Nice to See You Again, Franklin and Daphne!!

HOORAY!  I'm so thrilled to be able to share another alumni update with you today!

Remember that fabulous pack of tabbies, the Winklers?

Well, Leslie, mom to Franklin and Daphne (now Madison)  just sent me a few photos of her pair.  First, let's take a look back at how adorable they were when they were wee.

Here's Franklin.



And here's Daphne.



Here they are together.

 

Here they are today!











And here's what Leslie had to day...

 Hi Laurie, 

 The kitties are terrific and as silly as ever. The sleep more since they have gotten older but they chase each other every day, love their feather wands and are always on bug patrol for ladybugs and moths.

Madison still sleeps on hard surfaces and totally approves of the table runner on the dining room table. She is quite the headbutter/chinrubber and we are afraid she'll get a concussion or a splinter with her enthusiasm some days! 

Franklin loves his sister. He seeks Madison out for head licks and won't let her nap in peace. Madison has overcome her litter pan issues with reminders at breakfast, lunch and dinner to "go potty" and will run downstairs under meowy protest. She'll return some time later in triumph sailing over the top two steps and will bound into the living room to play. 

 Madison is independent. Franklin likes to be close by his sis or peoples. He still loves to stretch and roll over sticking his feet in whoevers face is close by just like in your IBKC movies and pics. Thank you for including Franklin and Madison in your wonderful book! 

Best Wishes, Leslie, Mike, Madison and Franklin (aka Missy and Bud)


Thank you so much for sharing the update, Leslie!   Franklin and Madison have grown up to be such lovely cats, and I love how they are such a bonded pair.

Please give them some love from all of us!


________

One last thing before I go today, I wanted to let you all know that our friend Robyn over at Covered in Cat Hair is hosting a IBKC book giveaway!

For full contest details, a review, and a little interview, please visit her lovely blog!

Thanks so much Robyn!  We appreciate your support to so much!

Oh, What a Night!

I really wish you all could have been at the book release party  - it was such an amazing night.  The turnout was incredible.  It was such a happy crowd!  We saw so many of our adopting families.  The parents of former fosters Agnes, Carmine, Marcel, Imogene, Oliver, Benny, Arthur, Fern, Freddie Jean, Kirby, Clement, Bernice,  Baxter, and Zelda (just to name a few) were there!  Opal the Human and her brother attended.  The Canopy Cat Rescue guys were there. We had some surprise guests that came all the way from Vancouver, BC!  Dear friends traveled from Seattle, Olympia, California and as far away as Virginia to attend.   There were humans, cats, AND dogs at the party!  I had SO MUCH FUN chatting with everyone and signing their books!

The night was exciting and magical, the weather was incredible.  It truly was the perfect evening.




The crowds formed early, and the line got long fast.  Folks didn't seem to mind the wait too much. In fact, it may have been the most joyous line I've ever seen.   Lots of happy faces in the crowd!



This is the split second the IBKC balloons behaved and aligned.



So many friends came out for the event.  Here are our pals Brendan and Susan.



And this is our dear friend Dave.  He loves cats more than anyone I know.  And I know a lot of cat lovers!!



Wylla met many new friends that night.  This is cutie pie is Steven, he's young, but he already loves casts almost as much as Dave does.



Wylla did so well, I was so proud of our little girl.  She just stayed in her little basket and accepted pets from many people.  She took a few naps, and participated in many selfies with the party guests.



She wasn't the only cat at the party!  Ninja Bob, spokeskitty for the Northwest Spay and Neuter Center,  joined us too.  He travels in style with our friend Cora.



Bob is so handsome!  And he's the first one to tell you that!



Here's Miko,  one of the shop cats at King's.   He's checking out the pet food donations that our guests brought in for the shelter's emergency pet food bank. Over $2700 in food and money donations were collected that night!  Over 300 pounds of food!!!!!   WOW!



Our dear friend Cynthia arranged to have some very lovely flowers delivered to the party.




She also surprised us with some lovely trays of sweet and savory bites for our guests.



We had the most delicious cake.



And my friend Erika baked this adorable kitty cupcakes.  Sadly, they disappeared before I could get my hands on one!




A lot of people helped make this party a very special one.  I'm so grateful to so many.  Expect official thank you notes soon Cynthia, Anne, Anne, Jay, Marguerite, Craig, Sarah, Shana, Jim,  Erika sweet pea and the King's staff.  Oh, I hope I'm not forgetting anyone.

You all are awesome, and I wouldn't have made it through the night without your help.

A huge hank you to everyone who came out that night to celebrate. It meant SO much to me that you were there.  And thank you too for buying the book, and saying nice things about it!

Thanks to all who were there in spirit.  I felt your support, and appreciate it so much.


I am surrounded by so many generous, thoughtful and supportive people, and I am so grateful.

Thank you for making this very big day in my life so memorable and special for me.


xoxoxoxoox

PS Thanks for letting me borrow your photographs Craig, Marguerite,  Lynn, Alex, Susan, Monika, and Lisa.

Last Night

I think my head is still spinning a bit from last night.  We got to the King's Books around 5:30 to start setting up, the crowd arrived early, I sat down and signed the first book around 6:00, and I didn't stop talking, hugging, or put down my pen once that night until the party ended after 9:00.  It was a happy, huge, intense blur.

It really was an incredible night. So many dear people attended, and so many people did so many kind and generous things to help make this night extra, extra special.  I don't think I've felt so much love and support in my entire life.  I know this sounds completely weird, but I felt so overwhelmed with gratitude last night, I nearly felt drunk.  And i wasn't drinking.  Well, I wasn't drinking THEN, but I did have a Manhattan after it was all over.  : )

I have so many details and photos to share, but honestly, I just don't have it in me today.  I am absolutely exhausted after last night's event.  My brain is tired and my body is weary.

BUT TOMORROW, I'll be back with lots to share with you and FRIDAY we'll be celebrating dear Butterbean's birthday (even though it's not until Saturday).

Thanks to all who were there last night, and there in spirit, too.

Much, much, much love,
Laurie

Excitement and Sunshine

Well, it's here.  Today the IBKC book officially lands in the bookstores and I am a ball of excitement, a bundle of nerves, and a whole bunch of other emotions that I can't quite identify or explain.  It just all feels huge and weird.  But awesome, too.

I'm just so glad this day has finally come, and we get to celebrate tonight!

Will you be joining us?  I hope you can come!  Wylla's getting a bath today, so she'll be extra floofy and adorable this eve.  You won't want to miss that!

It's not to late to RSVP if you plan to attend.  And if you will be joining us, we'll be collecting donations for our shelter's  Emergency Pet Food Bank, so please bring a can or bag of cat food (or two)!  Full party details HERE.

We wish you could all be there, but I know that's not a reality, so we'll take lots of photos to share with those of you who are only able to join us in spirit.





We've had a pretty long stretch of gray days, but today the sky is clear and bright. We've got happy cats taking baths and naps in sunbeams this morning, and life is good.  





















)

A Little Tease

It hits the shelves tomorrow, friends!

A Little Bit About the Book

It's getting close, friends!  In less than a week, the IBKC book will be hitting the shelves, and I thought now might be a good time to give you a little peek at what you'll find on the pages.

Well, there are LOTS of kittens in it, of course. In fact, every single kitten we've fostered is pictured at least once in the book.



There are longer features on a few of our favorite litters.



We tell some of our most heart-warming adoption stories, too.



There are sections filled with the cutest of cute pictures on a variety of kitten topics, like napping and striped bellies.



There are a few kitten crafts.  My lovely assistant Wylla helped with these.



There's a lot of practical information on raising kittens.



A few kitten comics.

 

Charlene even answers questions in her very own "Dear Butterbean" column.



It's light, and fun, and though it's geared towards younger readers, it can be enjoyed by kitten lovers of any age!

It's available for pre-order now, and if you would like a signed copy, you can purchase it online through our local bookstore, King's Books.  It's also available on Amazon, and for your Kindle!

We're so excited to be sharing this with you and the whole wide world, and really, really hope you love it.

If you would like to help us celebrate the release, please join us Tuesday for the release party!  Full details HERE!

Thanks, Lil Bub!

We were so thrilled when one of the interweb's most famous and awesome celebricats, Lil Bub, agreed to write a blurb for the back of our book.  

Thanks, Lil Bub!   We feel so honored that you gave us this endorsement!



I talked with our friend Sweet Pea at King's Books, and wanted to let you know that if you would like a signed copy of the book, you can order it through the store.  You can even have it personalized! Just make a note in the comment section when you place the order.  

We're starting to get really excited seeing all the RSVPs come in for the book release party!  We've got friends traveling from near and far for the event,  and we can hardly wait to see everyone.   If you missed out on the party announcement,  the details are all HERE, and join us if you can!  

Let's Celebrate!

In just a couple of weeks, the Itty Bitty Kitty Committee book is going to be hitting the shelves!  In honor of this occasion, we're going to throw a little party and you are all invited!

Our human and feline friends at King's Books are hosting the event on Tuesday, March 11th from 7:00 - 9:00 PM.

We've already had RSVPs from many of the families who have adopted our kittens, so it's kind of a reunion, too!  We are so excited to see them again!

OH, and Wylla Stout will be stepping out and joining us at the party, so if you come by,  you'll have a chance to see her in REALITY!  She's even CUTER in person!!




I'm sorry, but Charlene won't be attending.  She hates car rides and is a bit socially awkward, so this party would be too much for her.  She will be there in spirit, I am sure.

If you'll be joining us, please visit the Facebook event page and RSVP or send us an email.  

We'll be collecting pet food donations for the our Humane Society's Emergency Pet Food Bank, so if you're able to, please bring along a can or bag of pet food (or two) to the party.  

If you would like to purchase a book that eve, please reserve yours by pre-ordering through King's by clicking HERE.   We want to be sure to have enough copies on hand!


We're so very excited, and look forward to meeting (hopefully) many of you in person on March 11th!


YAY!   This is going to be FUN!

And Speaking of Books...

Please click HERE.

Yep, that's right.  The IBKC book will be hitting the shelves this spring.

Available here and at your local independent bookstore on March 11th, 2014!!!


Hooray!


: )