Farewell Sweet Ladybug

                             

Patrice stayed on for another week and headed back to the Coast with Lady and Willow on Monday.

She called me about 2 hours after leaving saying Ladybug's foot had really started to bleed.  Lady had a growth on her front paw that had never healed and couldn't be operated on because of her age.  We kept it bandaged but it was not in great shape.  Well, let's be completely honest here, Bugsy was not in great shape AT ALL with her back legs not working well either,  but Patrice wasn't ready to say goodbye so we were keeping her alive with love and lots of treats. 

I told Patrice to come back and that it was definitely time to release dear, sweet, beloved Ladybug from her pain.

I made an appointment with out vet for the next day and in the meantime we loved on our old girl as well as we could with lots of tears. 

Hard to find a more perfect dog than Ladybug and it was so painful to think of her not being around, but more painful to see her suffering so after giving her a breakfast of steak and feeding her more treats, on Tuesday afternoon we drove to the vet to say our final farewell.

Anita wanted to be there since she had spent so much time with Ladybug when she lived with us and she loved her as well. 

So there were three of us in the little "Blue Room", hugging our sweet old Ladybug and crying our eyes out as she passed from this world to the next.

No more pain for our lovely queen.

And no more snuggles for us... 

Till we get to join our sweet girl on the other side.

I guess Moose was there waiting for her with a big tail wag and a ball in his mouth!

Patrice dug a grave under the big willow tree out back and we said our final farewell as we tucked her body into it's earthen resting place.

So grateful that we had the privilege of caring for sweet Ladybug for 12 and a half years.  She was almost two when we got her and she lived a full and lovely life.

2009-2021 

She brought us so much pleasure and she was so easy to look after and be with.

Obedient, eager to please, gentle and so, so sweet.

Willow and Winnie didn't seem fazed and were happily playing in the field.

The circle of life.

The fact that Patrice and I each have a dog right now is such a gift.

No doggie will ever replace our Bugsy, but each pup brings something new and fun into our lives.

Beauty & Battles

In the midst of this extravagant October beauty a war was being waged.

I had plenty of opportunity to observe the changing landscape and colours as I drove up and down the hill going to visit cousin John at the hospital and spending time in prayer in that area.

Unfortunately John didn't heed Esther's warnings to get up and move while he was ill so he ended up with double pneumonia.

So he went to the hospital, was admitted and put onto oxygen. 

Which was fine, but I was completely dumbfounded that they didn't put him onto antibiotics immediately.  They waited several days until he was ready to be admitted to ICU and then they started the antibiotics and ended up putting him on a ventilator.

Meanwhile there was much concerted prayer for John and for several others that were fighting similar battles that we heard about .

Sometimes after dropping Esther off to visit John (only one visitor allowed at a time) I would park at the lake and pray or circle the hospital while "I Speak Jesus" was playing loudly in. my car. The doctors were generally not very encouraging concerning John's prognosis, but thankfully we could go to a higher power and ask for miracles and life! 

Which we were doing very earnestly.

Because I was the only other relative in town I was allowed visiting privileges and I would speak to John through a little microphone or read encouraging passages Him.

There was overt anger directed towards those who had chosen not to cooperate with the dictated program. The frustration is understandable on both sides, but there is a problem when we are not allowed to use protocols that have been successful in other places and are forced to use far less expedient and actually unsafe methods.

So with this incredible "movie set" I drove and prayed and cried out to God for mercy in the midst of all the angst and divisiveness. 

Life and death drama played out with this backdrop to soothe and reorient.

"Yea, though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we will fear no evil..."

Grateful to be able to exit the walls of the hospital and drive home.

I know what it's like to be the one on the other side, unable to leave, but always, ultimately at God's mercy.

Cradled in His love.

Kept by His Powerful Name.

Knowing that His ways and thoughts and ways are far above and better than ours.

Anita and Kisa were over for another bonfire and we were contending together as we were getting phone calls for desperate situations. 

This is how the we operate, one body with many members.

When one suffers we all suffer.

All for one and one for all.

Teach us Lord how to pray and how to love well.

To keep our eyes fixed on the giver of life and to always carry and embody hope.

So Thankful

Vic arrived and we took a walk over to the beautiful pond that is right by Mom's care home. 

Sadly, I find outings like this too overwhelming to do on my own but I'm happy to participate when I have the energy and someone to escort me! 

My wheelchair isn't equipped with tires for rough terrain and I can easily get stuck in gravel with my tiny front castor wheels. Plus, my shoulder isn't in the best shape (although another steroid shot at the end of September is working wonders) so I don't know if I'm too lazy or if it's actually a very hard thing.

Maybe a bit of both.

This outing was practically perfect in every way!

Time with my favourite bother, warm weather and a scenic pond hosting groups of noisy geese that were flying in and making spectacular landings, one after the other. 

It's too bad Mom is not very fond of outings at this point, but she sure loves the time we spend with her!

Such a delight for her to have Vic there to cheer her and everyone else up! 

He also helped get some pictures up on Mom's walls to cozy things up and make it feel more homey. 

Since Vic and Patrice arrived before Daniel, we decided to have some of his ginormous icecream birthday cake ahead of time.  We sent him this picture of us celebrating without him. 

There's nothing like supportive family members to carry you through! 

Thankfully Daniel's birthday is always near Thanksgiving so we were able to have another party once he finally arrived!

I made a humble version of Oma's famous 'Napoleon Torte' since that is Daniel's favourite.  So he really didn't miss out on the cake... we were just teasing!

And I was finally able to love on Patrice & Daniel in real time...

These are a few of my very favourite things... 

Some sweet time was spent around another fire...

disposing of more files and paperwork.

A good excuse to be together outside on a cool fall night!

Ladybug and Daniel hanging out with me in my comfy place!

And the weekend was over, just like that!

I had a chance to take Daniel to the Westside where he was meeting up with his ride.

Another perfect day to be out and about. 

Thankfully Patrice was able to stay on a bit longer to hang out with me and to enjoy beautiful fall walks with the pups. 

I am so thankful for these times with family.

Reconnection, hugs, and looking into the eyes of my beloved ones. 

Open Heart, Open Hands

This poignant autumn season makes my heart ache.

In good ways and in hard ways.

The constant cycle of change that seems to be spinning with ever increasing speed as I grow older is such a "schooling" and endless opportunity for growth. 

And incredible beauty.

Ron's dear mom and brother came for their yearly "apple harvest".

She is incorrigible, at 90 and with her weakened "bum leg" (as she refers to it) she can't resist the fallen apples and those that are left hanging after the pickers have gone through the orchard.  She is an absolute marvel, creating buckets of dried fruit and containers of apple sauce for her kids and grandkids. She still lives on her own and manages to go downstairs to work on her many quilting projects in her spare time.

I came home from a shopping trip to find them in the yard, but since I am still trying to get my energy back, I was way too exhausted to sit out on the patio for a nice visit. 

I made it out to the Farmer's Market and found my favourite organic grape stand.  A sweet elderly man from Serbia proudly offers samples of his delicious fruit.

They are irresistibly sweet. 

My friend who has moved to Serbia with her husband came for a visit and brought me this lovely fall bouquet. 

Fall rivals all other seasons for superb colour and beauty.

It is altogether achingly beautiful.

I have more time now to gaze and behold the beauty of the Lord, in this His temple...

I would have preferred to keep mom home here where I could see to her care and love on her, but I succumb to limitations and must simply be grateful that there is a lovely place with staff and equipment to care for her better than I could here.  

After two weeks of isolation I was able to go in and spend time with her, reminding her of beautiful truth, like a family that loves her and that there are angels surrounding her.

She always likes that part. 

Fall is also a perfect time to gather around a warm fire with good people for stories and for the burning of old tax files!

Anita brought over several boxes and I found several files that were ready to disappear so we had several evenings of therapeutic burning...saying farewell to old things. 

The flames were mesmerizing and we loved poking at the glowing coals long after the flames died down, interspersing prayer with worship.

There was also an early October Baby Shower for Sue's eldest son and his wife.

Apple pies, balloons, kids books gifts galore and fun games.

Another early fall celebration for me is Daniel's birthdate.

The day was exquisite as is the gift of being a mother...

I'm so grateful that Daniel has such lovely colleagues where he works and they celebrated him well, paying homage to his limp by creating a birthday balloon "walker" to help him as he hobbles along.

He's been recuperating from a rather nasty cut he got while mountain biking at the end of September.

Patrice was over to have a birthday dinner with him and she sent me this picture of him resting with Ladybug.

Gotta keep that injury elevated after a long day at work! 

Happy Birthday to the dearest son I could have ever hoped for.

My heart is so tender towards him and always leaning into God for his wholeness, restoration, and Shalom.

Being a parent of adult kids is such a vulnerable mystery,

Holding these precious ones who once inhabited our bodies with wide open hands and wide open hearts.

This too is poignant, achingly beautiful. 

A gift.