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Anytime I’m going out of town, Mia goes to stay with my parents. She loves it over there because she gets to play with my parent’s dog, Jezzi, and my sister’s dog, Skeeter. She travels very well, sleeping the entire way just up until we get to the off ramp. Then she jumps up and tries to pace on the front seat in anticipation of getting to their house. This picture was taken as I was sitting at the stop light. Can you see th look on her face? “Mom, I don’t WANNA sit down! We’re almost to the big dog’s house and I need to see them!”
Mia loves cuddling, and she doesn’t really care what you’re doing when she wants to cuddle. The picture on the left is when she was trying to get my attention, as I was working on the laptop. I pet her and rubbed her ears, and then went back to the project I was trying to finish. Since she obviously didn’t want to leave, she decided to take a nap. Under the laptop.
In the past week, several large chunks of my world have come crashing down upon me. Some were unexpected, and others were a long time coming, but cloaked in several layers of denial. It's just been a completely crappy time in my life.
The greatest thing in the past week has been the overwhelming support and love I've received from my friends. Phone calls, text messages, and e-mails have been pouring in with offers of help in any way that I need it. It literally brought me to tears when I realized how awesome and amazing my friends are. They keep me laughing and busy and distracted, so I don't get too caught up in the negative. They're here for me 24 hours a day if I need them to be, and words cannot express how grateful I am to all of them.
I know things will get better. I know life goes on, and that I will be ok. But I honestly don't know if I would make it through this without the support of these wonderful people.
You guys are my rock, and I'm so incredibly thankful to have you.
I feel like I should have something eloquent to say. Like this is a time for the greatest post I’ve ever written. And yet every time I’ve sat down to write something this week, I come up blank. How do I describe how I’m feeling? I have been extraordinarily lucky in my life because up until now, all of my grandparents have been alive. I’ve never been to a funeral. I’ve never been to a memorial service. My aunt (dad’s sister) passed away 7 years ago, but I hardly knew her, and didn’t fly to Ohio for the funeral. This is the first real time I’ve had to deal with death, and I’m not entirely sure I’m dealing. It doesn’t seem real to me yet.
I went to Laughlin this past weekend with my friends for our bowling sweeps. Part of me didn’t want to go because it seemed wrong to go out and have a good time when I should be in mourning for my grandpa. But the other part of me really wanted to enjoy myself this weekend because Grandpa’s passing just proves you never know when it’s going to be over. Any one of my friends or I could go at any time, and I don’t want to kick myself for not spending the time I have with them. I was a little afraid to drink, for fear that I would get all depressed and sad, so I stayed totally sober on Friday night. Saturday, however, I went dancing with friends, and figured it was impossible to be sad while I was dancing. So I had one drink. And then another. And then more. I’m not sure how many I had altogether (probably less than it felt like I did), but I was certainly feeling no pain when I was done. (Sidenote: If you haven’t ever had a Smirnoff Ice Triple Black, stop reading, go get some, and come back. It’s like magic in a bottle.) I was also having the time of my life. Donald and I stayed out dancing until almost 5am, and while my muscles are seriously pissed at me right now, I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat. It was the most fun I’ve had since this night, and was something I needed badly.
The memorial service for my Grandpa will be held on the 21st, the same day we were supposed to have a party for their 58th anniversary. I don’t want to go. My dad gave me the option of staying home, but I couldn’t do it. This is something I need to face, even if I’m scared. But the illogical part of my brain thinks if I don’t go, I won’t have to accept that he’s gone. And right now, I’m ok with that.
Mia’s favorite place to sleep is on top of a human body part, and she’s not too particular about which human or body part. Most of the time, she sleeps between my knees. Which makes it oh-so-easy for me to move in the middle of the night. When she naps, she likes to be snuggled right up under your skin, so that you can’t possibly breathe without her knowing about it.
We were going to see him in 2 weeks. Their 58th anniversary is on the 21st, and we were all going to Ohio for the party. I was sad when they told us he wouldn't be able to make the trip to California this year, but was excited about going to Ohio to see him and Grandma and the rest of the family.
He was one of the smartest people I'll ever know. He loved jigsaw puzzles and sports and his family. He whistled constantly, most of the time without noticing he was doing it. He played cards and board games and laughed all the time. I will never forget his laugh.
He lived in Ohio, and we live in California, so we did't get to see him much. We went back to visit a few times, but most of the time he and Grandma came out here. They had a 5th Wheel/RV and loved to travel. He had a tattoo of an anchor on his arm that always fascinated me.
He took a nap today and didn't wake up. He's not hurting anymore, even if the rest of us are. We loved him and he loved us.
I miss you Grampa. I love you.
I decided instead of doing a Daily Mia section, (and completely ripping ideas off from other bloggers) I’ll do a weekly picture posting of the cutest dog that ever lived.
Mia’s tongue is the object of much love and laughter in this house, and has been from the day we brought her home. It doesn’t quite fit in her mouth, so she often leaves it hanging out. You can judge strictly from the length of her tongue how tired she is. In this particular picture, she’d fallen asleep on the couch with it hanging out and pushed up against a cushion. The result is what you see here; a tongue that curls up awkwardly and just sticks there. It stayed like this for a good 10 minutes after she woke up, until she came to give me kisses. I could hardly stop laughing long enough to take the picture.
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