Friday, April 16, 2010

The Velveteen Kitty



Last summer right before our big move my mother in law came down to visit us. She brought along a couple of Kevin's favorite books from childhood to read to the girls. One of them was 'the Velveteen Rabbit'. K was very taken by this story.

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."


Kitty kiss

A couple of months ago K mentioned that she wanted her 'white kitty' to be so loved that she came to life, then she gave me a huge smile and went back to playing. She had the so loved part down. Her white kitty is, indeed, very loved. The poor thing looks like it has been through a war from years of cuddling and play.
I could just see her envisioning white kitty running around the house through that big smile. It was such a sweet moment. I had to share it with Kevin later that night.




Time passed and her white kitty stayed the same. She would still mention every now and then how badly she wanted her to come to life someday, and every time Kevin would get a mischievous look on his face.

Then something magical happened...



White kitty came to life!

She appeared in K's room a few nights ago before I tucked her into bed. If you could have only seen the expression on K's face when she saw her.

Kevin really wanted to make K's fairy tale come true and searched through animal shelters, cat rescue groups and on Craigslist for quite some time. Then last week he finally found her. She was posted on Craigslist - Free to a good home. We already have a zoo in our house (Hee,hee) so why not add just one more? It seemed like fate, how could we deny it?!

K decided her name was to be Arctica White Kitty (Gotta love kid picked names), and would you believe she sleeps with K every night? She really is her kitty.


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68 comments:

Unknown said...

What a beautiful cat!

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Oh my word...that is the sweetest story, I think I have ever heard. How magical. And the kitty has the perfect green eyes too. Fate! I love it!

Peace and love to you all,
Hillary

MamaBirdEmma said...

What a good husband and father Kevin is!!

eidolons said...

You are my hero. That is one of the sweetest things I've read in a very long time.

alyssa spring said...

You made me smile - I could feel the magic.

Samantha said...

Awww soooo cute!!! Good for your family, picking out an animal that might otherwise end up in one of those overcrowed high kill shelters! I feel like I live in a zoo sometimes (okay most of the time!) But I can never resist an animal in need--- esp. if it's need in OUR house! What fun!

boatbaby said...

How sweet! Did the real kitty replace the stuffed one? Or are they together? Artica is a beauty and that was a very sweet gesture that I am sure she will never forget!

momma rae said...

oh my, that is such a sweet story! i love that he made her wishes come true. cute kitty, too! ;)

Between Hitching Posts said...

How sweet is that! Thanks for sharing the story.
We have some new chicks hatching at our house, but I think the Velveteen Kitty is a way better addition to a zoo!

Anonymous said...

what a super sweet story. and how magical for her!

kate said...

What a great story!

waldorfmama said...

how magical, nicole! and so very, very sweet...

Unknown said...

oh nic...i love that story!! good job daddy...:)

xoxox

Anonymous said...

Oh how magical!
If I weren't so allergic to kitties I would have some (the litter box is so bad for me).

What a magical thing for a little girl to have happen. And what a wonderful father to make that happen for her. sometimes I think our husbands are bigger kids than our kids and doing things like this is just even more magical for them!

And can you imagine I haven't read the velveteen rabbit?! I should get that!

Ariella said...

This is truly incredible! She knew her kitty would become real and it REALLY did. Magic has it's ways :)

Dallas said...

That's a really sweet story -- and a beautiful cat!

Beth said...

May I borrow some of your pictures and link to your posting? I need to share this! love, Beth

Beth said...

This is a beautiful and special story! Wow! love, Beth

Phyllis said...

What a cut story, and you told it so well!
-Phyllis

jules said...

I am partial to white cats myself.

What a beautiful story Nicole. And such a pretty cat. She has a good home.

Noelle Boosinger said...

Oh my goodness! What a tender, magical moment it must have been when she saw her loved kitty become real for the very first time! My heart just swells.

Dawn said...

Oh my...I have tears in my eyes! That is the sweetest thing ever. :) Your daughter has a great Daddy.

Jaime Mclean Dalrymple said...

This is an amazing story. You are both wonderful parents. I hope that we can fill our son's life with these kinds of magical moments. What a fantastic family memory.

Brynn said...

What a sweet story and such a perfect cat!

Beth said...

So magical!!! And what a beautiful kitty :) What a thoughtful daddy to arrange for an enchanted kitty to join the family.

Linda said...

Nicole, this is such a beautiful story!! Thank you for sharing:) We also love the Velveteen Rabbit and what your hubby did was precious, really wonderful! Your little one must have been over the moon:) I love the name Arctica White Kitty! :)
Warmly
Linda

Anonymous said...

Oh my, that is pure magic! The Velveteen Rabbit was one of my favorite stories growing up.

Absolutely beautiful post, thank you so much for sharing this :-)

Jen said...

OH my gosh - I have tears after reading this! What a beautiful, beautiful moment in your lives that you all will never forget. The magic, the love, that is absolutely priceless AND you gave an angel a home to boot...This post has so moved me today. Thank you and well done, Momma (and Dadda)! What wonderful parents you are...

Laura said...

I love that K is wearing the kitty collar! Does she spend her days being kittens and cats? My dd is just the same either a cat or a dog. Very sweet post.

Nike Athena said...

What a beautiful gift for your little girl! I had a white stuffed kitty I took everywhere as a child and I'm pretty sure she was loved to death (I still have her). Love the name!

Mama Ash Grove said...

This is about the sweetest thing ever! And my gosh, what a beautiful cat.
My 9 year old daughter has a lion she has loved and loved almost to pieces since she was 2~ she still brings him everywhere! I'd say he's pretty "real" to her!

Nadja said...

Sweet! And what a gorgeous kitty, too!

Stitched In color said...

That is an AMAZING story. Isn't it wonderful how your blog will save that tale for years and years to come!

Joy said...

That is the sweetest story I've heard in a long time! Probably since Hillary's daughter and the bunny. :) I'll bet that K was beside herself excited! You and your husband are the sweetest parents. <3

Lydia said...

aww you gave me chills with that story! What a loving Daddy to make his little girls' dream come true!

angelica said...

That is the sweetest thing! What a beautiful, magical cat!

Lali said...

It was said many times already, but , oh my, I just have to say it too, cos this is really really the sweetest nad most heart warming story ever !!!!

kirschkernzeit said...

That story is SO sweet! yOU ARE SUCH AN NICE FAMILY!

Sarah said...

Oh, Nicole! That has got to be the sweetest thing EVER. And that KITTY. So, so, so beautiful!!!! Enjoy your new magical friend! :)

Lara Katherine Mountain Colley said...

This is one of the sweetest stories (and most awesome magical kid surprise ideas) I have ever heard! What an awesome dad! Wow!

Anonymous said...

That is THE sweetest story ever! I bet her expression will stay with you forever. What a wonderful daddy!

mary said...

OH! what a beauty! so super magical! I cant even imagine how excited she was!

gardenmama said...

Oh, Nicole!!!
This is so amazing and the sweet face on that little kitty! How lovely : )

Dawn said...

Nicole,
Thank you so much for the adorable knitted heart that you sent! I received it today and I love it! :)

Anonymous said...

How sweet! What a wonderful husband you have.

Jamie Carin and Claudio Romano said...

What a gorgeous story!!!! What a thoughtful loving husband!! He must truly know his little girl's heart.

And Arctica is BEAUTIFUL!!! She looks perfectly fluffy!! We have a long haired black and white cat here who is finally after 2 years coming to terms with having kids here LOL.

Happy weekend!!
Jamie Salvucci

Rose said...

This just takes my breath away. What a wonderful gift, on so many levels.

renee ~ heirloom seasons said...

Oh my goodness, so so sweet! I had no idea where you were going with the story, even though you told me the other day about four cats...
Hope you have a happy happy weekend!
Lots of love, Renee :)

Jane said...

That is such a sweet story. How absolutely magical.

kendra said...

so beautiful!!!

Val in the Rose Garden said...

That is the most adorable story ever!!!!! What an amazing memory for your little girl. She will never forget that moment. :)

Blessings,

Val

christine ~ ourdayourjourney said...

that is so sweet nicole. fairytales do certainly come to life!!

Heidi said...

How incredibly thoughful! Your daughter will remember this forever.
We suprized my daughter with two kitties one day when she was 4, she still writes about it in school as her favorite memory she is 9 now.
What a magical way to rescue a kitty too!

Heather said...

This is the most beautiful story Nicole. We just lost our white kitty cat, and I can not tell you how special it was for me to read this. I truly hope that she is a blessing for your daughter. You are an amazing family

Carrie said...

What a beautiful story!

Julie said...

That is just so sweet! And what a beautiful kitty.

FrontierDreams said...

Oh my goodness!! Thank you so, so, SO very much!! I was so excited to share all of your kind words with my husband. He is the best and deserves so much more recognition than he gets from me :) This was all his doing, and all of us feel so very lucky to have such a thoughtful soul in our lives <3
We feel very strongly about rescuing animals whenever we can so I do think it was fate, indeed, helped along by a wonderful guy!!

K loves to pretend to be a kitty all day long, and C sometimes does, too.
Oh and yes, we did keep her stuffed kitty, too :) We couldn't get rid of it. Now she sleeps with both of them.

Thank you, thank you everyone!!
XOXO

Laura said...

this is one of the sweetest posts ever! I love that cat she looks so great and I don't care for cats usually.

Simple Mama said...

I told my husband this story yesterday and he LOVED it. Our son is obsessed with the Velveteen Rabbit right now.

Queen of the Nook said...

Been thinking about this post all weekend. What a wonderful home full of love and blessings you and your husband have made for these special and lucky girls. Keep on inspiring other mamas and daddys to do the same work in their own homes!

Nikki said...

This post brought a huge smile to my face because this very same thing happened to me when I was a little girl. I wanted nothing more than for my white kitty doll to be real. Finally, my family visited an animal shelter and found a beautiful white cat, just like my toy cat. Today that white cat is 19 years old and has been a wonderful life long friend. I wish the same for K and her sweet white cat.

Lacey (schoolhousefarm) said...

my first cat maggie was white & the velveteen rabbit has always been a favorite of mine. which means, this post might make me cry!!

Nicola said...

So incredibly sweet. What a beautiful cat and loving dad!

luciana said...

Your story is great. I love The Velveteen Rabbit book and the concept that well loved toys become real. Your girls are very lucky to have such thoughtful and sweet parents. And the kitty must be over the moon to have found such a nice family to live with!

5orangepotatoes said...

Nicole, what a magical real life fairytale come true! I am in awe of Kevin finding her and doing this.

lisa

5orangepotatoes said...

Nicole, what a magical real life fairytale come true! I am in awe of Kevin finding her and doing this.

lisa

pink and green mama MaryLea said...

fantastic story and what wonderful parents you both are making her magic come true!!

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