Remembering My Sweet Olivia Rose

Three years ago today I lost darling little Livi at the tender age of only 14 months. I got her as a birthday gift to myself on January 22, 2005. She was a little rescue girl from Puerto Rico. She was five months old when I got her.

The picture that captured my heart on Petfinder

Look at that adorable face!


Sherman and Olivia

Olivia went to work with me every day. She was very frightened of men, but she loved women and went gaga over children. I was thrilled to finally have a dog that liked kids! She became well known at the Champlain Mill where our physical therapy clinic was, and most people knew her by name. I often took her down to the little cafe and leashed her to a post right outside the door (just a few feet from me, but she wasn't allowed in where the food was) and everyone stopped to see her and comment on how beautiful she was. She had gorgeous spots of brindle. Half of her face was white with white eyelashes, and the other was brindle with dark eyelashes. She was very unique in many ways.

Growing more beautiful every day

One day in mid October, Livi started circling and it became more and more prevalent each day. Then it became a frantic circling that she couldn't stop. She also started losing control of her right side and the vet thought she was blind on the right side. My vet referred her to a neurologist in NH for a CT scan, but before I even made the trip with her, she lost ground so quickly that I decided to let her go when she started having seizures. It was only two weeks from the start of her symptoms until I had to let her go. My vet said that with the seizure activity, he was pretty confident that it was a brain tumor.

This was taken only days before she started seizing. Her front legs are splayed out because she was having problems with motor control.

Blind in the right eye, from what we could tell

It still makes me teary to think of my sweet girl dying at such a young age. I took her loss very hard. My vet made me feel better by saying that maybe I was just meant to love her for the short time she had and that at least she didn't die a horrible death on the streets of Puerto Rico.

I love this picture of her smiling

I was very lucky to have her, even though it was for such a short period. I will never forget her love for life, her loving personality, her adorable face....

Happy Birthday / Gotcha Day, Sherman!

Six years ago today Sherman made his way to Vermont via a relay of many wonderful people. I was to drive to Addison Vermont to pick him up for his last leg to his forever home. My home. Little did I know then how lucky I was to have this little being join my family.

Sherman was found as a stray, so we don't really know his actual birthdate, but my vet estimated him as 18 months to two years of age when I got him, so I decided to use his gotcha day as his birthday. I can hardly believe he's eight! He doesn't act it, or look it, or feel it from what I can tell. He and Raeka play and wrestle and run and run and run together. He does have pretty bad arthritis in his little elbows and wrists, but as long as I don't let him jump off the bed, he's fine.

Sherman dressed for Halloween

Sherman is a love. He accepts every living creature that has joined our family since his arrival. Phoebe and Flower, the cats, Olivia, my darling little Puerto Rican rescue dog that we only had in our lives for nine short months before losing her to a brain tumor, and Raeka, who joined us after Olivia died. Another little girl from Puerto Rico. Sherman grieved for weeks and weeks after Daisy died, and again after Livia died. Hopefully, he will never have to suffer such a loss again in his lifetime.

Sherman and Daisy Mae

Sherman and Olivia

Sherman and Raeka

Sherman is challenging in the grooming department. His only fault, really. He will have nothing to do with nail trimming, or the grooming he needs when his coat grows long. Every six months I end up taking him to the vet's where they anesthetize him and monitor him while I trim his nails, shave his coat short, and do anything else that needs to be done. Other than that, he is such a joy. He's a big clown. He makes me laugh every day. He is a snuggler and a snorer, and a nut! I don't know what I'd do without him, and hopefully I won't find out for a very long time.

With his favorite toy, a pink bunny!

Looking for the perfect one

Happy Birthday, my little man. I'm so glad to have you as a part of my life.

A Beautiful Autumn Day

We woke up to temps in the 20's this morning, frost covering everything, the sun shining brightly through the yellow and orange leaves that are left on the trees. Our backyard is surrounded by maple trees and this year they have been spectacular. Many of them are past peak, but it is still amazing to walk out into the backyard as the sun is coming up in the morning.

Our backyard

Guess it's time to put the chairs away

So many beautiful colors

Raeka enjoying the crisp fall day

Sherman, who thinks the piles of leaves are put there for him to pee on!

Daisy Mae April 25, 1992 - October 9, 2004

Four years ago today, I lost my heart-dog, Daisy Mae. She was a Brittany mix that entered my life at the age of six weeks, and left me at the age of 12 and a half. She was the first puppy I'd ever raised and she taught me a ton.


Daisy loved to go for rides in the car, go for walks, and catch a frisbee in her younger days. She loved every living thing she ever met and knew no enemies. She was frightened of children, but would never harm one. She just chose to remove herself from the situation, or look at me with pleading eyes to remove the child, please.



At the Colchester Causeway. Her favorite place on earth, where I've place a letterbox in her memory.

I can't really put to words all that Dais meant to me, so I won't even try. I'll just share with you some of my favorite pictures and tell you that she was everything to me. My friend, my companion, my confidant, my heart and my soul....




Daisy slept with her bunny every night and gave it a bath every morning

Until we meet again, my sweet girl. I love you so....

Taken only six weeks before going to the Rainbow Bridge

Scrapbooking Retreat

Last weekend I went to a scrapbooking retreat in Killington Vermont at the Mountain Meadows Lodge (http://www.mountainmeadowslodge.com/) and had a blast. The place is amazing. There is the lodge itself, which is a large barn, and then the farmhouse, which is where our room was. Oh, my sister, Cherry went with me and there were four other women, two that I'd met before and their family members that I just met. There were only six of us, but that just meant that we had more room to spread out (LOL)!

This is Bill, owner and cook at MML Our scrapbooking space. Note the big windows where we would often see Molly and her sheep go by.

The Lodge

The Farmhouse

When we pulled into the parking area we were met by Bill, the owner, who made us feel right at home. Then two goats and six sheep went walking by. The white, calico looking goat is Molly, and this is her herd of sheep. They follow her everywhere she goes. I didn't get the name of the little goat, but what a doll!

Molly

The little adorable one

A few of the sheep

There is also a Shetland Pony named Alex that is such a love. He wanders through the grounds and if you go outside to enjoy the beautiful grounds he his more than happy to join you for a walk and some scratches.Alex

Then there is sweet, lovely, adorable Alice. Alice is a Japanese Potbelly Pig. She also has run of the place and can most often be found over near the patio area, munching on the grass and sunbathing by the picnic tables.

I fell in love with Alice, and she seemed to like me too. She kind of grunted at some people, but not me. She came to me with her tail wagging and seemed very content to just lean on my leg and enjoy my pats, scratches, and conversation. I was actually very sad when I couldn't find her the morning I left. I didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

Alice coming to see me.

Alice and I

The Adirondack Trail goes right through the property and there's a little bench near the trail if hikers need to stop for a break. The owners of the lodge are very good to the hikers and give them a room and a meal for little of nothing.

1680 miles to Springer

The property also touches Lake Kent. It's a beautiful little lake, crystal clear, with lots of ducks that are always looking for some crumbs.

We were served marvelous meals and waited on hand and foot. It was an amazing and relaxing weekend. We are all planning on making it a tradition to meet every spring and fall there.

Lulu and Poppy

I hope you're not tired of hearing about my two little rat girls. They have really grown on me and I just had to share how they're coming along.

Poppy and Lulu

They are still very shy and frightened of people, but at least when I picked them up to clean their cage this week Poppy didn't squeal as if I was killing her. She also didn't struggle as hard.

Lulu sleeping with her head on Poppy's back

Lulu is the little housekeeper. Every morning she does her best to push anything dirty out of the front of the cage. She picks up, pushes, kicks, and shoves strips of newspaper and wood chips out through the bars then pats at it with both hands. So adorable.

Lulu eating a white cheddar cheese doodle

Poppy is obsessed with newspaper strips. When I put in a new handful of newspaper she gets so excited. She will run up and down the ramps for over an hour until she has all of the strips up on the top shelf in a perfect little nest for them to sleep on. I don't just put them up there because she has to place them just right.

Poppy eating her cheese doodle in a house filled with her precious newspaper

They also have a blast playing the toilet paper rolls. Last night I watched Lulu try and try to figure out a way to lift one up and fit it into the opening in their grass ball. It was hysterical!

They love trying different kinds of food. It's as much fun for me to give it to them as it is for them to receive it. They just get so excited when I put new things in there. This morning they had some Special K with strawberries and it was a huge hit.

They come over to see me the second I step into the room and listen to me talk quietly to them. I think they really just want food, but it still makes me feel good. They have the most adorable little faces, don't they?

That's us. Cute. Adorable. Funny. Amazing little rat girls.