Tyler

I want to write again on the blog - so much has happened!  A broken arm, a new dog, kids who are growing up far too fast - but I have been struggling with what to write since we lost Tyler last September.  I want to write all about him but I am still far to sad to do so.  He was and will always be my most special boy.

We miss him daily.  I am glad he didn't suffer long.

Here is to the Best Dog Ever.

During his last trip to the Island, sitting in the sun after a swim

A new addition & an aquarium visit

No no, not a baby but a pony!!

A 5 year old POA (Pony of the America's) she is lovely and sweet.  She is in the states but has passed her vet check and we hope to go get her on April 2nd, we are just waiting for the official paperwork from the vet so that we can bring her over the border.  Meet Sparrow (I only have my hand up like that to get her to look at me):

The kids and I are SO EXCITED.  We got the stall right next to Jeff, which is amazing.  I can look in on Jeff and my mom can look in on her.  I will ride her, the kids will ride her and my two good friends have daughters who will ride her and pony club her.

Can't wait for her to come home!

Also, this is Loic at the aquarium 6 years ago:

And yesterday:

Maelle has never been to the aquarium.......classic second kid I tell you!  :)

The three of us had such a nice time together, they are really at fun ages to take out and about.

-E 

Back from the Dead aka Crazy Story aka You won't believe this

So, a lot has happened since I last posted.  Christmas, Hawaii, birthdays, parties, fun family time, and a new job for me.  I will try to get back to that fun stuff soon, but for today, do I have a story for you dear readers!

Some background information you will need to know:

At the beginning of December, our bunny Pancakes got very ill and I took him to the vet.  They discovered a tumour in his bladder and I consented to have him euthanized.  It was sad for all of us, we sure loved that bunny - but the vet told us that there was nothing we could do.

(An aside - the vet did an x-ray 10 minutes after we left and paid for the euthanasia.  I didn't consent to the x-ray, and thought it was odd that he called me to tell me he thought it was a stone and not a tumour; the prognosis was similar but the treatment could now be a risky $1500 surgery.  For the second time that night I consented to have him euthanized.  My decision was made based on finances in part and also the fact that I was not convinced he would even live through a massive surgery.  The vet didn't argue or try to talk me out of my decision, not even for a second).

Now, dear readers, here is some classic foreshadowing.  The week after we had Pancakes euthanized, I asked Rob and a few friends if they thought that the vet had really done it.  They all told me I was crazy, well, not in so many words, but the gist was that I was nuts to think that.

Fast forward to yesterday.  I got a phone call at noon from the vet clinic owner.  He told me he had some disturbing news for me.  Now, I have only been to this clinic the one time so I knew it had to do with my rabbit.  It turns out, the vet on call that night in December never euthanized our rabbit.  Long story short, he did the risky surgery after hours, claimed it was an owner surrendered rabbit AND adopted out our rabbit to a friend of his.  The vet and tech took it upon themselves to do all of this.

Shock can't describe what I felt on the phone.  I was crying, and the clinic owner was very upset too.  I have to commend this man - he did not need to call me at all and he took the ethical high road so to speak.  He could have just let everything remain status quo but he didn't.  The clinic only found out about this whole debacle the day before thanks to the keen eyes of the clinic manager.  She put the pieces together:  surrendered rabbit, euthanasia paid for but no body, controlled medication use didn't match records.

Now, my main concern at this point was for my kids.  The clinic owner told me that Pancakes was now safely back at the clinic as of that morning and did I want him back?  The answer was of course yes - but I can't have my kids thinking we euthanize animals and that they can come back from it!  I told him I would have to think of a plan and I would call him back.  I also voiced my concern that since this was a stone, it could potentially happen again.  The owner assured me would we have free rabbit vet care and stated that the health of our bunny was his primary concern.  He seems to be a nice man.

Rob had a great idea at this time, he suggested we lie to the kids.  This isn't something we took lightly, but, we have two geriatric dogs in our family.  I can't have the kids thinking that pets can come back from the dead, so to speak.  We decided to tell the kids that we adopted a new rabbit, who looks a lot like Pancakes.  While I wasn't comfortable with the lie, I think in this case it is the best thing.  I couldn't imaging trying to explain this situation to them; they are 3 and 6.

So, two hours after I received that crazy phone call, Jess and I went to the clinic.  I was still in shock - they led us in right away to see him.  He looked great!  Again, a total shock.  I was also feeling upset that I had consented to his euthanasia and here he was, looking great.  The vet on call that day was great - he spent time with us, checked over the rabbit from tail to nose, and took some repeat X-rays.  He also very patiently answer my questions, my primary one being 'Did I make the right decision in December?' to which he answered yes.  We looked at the initial x-ray the vet took - it showed a skinny, sick rabbit with a giant stone (which we now own, as an aside - they gave it to me and I didn't quite know what to do so I put it in my purse.  True story.)  I asked about the surgery itself.  It would have required pain medication, antibiotics and a huge incision - the vet was as shocked as I was that he had made it.  This helped me to feel better.

The clinic staff was great to us.  Apparently the vet and tech in question have now been fired.  This is an believable violation of ethics and there could be serious repercussions to the clinic itself.  The rabbit has a follow up appointment in a week and a half and at that time, I will meet the clinic owner himself in person.  The clinic bought us all sorts of new rabbit supplies and have helped us create a plan to try to try to make sure the bunny doesn't get another bladder stone.

So, without further ado - I introduce you to our new family member, Toast the new to us/back from the dead/ crazy story pet rabbit:

I had been crying and was in TOTAL shock at this point

A big thank you to Linda for the name idea!  I love it - another 'T' name AND some delicious irony :) We initially thought to call him Hashbrown but Toast is so much better.

-E

Perspective

The remains of the little girl who was the subject of an Amber Alert over the past two days have been found.  The photos of Hailey reminded me of my Maelle.

Rob and I just woke up Maelle simply to hug her.  Such sadness; I can't even begin to imagine what her family is going through.

Hug your loved ones extra tight.  It certainly puts the minor inconveniences of life into perspective.

-E

A Big Girl Bed

This weekend we got rid of Maelle's crib and installed her Big Girl Bed (aka Loic's old toddler bed).
Where did my baby go??  She loves her new bed, which is nice.  She has also stayed in it for a few naps and one sleep - we shall see how that goes!  Such a big girl she is.

Reading stories in her Big Girl Bed

Look who else is growing up!

I was reading that these are funny ducks to own as pets and they certainly are!  Both are brave, and both will take on the poor dogs for no reason.  The only dog who still even looks at them is Toby, and even a look invokes a poke from a duck!  Very funny.  They love, love, love having the kids dig for worms for them - if we let him, Loic would spend hours digging for them in the garden.  Both ducks sit about 1 inch away from him and wait to be handed worms :)  I am interested to see what colour the ducks end up - it is fun to google 'what colour will my Muscovy duck end up?" :)  I am slowly but surely building myself a city farm!

We went back to watch the salmon in a creek near our house with my parents this am and I got this photo:

A lovely photo!

Tomorrow is week 2 of Grade 1 for Loic - he seems to be liking it so far.  I am at work this year and can't take him myself, which is taking some getting used to.  I will have a lieu day next week and am looking forward to seeing his class.

-E

Great photos from this weekend

First of all, how did this happen???  How??

Grade One!

Here he is last year (I forgot to have him hold a sign) on the first day of Kindergarten:

(Pretend this says October, 2014)

Then here is he is Preschool:

It is all happening too quickly!!!!

And here is another cute little thing:

Maelle age 3 (going on 13)

The kids and I took the dogs for a walk yesterday to watch salmon jumping.  I spotted a big rock and decided to try for a kid-dog photo.  Here is the end result (obtained by telling the kids I had smarties in my purse :)):

Tyler decided to artistically look away :)

And I call this photo "Boots, A skirt and Two baby ducks":

Speaking of ducks, we have now spent a few days feeding them bugs and oh my gosh, the ducks are thrilled.  Loic and Maelle (ok, ok, me too) dig in the dirt and find them worms.  It is slightly gross to watch (especially when my kids gleefully equate it to eating pasta!) but man are these ducks tame!  And they sure love the worm-providing kids :)

-E

New things to share

Next week marks the end of my one year educational leave of absence.  I did go back to work 6 weeks ago to do another job within my organization, which was a great experience.  I learned so much and had a great time meeting new coworkers.  I think if possible, more people should try other jobs within their organization - it was certainly informative for me to see what other people do!

We decided to get some new pets.  Now, if you work with me - hush up! :)  I will add that by 'we' I mean Loic and I (Rob - you sure are a good sport!)

Meet Echo and Delta:

They are baby muscovy ducks - thanks to Aunty Jody :)  Muscovy ducks are quiet, friendly ducks.  I plan to use them to provide fertilizer for my garden AND to get them to eat bugs!  They are also just going to be fun to have around.  Rob built them an amazing house, and Loic and I sure love to feed them.  Their current favourites are cherry tomatoes and lettuce.  Oh, and they like kale too.  We are enjoying watching them grow up before our eyes.  We hope at least one, if not both, are girls.  But only time will tell.

Loic starts Grade 1 next week.  I can't believe it - how on earth did the summer go by so quickly?  Well, I guess I was writing and presenting a thesis, working, recovering from a broken knee and parenting my two funny kids :)

Not to be left out, the house bunnies are also doing very well:

He isn't really all that fat, it is more hair than anything.  After a year and a half of ranging upstairs, she took the leap down three stairs last night.  They also like to practice their speed laps by running around the living room at night.  The dogs now totally ignore them, in fact, that sassy lop eared bunny picks on Tyler - she likes to move onto his dog bed!  Very funny.

The kids sure had a nice summer.  Loic did camps - up Grouse and Seymour, bike camp and a cute rec centre camp.  Maelle had her normal daycare schedule plus both kids had some lovely days with my folks.  They went to the beach with them and ate onion rings - who could ask for a better day??

Taken in Point Roberts at my year end weekend with my fellow UBC grads

Lunch at White Spot with East Coast Grandma!  

Then there are these three:

I am getting worried about Tyler.  He is acting the same as ever - case in point, he did $1000 worth of damage to my car this week when he decided 5 minutes was too long to be in the car so he ate the rear headrests.  And the actual car.  Ahhhh Tyler.  I will be paying the $300 deductible.  Good times.  He is, however, peeing more than normal.  I think I will take him in for a checkup soon.  We have now had him for 12 years!  His adoption anniversary was last weekend.  We sure love him, car eating habits and all.

-E