Saying Goodbye

I’ve been trying to figure out the appropriate way to write about our losing our dog Bo. He was a sweet, tender little soul that blessed our lives for 10 years, and who’s life was cut short by multiple ailments such as allergies, pancreatic disease and finally, cancer.
The decision to put him to sleep was pretty sudden, it came about after we noticed him laboring for breath two weekends ago. We were afraid to take him in, almost knowing that it would be bad news. We took him in on his 10th birthday, September 20, and saw that the tumor in his chest was pressing against his heart and giving him almost no room to expand his lungs. There was no guarantee any treatment would be effective.
We made plans to bring him in for the next day. We took him home to say our goodbyes and give him one incredible last dinner (a hamburger, his pancreatic disease prohibited him from eating breads).
We were debating how we should handle the whole situation with the kids. It was decided that the kids were old enough and mature enough to handle the truth about their dog dying. Gone are the days of sending Spot to a farm in the countryside. We knew that approach would only lead to the truth slipping out and resentment from being lied to, especially if we denied them the chance of saying goodbye to the dog they’ve loved since they were born.
We took the kids and Bo to the park one last time before we took him to the vet, Bo loved watching his kids play, we knew it would be an appropriate way to say goodbye. While we were at the vet, one of the doctor’s children played with the kids and kept them occupied while we were comforting Bo and saying our true last goodbyes.
It’s amazing, the way animals will sometimes hang around longer than they should because their humans aren’t ready to let go. Bo was more than ready to lay down on the floor. Did he know what was coming? I don’t know, but he let me cradle his head in my hands and surrendered, trusting that we knew what was best for him.
Goodbye, sweet boy.

Musing on Life Potential

Dear Readers,
Today is the 10th anniversary of of the terrorist attacks that killed 2,977 people on September 11, 2001. This week we have seen some beautiful remembrances of heroes and inspirational stories of survival. Our country has also held it’s breath all week to see if some terrible monster would try to commemorate the event with another attack.
Here on the West Coast, we look for our own way to honor the lost souls because so many of us were not personally affected by the death of a loved one, friend or co-worker. Whether we knew someone or not, I believe the best we can do to honor their spirit is live up to our fullest potential. If you read my bio, you will see that I decided to go back to school after 9/11. I could no longer allow myself to be miserable and decided to take action and improve my life, to be happy about it and stop bitching about it.
It is such a relief that the West Coast was spared the trauma on 9/11. We were so lucky and we know it. It could as easily have happened out here to us. So to let days go by and not appreciate the gift of another day to live our lives is a dishonor to our fellow Americans who’s lives and futures were taken from them that fateful day.
Never Forget,
Aimee

First Day of School

Surprisingly, I made it through the first day of school without a tear shed, on my part or the kids.
Dropping off the boy in the morning a breeze, but picking him up this afternoon (they had a short day) was chaotic, none of the parents were told where to pick up their kids. To make matters worse, it was the same time I had to drop the girl off at preschool. Fortunately for me, her preschool is at the same school that my son goes to.
What surprised me today was my daughter. The preschool teacher gave us the option of signing the kids out with us after orientation, but she wanted to stay there. She was too busy exploring the classroom and making friends to leave.
My boy and I are enjoying some quality time together this afternoon. I wish it were cooler outside so that we could do something more constructive than just sitting on the couch with the AC cranked up watching Tom and Jerry.