More Prayers Needed

Cad post surgery 2011

 

Dear Readers it is with a heavy hear that I post yet more sad news. Not 24 hours after losing our beloved Amy, our precious Cad has been again admitted to Tufts Vet Hospital. We brought him in at 7 on Sat night and he is still there. Since it is the weekend, the neuro experts are not all available. He will need at least one or two MRI's and surgery.

I am fighting tears as I post this news. I had hoped to post the video of Cad with his new wheels (we got him a wheelchair on Friday morning).  My plan is to hold off and show it (fingers crossed) when I can share happier news of his health.  I should be hearing from the experts tomorrow morning and I will update y'all as soon as I can.  So many of you have commented & emailed me with your touching words of comfort about Amy.  I have every intention of getting back to each of you personally with thanks- I hope this massive shout out of gratefulness will hold y'all over for now.

Our Amy Crossed the Bridge

Hello dear readers.  It is with a heavy heart that I share the sad news that our beloved Amy lost her battle with bladder cancer today.  I thought I would share a few pictures of her and her favorite things to do.  The pic above was her favorite morning spot on the guest bed.  The sun hit a spot next to the pillows and she would curl up to take a nap.  If you came in she would chatter at you until you pet her and then she would start purring.  :)

She loved sitting in front the screen doors in the front of the house and at the back.  A perfect day for her had both doors open so she could go to the front to see the neighbors walk by and then to the back to stare at the birds and chipmunks.  The heat wave we had a couple weeks ago found her still alert enough to watch the animals outside with a titchy tail.   :)

Tom and I were talking about a favorite memory we have and it is of Amy with "Her Tree" at Christmas.  We have a tree in our bedroom that she liked to "guard".  She'd sit on the tree skirt and we would get out the laser pointer for her to play tag.  We jokingly called it "Tree Defender".  She wouldn't leave the tree skirt but would pounce on the light if it touched the skirt.  Many time she would only move her front paws like she was playing a video game. 

Tom was reading this over and wanted me to mention how she had THE softest fur of any cat we've ever had.  The vet even offered to clip a lock of fur for us.  :)  She also had a routine of saying goodnight to Tom and then coming to sleep next to me on the edge of the bed (which he liked) and a bad habit of saying good morning to me about an hour before my alarm (I swear she heard when I was setting my alarm for and could read clocks!)  Whenever we went up and down the stairs we had to "pay the toll" by petting Amy.  She liked to sit in the loft area by the stairs where she could lord over her kingdom. :)  I keep looking for her as I walk on the stairs. :(  

I can't say enough good things about our vet.  They are so thoughtful and caring.  Everyone was crying with us.  IT was incredibly touching.  We are getting Amy cremated, like we have done with our other pets who have crossed The Rainbow Bridge and the group that takes care of that was wonderful as well.  It's so nice to have such caring folks at such a sad time.  :)

The hole in our hearts is big, but we are so glad to have had her in our lives.  She added so much personality to our home and we are better human beings for having known her.  :)

Bundle of Love

Happy Friday Peeps!  Thought I would take a break from my May Kit Club 2012 posts to share an uber adorable baby card.  So pull up a chair and a cuppa (we're doing iced ANYTHING in my neck of the woods.  It's going to be like 95-humid-degrees for the next few days!!!).

How super colorful and super cute is this?!? There just something so fun about mixing patterns with lots of bright pinks and yellows that makes me smile.  Come on, you're smiling right now aren't you? ;)  Hope so, that's my goal today!

We've got lots of babies in the future.  Two friends are having grandbabies, one coworker is on her last week before her baby is due, and our new next door neighbors are expecting their first very soon!  It's a good thing I like this card- I'm gonna be making a bunch!!!  Luckily, the 6x6 pad has plenty of sheets to work with in the scaled down patterns that look soooo cute on baby cards. :)

Goodies used to make this bundle smile:
My Minds Eye- Collectable- Unforgettable-Stickers
My Minds Eye- Collectable- Unforgettable- Buttons
My Minds Eye- Collectable- Unforgettable- Journal Paper
My Minds Eye- Collectable- Unforgettable- Story 6x6 Pad
The bling I used got sold out at the last big sale but I think this or this might work too! :)

Pet Update: I'm off today on an 1 1/2 hour drive to Western Mass to get Cad measured for a wheelchair. :(  We've reached that point, but the good news is that all his "medical staff" think he'll do great with a set of wheels and will gain lots more independence than he has had since last summer.  So far, so good with Amy.  She seems to be stable right now, although all she wants to eat is tuna and salmon.  Lucky for her, I like both and will happily share with her. :)

Treasure

I thought I'd share a wicked old project.  Remember when Oprah told us about her journal where she wrote something like 10 good things about each day?  Well I thought I would do that, so I recovered a fat mini notebook years ago.  I recently found it in the drawer of my nightstand. :) 

I remember that I had fun creating the sparkle of the paper with Stickles and using different ribbon scraps for the floofy edging.  I didn't follow though with the writing though. :(  I have another project that I'll share that I have used to record memories- I think y'all will like it!

Amy Update-  Sadly she was diagnosed with bladder cancer.  It's fatal in felines, but she is doing well right now.  The vet thinks we'll lose her by the end of the school year (June 28th for us this year).  Of course she also said that my husband and I work wonders with animals (got Cad kinda walking & we had a cat that lived to be 26 years old- no joke), so we could get more time.  Special medicine is coming from NJ, but in the end if the cancer doesn't get her, the medicine used to keep it at bay will trash her kidneys.  We talked about chemo, yup they can do that, but Amy is 18.  I've seen what chemo can do and given the stage she is in, I can't put her through that.  In the meantime we are spoiling her with canned cat food, catnip, and lots of ear scratching (she prefers that to lap sitting!). 

Hug your furry loved ones for us today,

Please- For Amy

A couple summers ago I asked for your prayers, well wishes, good vibes, for our dog Cad.  I truly believe that all that goodness helped him to get where he is today (along with a wicked awesome team of vets!).  Today, I'm asking for that again.  This time for our kitty, Amy.  She may have bladder cancer.  It's likely inoperable.  She seems to be doing well and our hope is that we can manage it with some non-steriod type medicine.  Please keep her in your thoughts today.  She's only been our family member for about 5 years, but she is 18 and she is so sweet (despite the look in this photo!).

Thanks- I'll be back with more news when I know more...

Let the Christmas Game Begin!

Amy wants to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and thank Santa for the catnip he brought her,

Cadfael wants to thank all of you for all your prayers/well wishes/support since July.  He was able to walk around the whole neighborhood last week and he'd really like to walk on the beach in Maine today but,

Moriah has to play- and win- her Annual Christmas Game from Tom before we can leave. Wan-wan ;(

You see years ago my sweetie got the hair-brained idea to turn opening gifts into a game for me.  I LOVED it and now I look forward to a game every year.  I like the game more than the gifts. :)  Tom is a lucky guy 'cause it means he can get most gifts from the dollar aisle of Target.  This year though...

There's a TIMEOUT PART!!!!!!!!!!  Cad is hoping I studied hard for this quiz.  He really wants to try to chase some seagulls today. :)

Here's hoping that today finds you able to enjoys treats, stretch your legs, and laugh with all your loved ones!

Merry Christmas,