Last year in August when we were in the middle of the pandemic, I received an email from a cat rescue, saying they had reviewed my application and had a couple of kittens who fit the personality that I was looking for.

I never realized how hard it was to adopt because I had been applying to shelters and rescues for four months and I would never hear back from anyone! (apparently, everyone wanted to adopt pets last year because people were spending more time at home) I always knew that the only way I would get a pet again would be through adoption. The rescue introduced us to a black and white tuxedo kitten who was 10 weeks old. They mentioned that she was found in a sealed box with her siblings near the shelter and was very shy. She had been spending a few weeks in foster homes, getting used to people. We had a quick video call with the foster parents (pandemic meant we couldn’t meet her in person). On the call, we saw a small kitten who was trying to squirm out of her foster mom’s hold to go play and run around the house. She was energetic and loved zooming across the house. Just looking at her on video was enough for us to decide that she was that one. That was it, a week later we brought her home and she has been such an important part of my life since then.

Here she is as a kitten:

She’s a year and half and fully grown now, but I still call her “Cookie Kitten” and she thinks that’s her full name and will respond to both names! She comes running to me whenever I call her.

She’s very shy of new people and through time, I have learnt how to make sure other people respect her boundaries and always put her well-being first.

She is a lil’ adventurer and loves exploring outside. To make sure she can explore safely, she is leash and harness trained. I don’t let her free roam because that would just make me anxious and I don’t trust drivers to be careful on the street.

Here’s the best part, she’s the best travel/vacation buddy we could have asked for. She does well in the car on road trips, she teaches us how to relax and more importantly reminds us to be in the present and explore our surroundings.

She has gifted me with so many memories and I love spending time with her. While most cats are pretty attached to their home, Cookie is very attached to her humans and doesn’t mind traveling with us as long as she knows we are with her. I didn’t think I would have such a strong bond with a cat. I grew up with two of the best dogs and the world always told me that cats were aloof and didn’t care for their humans. Cookie has proved otherwise and I can’t wait to travel more with her! Now that she has been introduced here, she will make frequent appearances on this blog!