Tuesday, August 06, 2013

Some Bad, Some Good...

Busy stretch around here, filled with all kinds of highs and lows....

I'll back up to last week, when The Boy's Uncle died, somewhat suddenly. He had a heart attack a couple of weeks ago, and the initial prognosis was actually quite good, but then he developed an infection and his kidneys stopped working, and then there were a couple of weeks where he seemed like he was getting better, only to deteriorate. Finally, it was simply too many things at once, which probably combined with his deep longing for his wife, deceased five years ago to take him.

That made for an emotional week, not at all helped by what proves to be a somewhat messy situation between his two sons. They don't get along at all, and while they are very different, they are both, in different ways, totally self-absorbed. Also, son #2 has a son and an ex-wife that complicate things...but probably not how you would guess. I'll spare you the details (they aren't secret...I'll happily tell you if you are curious, but they are long!) but there is a little bit of money, and two houses and no will. It could be very simple, or it could be very complicated, depending on whether the sons choose to make it so. And as something of the resident family expert on such matters, The Boy may end up getting dragged into it.

But, for the love of God, people...write a will. It's not that hard, and it's not that expensive.

So, the funeral was Friday, and it got worse from there! Papa Bear's adorable, beloved golden retriever died on Sunday:-(. She's been around for longer than I've been around these parts, and she was just the best dog in the world:-). The girls loved her, and have been very good about giving her gentle hugs and head pats all summer long because they knew that she didn't feel good.

She was very healthy until earlier this summer, when she seemingly hurt her hips and had trouble walking. But it turned out that she hadn't hurt her legs at all, but had actually gotten a very fast-growing tumor in her stomach that just basically sapped all of her energy. She never seemed to be in any discomfort, but she got very lethargic and lost her appetite, and within the last week and a half she couldn't stand up on her own (she could still walk...she just needed help getting upright!) and stopped eating entirely.

Papa Bear had already decided as of Saturday night that he was going to have to have her put down on Monday morning when the vet opened, but she died peacefully with several people around her on Sunday afternoon. And yes, I am crying writing this:-).

I told the girls that she was very, very sick, and that she had to leave us to go to Heaven, but that she would be with her doggy Mommy and doggy Daddy. We had been preparing them for that for a couple of days;-). They were a little sad, but didn't seem too phased by it...they asked who came to pick her up to take her there:-)

Enough with the sad news, and on to the good stuff...Great Euro Trip 2013 kicks off on Thursday!!! Munchkin, MA and I leaving for Paris for about five days, and then Nice for the rest of the following week, returning on Sunday. I doubt I'll blog, but I will have my laptop, so maybe I will...

Until then, though,

Au Revoir!


4 comments:

Nilsa @ SoMi Speaks said...

When it rains, it pours. Sorry to hear about The Boy's uncle and the potential messy division of his assets. And, I totally get the loss of a beloved dog. We recently went through that with my brother's dog (who was far too young) ... and it's so hard to see a dog lose their quality of life. (I guess the same holds for people, too.) Glad the girls had the chance to know such a loving dog ... it's amazing how all they need is a little reassurance the dog is ok, wherever it is, and then the kids move on. Wish we adults could be so resilient.

Have a great trip - can't wait to hear all about trans-Atlantic travel with a toddler!

Lori S-C said...

How did you decide which of the girls to take?

Fit Fun Family said...

sorry about your bad news. So sad about the dog! They become such a part of our lives and it's so hard to see them go. I can't even imagine something happened to our Chloe but I know she won't be with us forever. Have a great vacation!!!

Anonymous said...

So sorry about the bad news. :-(
Yesterday, the 8th of August, it was one year that our beloved Golden Retriever Whiskey had to be put down. He had cancer as well and it came all very quickly. We got the news that he was not ok and she had to operate him and the same day she called to tell us there is no hope and she will put
him to sleep. Don’t ask how much I cried.
Yesterday it was a year and I could still cry if I would allow myself to think about it.

I hope you have a fun holiday!!! Enjoy it and tell us all later.