in the backyard...she looked up and saw in all the dead weeds and the nasty ivy, bright green spikey leafs...she cleared away all of the cruddy stuff and there she saw the spider lillies poppin' up from the grounds. Mommy thought them bulbs had done gone and dried up or somethin' 'cause they haven't popped up outs of the ground one time since Lucy passed away...that was all the way back in 2007...



Now some people will say it was just a coincidence...but don't you think it's kinda odd that them bulbs didn't bloom for 2 years when we first planted them and then popped up when we was all so shocked and hurt 'bout our Lucy passin'...and then they didn't pop up agains until we was all upsets 'bout our Jimmy passin' so surprisingly...4 years later? We is all thinkin' it's poor little Jimmy lettin' us know that he loves us and knows that we loves him. We are hopin' it's Jimmy and God lettin' us know that we'll all be together agains one day...one big gigantical family. We are grateful for them Spider Lillies...and we are grateful that God lets us all have this time together...as a big furry family.

So that's my big news. We are still sads but it did make us feel a little better!

I guess that is it for today's edition of Mazie Monday! Please remember that on Mazie Monday your beans have to stop what they is doin' whenever you walks into a room and start hummin' "Hail to the Chief".

Very truly yours,

Mazie Grace
Social Director
Whiskers & Purrs Gang

The Senator Says A Prayer

We innerupt today's "Meet the Senator Sunday" post for the Senator to say a prayer.

Dearest God,
On Monday night, you decided it was time for our gentle Jimmy Durante Graves III to come live with you. We knows he is in good hands now but, God...we sure do miss him. We wanted to do a memorial post for him today but we was all just too sads...mommy can't stop cryin' when she thinks 'bout Jimmy and how much she misses and loves him.

God, we sure would appreciate it if you could give Jimmy a message for us...can you tell him that we love him and always will...and that we is so sorry he had to leave us. Please tell him that we miss his soft headbutts and all them wonnerful baths he would give each of us all the times. Mommy misses how he would come and lick the juice off of all the Fancy Feast as she would open up each can...she misses watchin' him sleeps and smilin' at how much he enjoyed takin' his wonnerful day-long naps...be sure to tell him that mommy is just busted up 'cause she feels like she must've missed some sign that he was sick...and if that was the case, that it wasn't 'cause she didn't love him...it was 'cause she just has too much stuff goin' on in tryin' to take care of her parents and sick aunt.

Oh, and God? Please tell him that as far as we is concerned, he is right here with us and always will be...it's just that we can't see him. Please let him be our very special angel to watch over us and help us git through each day. And tell him to wait for us along with Ricky, Lucy and Felix...we will all be together again one day.

Thank you, God.

Very truly yours,
Senator Henry Jackson Edward Graves III

A message from Mazie Grace Graves

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Mazie Grace speakin'. As y'all has probably heared by now, our sweet Jimmy Durante Graves III had to go to heaven sometime durin' the nights on Monday. I loved him so much and always will. He looked out for me when Elizabeth Taylor would stick her finger nails in me. He was a good snuggler and would put his paw around me to make me feel safe.

Jimmy, I am sure heaven is a much better place than bein' down here but...can't you just come back for a little while? We are all so sads...our hearts are broked...specially mommy's.

There is a Jimmy-sized hole in all of our hearts. Please watch over us every day in heaven and never leave us...just find Ricky, Lucy and Felix and hang with them until its our time to find you...we will all be together one day, Jimmy, I just have to believe and pray for that.

I love you, big brother...and always will forevers.

Very truly yours,
Mazie Grace

Rest in Peace, Sweet Jimmy Durante Graves III

Dear friends,

I am so sad to share with everyone that our sweet Jimmy Durante Graves III passed away last night. All of us here in the Whiskers & Purrs House are in shock. Jimmy had not shown any signs of being ill...he had been eating and playing with everyone. I found him this morning when I went to fix breakfast for the Gang. As you can imagine, we are in shock.

Jimmy, I am so sorry that you had to go to heaven. Honey, if there were signs that I should've picked up, I just somehow missed them and I will live with that forever. You taught me so much in your short 7 years. You were such a good brother to everyone in the Gang and the best friend I could ever have.

Please go find Lucy, Ricky and Felix and stay close to them...we'll all be together one day, I promise.

I will love you forever, sweet Jimmy.

Love,

Mama Jenny

Zzzzzzzz

A message from Jimmy Durante Graves III

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Jimmy Durante Graves III speakin'.  I just wanted to take a minute and tell everybody on the innernets somethin' real big...real big and importants...tonight me and mommy was kissin'.  It was a real nice kissin' and lovin' session.  While we was kissin' and she was scratchin' my ears and my tush, she told me somethin' big...I mean to tell you REAL big...

She said "Jimmy Durante Graves III, you are so sweet that if you git any sweeterer, the whole world is gonna have to have insulin just to be able to be 'round you!"  Now listen...I ain't so sure what insulin is but I know if the whole world is gonna need it, this must be B.I.G!...

Gosh...I sure hope I don't git to be any sweeter...

Very truly yours,
Jimmy Durante Graves III

Black & White/Big & Little

Dearest peoples on the innernets,

This is Jimmy Durante Graves III speakin'.  Would somebody please tell me what this thing is???  It can't hardly walk, it can't see and it can't hear...it just eats, poops, sleeps and purrs...Oh and it makes mommy go "Oooohhhh" and "Awwwww"...

I would greatly appreciate it if somebody could tell me what it is and what I am supposed to do with it.

Very truly yours,
Jimmy Durante Graves III

PS...Just an update from mommy...the sweet little boy only weighs 8.5 ounces!!!  Doctor Dugan examined him yesterday and he is in great shape, no more than 2 weeks old and doing fine.