I am stuck on the first board, level 16 Frosty Felines. To the left of…

I am stuck on the first board, level 16 Frosty Felines.
To the left of the MEOW gate is a kitty, but she is a level above the gate and there is no way I can find to get to her.
Above her on a completely enclosed shelf is a souvenir that I can't reach either. I've tried digging down, thinking then I could dig down from there to the kitty below. But the ice between the bricks hangs very low, is too many layers thick for digging to work.
Someone told me I could just skip this level by using F5, but that doesn't work either. So I can't play the game at all until I figure out how to get that last kitty.
Heeeelp!