The Process of Moving On

It's been a couple of weeks since we've posted anything. Many thanks to everyone who sent a card, an e-mail, called, or posted some kind words on social media. It was really tough for Alycia but she greatly appreciated all the contact from friends and family, near and far.  Thank you.

In all honesty, it's been hard to sit at the computer and type ideas that are both appropriate and coherent for our first post of the post-Tito era. I've typed and deleted several hundred words at this point. Nothing seems quite like the right thing to say.

Tito's absence loomed large (and it still does), but Shaak Ti and Shadowfax are both still here. They're here and they seem to be completely oblivious. I've been calling them the "Oblivious Twins" off and on since Tito left us. And they truly are seemingly oblivious to the fact that there's one less deaf dog in the house. Perhaps they're doing it on purpose.

Even though things change there are still dog walks to take, meals to prepare, and jobs to go to (for Alycia anyways). In the meantime, we'll post a cute picture of Shadowfax and see if this can help us get kick-started back into some regular blog posts.

Saying Goodbye

Tito the Wonder Puppy left us today. His angry little body just couldn't function any more after 18 years in our world.

We are incredibly sad, but also relieved. We're relived that Tito is no longer in pain. We're grateful that he's free from the fear and confusion that seemed to grip him when he couldn't figure out why he was unable to see as well or move like he used to. We're comforted that he's no longer constrained by the frustrations of a declining mind and an old and aching body. Tito can once again be the Tito of days gone by, young and spry and devious and teacherous. This is the Tito that will live forever in our hearts.

This was Tito and Alycia's bedtime routine for the last year or so. After all the pups had gone out for evening potty time, and eaten their evening cookie, she would give Tito one last chance to go out to do some business. Tito rarely went outside though. Mostly the two of them would just stand there together, looking out into the darkness. Moths would flutter by, the sounds of night would gently drift in, and the two of them would stand there, side by side, looking out into the darkness.

Tonight we will hug Shaak Ti and Shadowfax extra tight and tell them we love them. We'll make sure that they are given lots of love and attention and pets so that everyone can grieve in their own way. Godspeed Tito. May you find the solace and peace that eluded you in life. 

Tito's Special Week

It's Tito's special week. We're giving him anything and everything we think he may want. Since we can't hook him up to a leash and journey anywhere and he won't let us touch him, our ability to spoil him consists entirely of food treats.

He isn't eating much, but we figure we'll give him every "bad" treat we can think of. He won't eat out of his bowl or even off a saucer, so we have to hand feed him in small chunks. His dinner a couple of  nights ago from a small plate (clockwise from the top): Smoked sardines in olive oil, roasted dark meat turkey, grocery store meatballs, bacon, spam in the middle.

Last night he had beef tenderloin, pan-seared in bacon grease and butter to medium rare. There is still another pound of bacon in the refrigerator. Tito's going to get the very best send off we can manage.

We'll be taking lots of pictures and videos this week. Along with various scars, we'll have those to remind us of him.

Shadowfax Sleeping

Here's a fairly un-compelling video for you, unless you like watching pitties sleeping with their tongue out and twitching.

More than anything our blog is a repository for all of our silly pictures, stories, and videos of our dogs' antics. And if some folks on the internet get some out of it too, than that's just a bonus.

Tito - Alive and...well alive.

I was out of town for a bit for work and during our daily chat Alycia told me the latest Tito story. She came into the kitchen for a cup of tea and found Tito, sprawled halfway out of his crate, eyes halfway open, and tongue sticking out. Tito never sleeps like this and she thought he had finally passed on. But after a minute of the now-common "Tito breathing check" (a long look to verify that his chest is indeed moving up and down), she realized he was indeed actually still alive.

She grabbed her phone and snapped a picture. While maneuvering in for a close up, Tito sprang to life and echoed his familiar refrain about not liking folks taking his picture.

This photo is really only funny because Tito is in fact still very much alive. I actually laughed out loud when I saw it 'cause well jeez, he sure doesn't look alive. 18 years old and still as ornery as ever. Tito.

Shadowfax Snuggling Yet Again

Shadowfax loves her people (truly she loves all people), and enjoys nothing more than being physically attached to them.

If it were up to her the house rules would be changed to allow dogs on the sofa and bed. As it stands, we sit on the floor for snuggling time and allow her to sit on our laps on the back patio furniture. She greatly enjoys this.

Garden Pictures and Future Plans - Part 2 of 2

We continue our pictures and stories about the front yard garden from Part 1.

It took a couple of weeks over the winter, but we had a sidewalk installed in the front yard of our homestead. It was one of the few oddities about our house, there was no front sidewalk from the street to the front door. The steps to the front door just kind of deposited you onto the lawn, from whence you were supposed to make your way to the street.

The walkway alone adds an incredible amount of visual interest and structure. It's always amazing to me how one thing can change the look of a garden dramatically. The picture above was taken in mid-May after we had removed a few shrubs and hadn't added some additional annuals for color.

It will take a few years for the new shrubs we planted to grow up, and we're still planning on pruning or removing some of the other stuff, but this will do for now. The pots on the front step add some color and there are both annuals and perennials in the front beds that should be much more striking in another month.

The current master plan is going to consist of garden beds on either side of the new walkway, with meandering connected grass paths enabling garden viewers to see everything. This will greatly reduce the amount of grass to mow (much off the current grass will become flower beds), granting me less time for mowing/edging and more time for playing with fun plants and pretty flowers.We will have more posts as the front garden evolves and changes.

The Grandparents Visit Aftermath

The Grandparents journeyed out from downtown Cavalier, North Dakota to visit over the past week. We had an opportunity to catch up with them and explore the sights and restaurants here in Boise, Idaho. The dogs (minus Tito) were incredibly excited to have Grandma and Grandpa stay at the house and give them all the love and attention they've apparently been missing.

Constantly getting love from the Grandparents was an exhausting endeavor though, and the pups have spent much of the days since they left catching up on napping.