NaBloPoMo

a hard decision to make

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We are a dog family.  I grew up with dogs and shortly after we were married we added Cody to our little family.  It is hard to believe he is almost 14 years old.  And so it is amidst the holiday weekend we are trying to wrap our hearts around a hard decision that we will need to make.

cody watching the rain 9-21-13

Over the course of months, Cody has had trouble walking with his hind legs losing their strength.  At the same time he has started to have accidents with his bowel movements.  The vet says his muscles are atrophied and that is why he looks so thin and that’s where his strength has gone.  With that he has lost control of this basic function most of the time.  When it was happening once in a while it was easy enough to be like, Oh Cody.  Now it is two times a day and over the last two nights he has had pee accidents.  At the same time, he is bright-eyed, eating and occasionally very playful.  He has our one-year-old Weimaraner Pepper to keep him on his toes!

This past January we lost our Molly to canine cancer and  she was only 8.  It is hard to think we will lose our boy sometime soon in the same year.  As a way to prepare them, we have been keeping our girls aware of how he is feeling from day-to-day.  When Molly got sicker we would share in the morning if it was a good night or a bad night and what the day ahead would be.  We found comfort in the dog poem A Rainbow Bridge and know we will draw comfort again from this poem knowing Molly will be there waiting for Cody.

I look back over the last couple of years and see how our girls have experienced death in our family at such a young age.  First a grandpa then right after a close family friend.  Earlier this year a beloved dog and this fall another grandma. We have tried to help them process their feelings through these times.  Now at 8 and 6 years old they can share with us how they feel and we can talk through these feelings with them.  At these times we all have these feelings and they can see and learn from us too.

It breaks my heart to know we have this decision ahead of us and what it will mean for all of us in our family.

Day 28 of National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to enjoy the many other bloggers participating!

A Happy Thanksgiving to one and all

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thanksgiving-scrapbook-page-by-katiescrapbooklady

We are enjoying our day at home together, just the four of us.  This is the first year it’s just us.  After planning to travel down South and then not being able to go, we didn’t extend any invitations for friends to spend Thanksgiving with us which has been an annual tradition since my husband and I started dating.s We have always spent this holiday among friends, like us who lived far from family.  We would potluck the dinner some years traveling to the snow in Tahoe, or gathering at a friends’ home and eventually we hosted in our home.

This is likely the most relaxed holiday we have spent together in a long time. Last year we had a dog recuperating from major surgery and my mother was visiting.  This year we didn’t need to extra clean the house, we weren’t travelling, and we are having fun playing board games as we take breaks to do the finishing of the meal prep for dinner later.

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I am forever thankful for these girls and my husband and all their funny faces!

This evening our girls will get their first visit from our Elf On the Shelf, Earl which should make for an early rising in the morning tomorrow!

We are thankful for our family and friends near and far and hoping everyone is enjoying this day together in whichever way they chose!

This is my 27th post for National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers participating, Enjoy!

A new holiday tradition

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To Do today, bake pecan tartlets, bake cookies, finish dinner prep, but instead we are heading to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom! It all can wait! Happy Wednesday!

We had recently purchased 2015 season passes and we felt with my husband off that this would be a good day to go.

cobra coaster

It was a good decision on our part, hardly any crowds today.  Activated our 2015 season passes and enjoyed the sun and clear skies.  Riding rides one turn after another, bumping into friends, and just plain having fun!

The park was in the middle of seeing up their Holiday decor with the tree lighting on Friday evening.  Our girls were excited to see the decorations and can’t wait to head back for the tree lighting and all.  We are looking forward to the sledding hills that are added this time of year.

holiday fun 6flags

Now after spending the day playing and starting a new family tradition, it’s time for me to get back to the prep for Thanksgiving’s dinner!

This is my day 26 of National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to enjoy the many other bloggers participating.

the family joke

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What you say is our family joke?  Well it’s a bit about me and what happens when I eat.  It is said that no meal is complete until I spill something on myself.  And it’s soooo true!

I am a food magnet whether liquid or dry.  Somehow someway every dinner meal a piece of something finds it way onto the front of my shirt.

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Maybe it’s the fact that I enjoy my food that it finds its way into my mouth and onto my clothes.  Maybe I’m so involved in eating that I’m not getting into my mouth?  Or I’m so excited to be eating that I am not paying attention?

I love the sprayers and cleaners that can pre-treat clothes before they are washed.  They are my life saver!

Just to be clear, I am not the only food spiller although I do it the most often, as my family says a meal is not complete unless I’m wearing part of it!

It’s day 25 of National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers participating, Enjoy!