thankful.

I am thankful for friends, for whom I have so much love that I practically need an extra heart just to hold it all. I'm thankful for my amazing little cats, for every night that Hypatia snuggles up on my pillow, for the vet staff that keeps them healthy and for the cat food industry that keeps Chloe plump and satisfied enough to not kill us in our sleep. I'm thankful for the food in my pantry and the roof over my head. I'm thankful for the best parents any girl could ever wish for, and an extended family that includes a feisty 100 year old aunt! I'm thankful for the fact that me and my brother, who fought like crazy as kids, have grown up to be great friends. I'm thankful for everyone who has ever read my blog and liked it enough to stick around. I love you all so much.

What are you thankful for this year?

green + grey

dress - modcloth

cardigan - forever 21

shoes - modcloth

tights - we love colors

hair bow - hive & honey

First, thank you so much for your comments and e-mails yesterday! I was so nervous that nobody would say anything and I'd end up deleting the post out of embarrassment, but instead it seems like I'm really not alone in how I feel, and that is such a great comfort! I really want to reply to everyone individually, so I'm going to try to do that today... but please understand that if my reply isn't elaborate, it's only because of my less than stellar communication skills (this is sort of a catch-22, I guess lol..) But from the bottom of my heart, I just want you to know how much you and your messages mean to me. Knowing that this isn't something unique to me, that so many of you have been through (or are going through) the same thing makes me feel so much less, well... weird.

And, completely (TOTALLY) off topic but I have a question for guardians of long-haired cats. Hypatia absolutely hates to be groomed, but she has long fur and doesn't really do a great job of grooming herself. She's a complete angel 99% of the time, but if I so much as pick up a brush she goes absolutely bonkers! Last year when she started growing her winter coat I had her shaved, but I really don't want to do that to her again this year if I don't have to (she just looked so cold and naked!) so my question is... is there some special technique to making brushing fun for them? Or some special tool I can use to comb out her fur without her freaking out about it? Any tips are very, very much appreciated!