Friday, January 25, 2013

Little Things That Make Me Smile

Sometimes I get too wordy (so I have been told by the man of the house) and I was sitting here thinking of my good mood and what made me smile this week and decided I would share my list.

A beautiful redheaded woody woodpecker looking at me through the glass while he sat at the feeder on the suet log.

Hearing my son's voice on the phone saying "love you Mom" as he says he is in Superior, Wisconsin heading up to Copper Harbor and will see us Sunday.

Sharing some time with friends that I don't see enough while we made cards for sick children.

Receiving cards from Iowa friends.

Getting a hug (I am a hugger...).

Watching a little buck in the backyard stomping his foot at me to get off the deck while I shoveled the snow.

Sharing devotions via e-mail with a friend.

Remembering that February 1 will 21 years shared with my guy.

Lots of things made me smile.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Best appendage ever

If somebody would have told me saying goodbye to my little buddy would be so horribly hard, I don't know that I would have signed up for this.


What a treat it has been being this little guy's "mama".  A 3-pound little bundle of love and joy.  My protector, my comforter, my confidant, and appendage.

Pablo was Jeff's hound.  He picked him out, named him, and in the beginning took care of him.  Shortly after Pablo's arrival in our home that all changed.  I was home for 8 weeks following surgery.  At first Pablo went to grandma's during the day.  He loved her and terrorized her cats.  He learned that he was definitely a lap dog with blankets to keep him warm.  He knew when he was turning the corner on Grandma's block and would get excited to get out of the car.  First business was always to let the cats know where they could be or could not.  What a treat it was seeing the little one boss a 19-pounder and a 23-pounder around. Eventually he decided the 23-pounder was okay and that cat was allowed to sit with grandma and him on the couch. When I was up to taking care of him he came home and the pampered pooch continued and our bound became permanent.

He has numerous names, Pip Squeak, hound, Boo Boo  Peewee, Sweetie Pie, and big guy.   When I was not giving him the "proper attention"  Jeff would tell him about his  bad mama and he should pack his bags and head down the road always threatening to make him a nap sack.

Throughout the years there have been a few people he connected with, otherwise he was strictly a mama's boy.  Shelley, my crazy friend, there was not an animal alive that did not like her. Charlene, Pablo decided she was a great place to stop for "coffee".  She broke her no dog rule when we rented from her and he loved the lazy condo life and made her one of his chosen friends even liked being called Paco.  He also connected in a very special way with Kim and sitting with her was a treat he enjoyed. Jerry was one of the very few guys he liked. Pablo was spoiled during his stays at BluffView often getting house privileges as he was her smallest boarder.  During the summer he would camp in the trailer with Paula's parents.

As we say our final goodbyes this afternoon there will be tears, but when their little bodies get sick and they are hurting, saying goodbye is our responsibility.

Thank you Pablo for 13 years of unconditional love.







Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Heaven has a new angel.

She fought a brave battle, non Hodginkin's lymphoma, breast cancer, total body radiation and chemotherapy, bone marrow transplant,  graft verses host disease, broken bones from the disease, and blindness.  She no longer has to fight. 

I know we all have that one friend that you can say you have had forever and ever, the one that you lose contact with, but when you touch base again there is no getting reacquainted it is like putting a comfortable pair of slippers.  That was Shelley.

Wild, crazy, domestic, caring, give ya the shirt off your back type of girl.  We met when we were 15 and 16 (she was the older and wiser(?)) at the Ritz Supper Club.  She showed me the ropes and we became friends that summer, unseparable.  Our folks would tease us that they did not know  they had twins.  She was the oldest in her family of 3 kids and I the youngest of 2 kids, both having just brothers.  I was the city kid.  She was the farm kid. We were both daddy's girl.  Life became the best of both worlds that summer.

We have come and gone our own ways and reconnected over the years.  Each time we were back together like comfortable old shoes.  Through our college days we partied like rockstars. With the birth of my son, she became the crazy friend that every child wished they had.  She was the bread butter when my son graduated and made sandwich after sandwich while I had a migraine and Jeff had the flu.  When my dad died she was my rock.  When her mom died, I was hers.  Through her chemo and total body radiation we became computer chatters and when she got home we had great hopes that all that she fought for would give her a new start.  Unfortunately that would not be the case, but through it all she tried to be upbeat and positive. 

Some called her the animal witch of Ventura because the strays would show up at her house and never leave.  She loved them all.  She had a green thumb and taught me a lot about gardening and started me on my love of canning. 

I will miss my friend, but I know she was tired of the fight.  She told me so during our last phone visit.  She was not able to learn the braille or how to get around her home without somebody being there any more and that was very hard for her to accept.

She is driving that fire red mustang and Fred the one-eyed red frog is in the back window, go get em girl!