So, I obviously disappeared for a little while after Emma earned
her angel wings. As you can imagine, I needed some time to grieve and
adjust and regroup after her ten month cancer battle. It’s been so
incredibly hard to get used to life without Emma but I just keep
reminding myself to “Live Like Emma” – be brave, be happy, be confident,
be grateful, go after what you want, greet every day and every new
situation with enthusiasm and live in the moment because this very
moment is all that we have! Emma was my hero and the perfect example of
how to live a happy life!
After a few weeks, I was finally ready to start trying to live my
life again and I had a few good days…..but then…….exactly one month
after Emma died, Baxter became very seriously ill and was in the
hospital for several days with a severe case of pancreatitis. And I was
CRUSHED yet again. On his 3rd night in the hospital, they called in
the middle of the night and I almost had a heart attack! Don’t middle
of the night phone calls always bring bad news???!!! But no……..they
were calling to tell me that Baxter started having a “prison riot” in
his cage and ripped out his IV catheter and was bouncing all around and
he wouldn’t stop barking and was feeling much better. So, I rushed out
in the middle of the night to bring my brave, sweet, strong, adorable
baby boy HOME!
Then, I learned of a sweet, little 4 month old Blenheim Cavalier who
had been rescued from a horrible situation and needed a home. An awful
backyard breeder kept her in a tiny cage, outside, in Salt Lake City,
Utah, all winter!!! They decided they needed some quick money so they
“ransomed” her off to a rescue group. And even though it was way too
soon after losing Emma, I couldn’t say no. Especially after I heard
that she would be available for adoption on March 13……the day that would
have been Emma’s 9th birthday. Wouldn’t it be just like my amazing
Emma to give ME a gift on HER birthday???!!! How could I say no to the
puppy that Emma clearly wanted me to have in my life???!!! So, say
hello to Betsy……also known as Lady Elisabeth Paisley Puddingstone. Also
known as Betsy Wetsy, Queen Bess, The Tiny Queen, Punkin’ Chunkin’
Betsy Biscuit, Chunky, and Biscuit.
And then, Baxter decided to get sick AGAIN……but this time it was a
foreign object that he ate that was very slow to pass. It was stuck in
his system and making his belly hurt for TEN days. It ended up being an
olive pit and ironically his body finally “let go” of the olive pit the
day after I fed him bread soaked in olive oil in an attempt to get his
system moving!
And then, Betsy developed a massive swelling under her ear and when
it didn’t respond to medical treatment, we had to do surgery to find out
what was going on. We found out that she has a rare and aggressive
infection called Actinomyces which is caused by a foxtail burrowing into
her skin. She’ll be on high dose antibiotics for at least 3-4 months
and there may be more surgeries in her future. But for now, she’s doing
great.
And then, I tried to catch my breath and start living a normal life
again……but you guessed it! Something else happened…..my sweet, old cat,
Cassi who would have been 21 years old next month became critically ill
very suddenly last week…..she was acting completely normal one day and
we were letting her go the next day. And while I’m comforted by the
fact she had such a long and happy life, it’s really hard to get used to
living without someone who has been with you for so very long.
Sooooo……I’m really, really, REALLY hoping that the second half of
this year is COMPLETELY boring and uneventful! Wish me luck! I
definitely need it!
Hugs,
Jenny
