A heavy-hearted goodbye...

Thor:  November 2001 - January 20, 2014

My sweet angel is gone.  My little ol' grey-faced man.  A true mama's boy.

How can my heart recover?

Even as I write this, staring at the photo of your sweet face, I feel lost.

Out of all of the waifs at the rescue, you, Thor,
were the one little redhead within the herd of black and white.

The day we picked you up, you had been playing with your kennel-mate.  Knocking over your water bowl to mix with your soiled paper... what an awful stench!  I couldn't wait to get you a bath.

We brought you home to meet your sister, Heidi.  It wasn't a great first meeting, but she warmed up to you quickly.  Pretty soon, you two were inseparable.  She was the hyper one, and you were the totally laid-back one.  You were never much for playing with toys, unless it was to take one from your sister so that she would chase you around the yard.

And you were definitely not a fan of swimming.  The first time we took you to the lake, you jumped right off the end of the dock and sunk to the bottom.  You popped back up, but were VERY wary after that!  We outfitted you with a life-jacket and would occasionally fetch water toys with Heidi, but you preferred wading along the shore. :)

Heidi & Thor making snow angels :)

You were always showing Daddy who was the Alpha-Male in the house:

When you were young, you seemed to have springs in your paws.  You could jump straight up, damn-near looking me in the eyes... that was usually when I was about to fill your food dish.  I had never seen a dog your size jump so high from a standing position.  This came in handy when we had to section-off Heidi from Grandma Bev's dog, Cinder... you were the only one that could jump the barriers and visit both of them throughout the day.

Another of your little quirks... you always wanted to eat on the stairs.  Even when we had your food dish across the room in the kitchen.  You would grab a mouthful of food, go to the stair, drop it (making a mess) and eat from the 1st or 2nd stair step.  So, we just moved your dish there.  And, you still would take your food out of your dish, deposit it NEXT to the dish on the step, and THEN eat it off the step.

It was kinda like when parents of human children find Legos in the middle of the night (ouch!)...

we would find kibble now and then :)

You loved your Beneful:

You always had something going on with you... mainly skin allergies and ear issues.  Once, you shook your ears so much that you cause it to balloon up with fluid.  You had to wear this splint-of-sorts for a few days:

You looked so dorky.  :)   And you were always kind of clumsy... like a gangly teenager.

But then you had your moments like this:

I cropped it out of the photo, but there was a little angelic halo above your head :)

It always shone so brightly when you were sleeping.

You LOVED napping.  More than any dog I had seen.

And if there was a stuffed animal nearby, that was all the better:

You were definitely an inside dog... you were not much of an outdoorsman at all!  You would stay out long enough to do your business, patrol the perimeter of the fence, and then back inside where the a/c or heat was cranked.  I found you deep in thought one day, staring out the window:

Your eyesight started diminishing awhile back, although to look at you, one would never guess you were blind.  Those big beautiful brown eyes would make my heart swell every time I would look into them.

Last romp in the Fall leaves Nov. 2013

Last September you started really declining.  We had to help you up the stairs because your poor little back legs kept losing strength.  But you wanted to be upstairs, not in the living room... even with a compfy bed there.  You wanted to be near us and would follow me from room to room... bumping into things as you went.  Nuzzling me to rub your sweet face.  I would talk to you and would cock your head to the side, listening intently, as if you could understand me.  

Thor's impression of a red fox :)

Oh how I am going to miss that.
How many times will I look up, expecting to see you and you will not be there?

From the beginning you were mine.

Daddy might have been the one that found you, but you and I had a special bond.

My sweet boy.  I love you.

Sad, sad day...

Heidi, July 1999 - March 2012

My beautiful baby girl is gone.  Oh Heidi, how I miss you.  You were so sweet, but also stubborn at times.  You let us know if anyone was in our yard... or if they were even CLOSE to our yard.  You never did anything you didn't want to, and back-talked more than I can count :)

Heidi & Thor making snow angels 2007

My dear sweet baby girl, my heart is breaking and I don't know how it will mend.

Daddy & Heidi 2007

You were Poot & my first fur-baby.  We brought you home when you were six months old.  And even though your papers read "Foster's Revenge of Missy", which was a combination of your parents' names & ours, you were lovingly called Heidi.  My beautiful blonde K9 kid.

My Sleeping Beauty 2008

Heidi's favorite spot at the top of the stairs 2008

When you were younger, you would play fetch & Frisbee until daddy & I were pooped... and you STILL wanted to play :)  Oh, those ooey-gooey slobber-soaked toys (yuck!).  Thankfully we found an automatic ball-thrower so you could play even when we weren't home.  I guess I should say TWO ball-throwers, since you wore out the first one.  

So cute!  How could anyone say "no" to that face?  2008

You loved swimming at the lake and didn't know when to quit... that's when we made you start wearing a life vest.  And every summer you got a new baby pool in the backyard.  You loved to just climb in to cool off, maybe play ball for a bit, then plunge back into the pool.

I remember the day that you brought me "a present".  You came bounding in the door with a dead bird.  Uh, eewww.  You were so proud, you dropped it beside me and looked up at me with a smile and a wagging tail.  Of course, I freaked-out.  It happened to be the night of your daddy's bachelor party, so every guy I knew was out and about.  Your grandma Bev had to come to my rescue and disposed of it.  Thank goodness.  You obviously didn't know that your were not a hunter's bird-dog :)

So angelic... 2008

And though for the last year or two you haven't been able to jump up on the bed, before that it was your favorite place to be :)  I have countless pictures of you snuggled up in our covers, or spread-out on your back like a little person.

Soooooo lady-like.  2009

You had a thyroid issue and had been on meds for years.  Evidently, a long-term side-effect was that it caused your tear-production to stop.  You lost one eye because of this, but with surgery you were able to keep the other.  Oh my little one-eyed bruiser.

And this is tame compared to how muddy you would get!  2009

You were a tomboy from day one.  You loved to follow daddy on the lawnmower and throw your tennis balls in his path, just to watch them shoot out the side and chase them.  Your feet and forearms would be grass-stained for days, but you had fun.  Not to mention the rainy days when you would play in the puddles and mud holes.  Yes... tomboy.

Awww.  2009

You didn't like other bitches, but you were fine when we brought home a brother for you :)  You two were so different... you were very hyper & major licker, while Thor was (is) laid back.  You were a daddy's girl and would follow him everywhere.  But when mommy was home, you were by my side, laying on my feet, or constantly underfoot (especially in the kitchen).  Oh how I will miss that.

Gee, babies... there is a lot of blanket left over.  So sweet, 2010

These past few months your health seemed to spiral down, and there was nothing we could do.  We knew you were getting old, especially for a dog your size.  We tried to prepare ourselves, but I don't think there really is a way to do that.  Your poor little back legs would sometimes buckle under you, and you just couldn't walk well.  Sometimes it would take two of us to help you go outside just so you could go potty.  We knew this was no way for you to live.  It would've been so selfish of us to let it go on.  We had to let you go.  Oh gawd, it was so hard.  I'm having a meltdown as I write this, my dear sweet baby girl.  I'm glad I spent the entire day with you yesterday... though I was crying through most of it.  I'm glad daddy was by your side today, so that you were not alone in your last minutes.  I was afraid you would be shaking and scared, like you knew what was to come, but he said that you were fine, and that it was just as if you drifted off for a nap.  Oh, my angel.  Daddy came home and we both broke down.

Everywhere I look, I see your sweet face.  Wonderful and bittersweet memories around every corner.  Your favorite spot at the top of the stairs.  The floor next to daddy's side of the bed, where you would sometimes nap.  Daddy's office floor, my craft room floor right next to my chair.  The edge of the sink countertop in the hall bath where you chewed the corner off when you were a baby.  Your food bowl.  The rug in front of the door.  Your bed.  Duckie.  The tooth marks on every wooden spindle going down the stairs from when you were teething.  You are everywhere, my girl.  And I love you.

Heidi & Duckie 2011

Awwwwww.... cuteness alert

 I know, right?!  This is my Heidi.  I decided to do a little photo shoot of her Royal Cuteness with her duckie (or chickie?).  Anyway, when Poot was moving furniture around in the bedroom, he threw Duckie on the bed from atop of the armoire.

 No, this was not staged!  ACK!  Ca-YOOT-ness.

Heidi jumps up on the bed to sniff Duckie and decided to claim him as her own.  She lays on him, spoons him or hugs him... isn't that sweet?

And no, she's not winking... she's our little one-eyed bruiser :)

Happy (early) birthday to Poot...

Yep, Poot's birthday is this week... he's turning 35.  Why yes, I DID marry a younger man, thanks for noticing ;)  At least I look younger than he does... sucka!  Dang it, this isn't nearly as fun as it should be... he doesn't even know what my blog site address is.  But, I'll be sure to relay that bit of info to him in a few days anyway :)

ANYhoo, I decided that the babies should give Daddy a birthday card this year... it's been awhile since they've done that :)  For those of you new to my blog, allow me to introduce you to the babies, Heidi & Thor:

Heidi is the blonde & Thor is the redhead.  She's uber-hyper & a licker and he's totally laid back & only gives kisses on occasion.  She is a Daddy's girl, and he a definite Mama's boy.  This is where I typically find them... napping on our bed.  Heidi is obviously no lady.

Heidi usually wedges herself between Poot and I in the middle of the night, and we have to fight to get her back on the floor.  Both of the babies end up in bed with us in the morning, usually nosing us awake to get their breakfast... damn kids. :)  They NEVER let us sleep in.

As you can see, Heidi is a spread-eagle back sleeper, and Thor curls up in a tight ball... usually with his face covered with a blankie or his paw.

Now that you've seen the babies in real life, here they are in rubber stamp form :)  Aren't they the CA-YOOTIST BABIES EVER?!  I know, they are... both in real life AND on this card, right?!

I know... the colors are way brighter than they should be, but I'm still working on my Copic collection :)  But could those stamp images be ANY MORE PERFECT?!  I know!

The "We're" on the front is handwritten, as well as the sentiment on the inside.  I tried to make the signature look like child's handwriting... I know... I'm a goof.  But the paw prints really seal the deal, right?

 

Stamps:  Good Dog, paw print (unknown)

Paper:  kraft, black & Premium white cardstocks

Ink:  Burnt Sienna & Burnt Umber Palette, Memento Tuxedo

Other:  Juliette & Mimi hardware, PTI wood grain texture plate

Copics:  E09, E31, E35, V99, Y11, Y15, YR07, YR18, YR 23

So there it is.  All the cuteness that is my babies...

What do you think?

Amberley Mini-book

I went to a really fun crop a couple of weeks ago put on by Crop-N-Doodle-Do, and ACTUALLY accomplished a couple of things!  CNDD's crops are awesome... they have fun giveaways, plenty of space, the food is always great, and they help you unload your stuff from your vehicle to your table! 

The crop fee is a little more than others, but they feed you (with cross your legs good desserts) and even go on an afternoon Sonic run for drinks {LOVE that rabbit pellet ice :)}, so the little extra money is TOTALLY worth it!

Ok, since I'm done pimping out CNDD, how's about having a lookie-see at one of the things I finished there?!  Yep, a mini-book of my babies!  It's really small... to give you an idea, the photos are index size... that, and you can see my fingertips in most of the photos (blech).

The base is from 7-Gypsies... it's a little chipboard matchbook, two-to-a-pack.  The only draw-back about this pre-made base is that you are not able to add much bulk AT ALL! 

Just by me adding a matted photo, a couple of accent cardstock pieces, and a decorative paper background, really pushed past the comfortable closing limits of the matchbook! 

I inked the edges with a Burnt Umber Palette pad... gave it a little more grunge look.  And I used up a ton of itty bitty scraps of Amberley Grace paper & coordinating cardstock!  Yes, this is a true scrap project :)

The pewter bookrings are from Karen Foster Designs, the eyelets are TAC's Pewter Hardware, and all of the pretty ribbon is from several of TAC's ribbon collections.

I finished it off with a sliding cardstock belly band that I embellished with a Bazzil Bitty Bloom, oyster disk, & an aqua half pearl from Michael's.  The title was done with a Signo white gel pen.

What do you think?  
I KNOW... the babies are cute :)