Halloween 2013

Did it! Survived another Halloween! At the end of the night, I sighed with relief that the day went so well. Two awesome school parties, three adorable hand made costumes, trick or treating, a big pot of chili, fun with friends and neighbors, and tons of candy. And, my husband seemed to enjoy his birthday even though it was, as usual, a side-event after trick or treat.

It was a good one. 

My kids go to an awesome Montessori school. They have a lot of kids from various walks of life and like most schools, they do not celebrate Halloween at school.  I am glad about that. I like that the school respects those who do not do Halloween, and I like that my kids are learning to respect others in this way. But, they do something else that fits in with Halloween and the kids who do celebrate don't miss out on festivities with the alternative. This school is pretty cool!

Happy Non-offensive Fall!

The kindergarten kids study animals. Each student chooses an animal and does their own research and learning at home about that animal. On the last day of October, they dress up as the animal they chose to learn about and present what they learned. All of the kids wear their project costumes and the parents bring in treats for the autumn project party. At the party, the kids are encouraged to mingle and ask  each other about their animal.  Even the party is educational!

Libby chose to study a peacock.  We read about peacocks, looked at pictures, looked online, and we went to a dairy farm where they have a couple of peacocks in a pen. Libby asked the farm hand what peacocks eat and he told her they feed  them "mash" which is smashed corn. I made her a peacock costume and she made a poster for her presentation.

The lower elementary classes (grades 1,2 3) had a project called "Time Machine".  Each student chose a culture and time from the past and studied it. They could choose anything they wanted. At the end of the month, each student dresses as a person from their chosen time and presents what they learned about the history of the culture.

Gracie chose Ancient Egypt.  She watched a Brainpop video, read about it, and we went to the Museum of Man and explored the exhibit with the help of a docent. She learned a lot about ancient Egypt and the culture of the Egyptians.  She designed her costume and I made it the way she instructed.  As it turns out, Ancient Egypt was a popular place to go in the time machine! Several of her little classmates also studied the same topic. They had fun talking about what they learned and comparing.  At their "party" the kids all gather together and the parents go around asking students about their chosen historical period. Then the kids mingle and are encouraged to ask each other about their character's life. It's really a cool project and the kids learn a lot from each other.

Charlie is only three years old, but he is a wise little boy. I repeatedly asked him what he wanted to be for Halloween hoping to hear pirate or superman or Winnie the pooh, or something easy and popular with the tots. He was consistant with his request: He wanted to be Sandy, our dog who passed away in July.  He couldn't just be any puppy dog, he had to be Sandy. Luckily, I found some soft minky fabric in the right color for the costume. It had little swirls so it might look like a sheep, but it was soft and the right color and that was the best I could find, so I got it.  He loved it! He kept hugging the fabric and thanking me before I even had the costume cut out!

Charlie has this whole "Gramma can make anything" thing figured out! He told me just how to make it with ears like this and a tail like this and paws, wait, no paws, yes, paws. He couldn't decided about the paws, so I attached paw mitts that had a hole for his hands to escape if he wanted them out. Happy Puppy! Guess it was a good thing I didn't talk him into another costume.

His Sandy costume turned out pretty good. A bit sheepish, but mostly dog. He woofed and panted and gave puppy kisses. Had the day been a bit cooler, he might have worn his puppy costume all day long. He wore it to the school parties and then donned it again for trick or treating.

Just like every year, our first trick or treat stop is next door. The neighbors spoil my kids! This  year they gave the kids a candy necklace making kit. They're gonna love that! Keith took the first trick or treat shift and walked the kids up the street and back and they filled their bags. They took a break at home and shoved as much candy into their mouths as they could, then I took them out for round 2. I took them in the other direction. Once again, they filled their candy bags. Libby was exhausted by the time we got back home.  They each ate a couple of handfuls of candy, and it was off to bed.

The kids  had a blast!  Keith enjoyed his pot of chili and cornbread. The neighbors brought him a growler of beer from a local brewery. He also got a card in the mail, and the only thing he had to say about that was "it's not from your mom? that's weird. She must be slacking!"  We never did get around to eating his birthday pumpkin pie, but it was a school night and everyone was stuffed and tired so we'll do it later. 

Rest in Peace, Sandy

Our dog died.  She was old and lived a good life.

She was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on New Years Day in 2001. She was the runt of the litter and the last one to find a home. We got her on March 11th. Katie was 11 years old and Lexie was 9.

Lexie put at least two years of research and pleading into this decision to get a dog. She looked at lots of different breeds of dogs and knew what would be the best kind of dog for our family and our lifestyle. She wanted a female Golden Retriever.

I remember clearly. I was having an outpatient surgery that day in Sioux Falls and Keith went to pick up the puppy while I was in surgery. He was there to support me and ease my nerves and I never knew he was gone for a bit.

He must have arranged the pick-up of the puppy in advance. I don't know how he did it. But he said he met the mama and the daddy dogs. They were both 100% Golden Retriever dogs and had papers. But, he wasn't interested in a certified dog, just a good dog. And he picked the best puppy!

I remember seeing her for the first time in the back of the truck shaking and scared. She was so little!

When we got home, I went in and Keith told the girls to come out and unload the truck. They knew we spent the day in Sioux Falls, obviously that meant we had a truckload of Sams Club groceries. They groaned but they got up and went to the garage like a couple of slugs. They looked in the back of the truck and squealed with joy!

All that was back there was a box with a towel in it and a puppy!  Those were two very happy girls!

They thought and thought of names for her. They made lists and thought some more. In the end, Lexie named her Sandy and we all liked it.

I admit, I wasn't in love with her at first. I've never liked dogs. Ever. In fact, I've always detested all dogs. And I feared them. But she was ours and she was so cute and little. Keith promised she wouldn't be scary. She chewed on things, she peed on the floor and things, she was just a puppy!  But she was so cute and snuggly! I did have to put my foot down and demand that she would be an outdoor and garage dog though, not a house dog. I was not having any of that! Keith and the girls wanted her to be an indoor dog, but I am the mom and my vote counts more. I said NO.

She had a good set up in the garage and Keith and the girls built her a nice doghouse. For an outdoor puppy, she had it very good. The outdoor dog setup lasted about a year or so.  We kept her on a long leash outside since we didn't have a fenced yard. She was just fine out there, but I think she was lonely and longed to be with us. I didn't think so at the time though.

She became an indoor dog when she was spayed. I think it was August 2002. It was very hot outside and she had her surgery, so we let her come in to recover in comfort. She wasn't doing well though, she developed a life threatening infection and we were sure that we were going to lose her. We had to get a rag wet and squeeze the water into her mouth because she was so sick she couldn't get up at all. After that long illness, and lots of pampering, she was an indoor dog forever after.

She loved being with us. If we were all in the living room, she was in the living room. If we were all on the patio, she was on the patio. She was a very social dog and she loved us! We all loved her too, even me.

When she was 4.5 years old, we moved to California. People asked us, "Are you taking your dog?"  I do not understand this at all. She was a part of our family, how do you leave your pet behind when you move? 

She always went on vacation with us. That was one of her favorite things! No matter where she sat in the van, one or two people could pet her. She always had a great time vacationing with us. We took her camping and to motels and to fields and rivers and you name it, she went with us and she loved it! 

Sandy was very perceptive. Maybe all dogs are, I don't know, but she was. She knew if someone was sick or injured and she would lay nearby. When I was pregnant with Gracie, but didn't know it yet, she was constantly laying near me, following me, getting underfoot. It was like she was suddenly my best friend and she just wanted to snuggle me and lay her head in my lap or on my belly. I thought she was just being a weird dog, little did I know that she knew there was a "puppy" coming!

She raised five "puppies". Gracie was the first of the litter, then Libby, Charlie, Henry and Alfred. She loved all of the kids very much! Katie and Lexie grew up and she loved them dearly but they weren't little ones anymore and they never really were little to her.

The kids loved Sandy! And Sandy let them love her and play with her in whatever way they wanted to. They rode her, they pulled on her, they pinched her, napped by her, slobbered on her, used her like a pillow, took her toys and bones away from her while she had them in her mouth, everything. She was very tolerant and forgiving and the worst she would ever do is wait for an opportunity to get up and walk away.

Know what I really liked about her? She didn't bark!  Well, she did, but hardly ever. She would bark once while standing at the door waiting to be let in if she had been waiting for a while. One woof. Usually that was all you ever heard out of her. But of course, if all the neighbor dogs were barking at a rabbit or a shadow or gardeners on the hill behind our house, she had to run out and bark along with the chorus of dogs.

A tumor grew on Sandy's hip recently and it didn't stop growing. It was huge! She looked like she had a football in her pocket. She was in obvious pain too. We took her to the vet for surgery and he was able to remove the tumor although he said it was "gnarly" and very involved. He hoped that he got it all but there wasn't a guarantee. She really felt better!

While she recovered, our favorite neighbor dog died. He was a year older than Sandy and they got along very well in the 10 years that they lived next door to each other. They were best friends, if dogs have best friends. They did seem to understand one another and  had a healthy respect for each other. Teddy was a sweet dog and Sandy seemed to know that he was gone. Like I said, she was perceptive.

After a couple of months, the tumor returned. And it came back with a fury. It grew very fast and it spread. It grew over (and probably under) the base of her spine. It also grew into her belly. It caused her a lot of pain this time. Her last week, the tumor blocked her intestines and she was throwing up each day, until the tumor grew more and she just stopped eating. Her back was in so much pain that she couldn't squat to go to the bathroom and she was losing all dignity.

On her last day, she couldn't get up. She was so sad and her eyes pleaded for relief. We knew it was time to end her misery, but we each day during her last week we thought she deserved another day. We knew that when she couldn't get up that day had arrived.

Keith took care of her on her last day and after her euthanasia, he brought her home so that the kids could say goodbye.  He then took her to a place called Veterinary After Care for cremation. They took very good personal care of her and returned her cremains to us in a cedar box with her name on an engraved plate on top. Very dignified and lovely.

Sandy was in our family for 12 and a half years. She was a member of our family just as much as anyone else in this family is. We will always miss her. She was the best dog!  I can truly attest to that since she completely transformed me from a strong anti-dog person . She loved every one of us every day. We'll miss her wagging tail.

Stitches, more stitches, and no sewing

Finally, a blog post that isn't about something I'm sewing, rather, I've been sewn. Sandy and I both have stitches.

The dog had a gigantic tumor on her hip and it kept growing. It was outa control!  Poor dog looked like she had a football in her pocket. So, the vet removed the tumor and the dog had a very large incision with some of the ugliest stitches ever. After a week, we took her cone of shame off and she was free to scratch her ears again.

Taking the cone off only seemed like a good idea. Sandy thought it would also be a good idea to remove the stitches too. She bit them off and it was nasty! Back into surgery she went to trim up the incision and get stitched back up. She's back in the cone!

The very next day... I cut my finger. I was helping my daughter load some things into her car and I reached to open her car door and the handle of it was broken a little bit. Slice! I cut my middle finger pretty good. Ended up with 5 stitches and a tetnus shot. I'm so talented.

The dog and I are clumsily trying to get through the day without hurting ourselves even worse, or getting the cone stuck between chairs. I'm trying to type and start a new sewing project while flipping the bird , er, holding up my sore bandaged finger.

For your viewing pleasure, there are no photos.