Monday Dog Blog: Happy Labor Day!

Miss Tovah Rose

Happy Labor Day!

We, of course, hope you are not laboring on Labor Day and are able to enjoy the day! 

Festive!

We're all decked out here in pretty bows, and Emily has her nails painted red and blue.

G: Why Did You Put This Bow On Me?

And, Happy Monday!

Blessings,

Emily

Thank You Lisa and Brianna!

Dinner Out with Lisa and Brianna

For those of you who have been reading my blog for a while now, you know that Miss Lisa is one of those people who has been instrumental in transforming my life after illness. She is the person I reached out to, ten years after I first became sick, to see if I could find a way to attend a Wynton Marsalis concert. Since that first outing, we've been to many other concerts--and had many other big time surprises from Lisa! 

How do you thank someone who has changed your life? I struggle with this on a daily basis. How do I express enough gratitude towards those who have given me so much? How do I try to pay it forward? Can I ever really pay someone back?

We made a little stab at thanking Lisa and her daughter, Brianna, for all of their love, support and encouragement by celebrating with a dinner out. We were all excited to have me well enough to go out to eat a meal, catch up and just enjoy each other's company. 

A Sutton Foster Send-Off

Pictured above is yet another reason Lisa is a bit difficult to top when it comes to creative and big ideas. The night before we left for the beach this year, we went to see Sutton Foster in concert--which was an excellent way to get us into vacation mood! Foster is entertaining, cheerful and fun. 

What did Lisa do? Surprised me with a program signed by Foster, her pianist, her bassist, and her best friend who sang with her.

Yeah, I'll never top getting to meet Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Bell, this signed program, or having happy birthday sung to me by the entire staff. I can only hope that Lisa knows how deeply her life has changed mine, that I've shown her my gratitude with words and gestures and the smile on my face, and that just knowing her impact reminds her how amazing she is.

Blessings,

Emily

More Remodeling: No More Cave!

Demolition and Destruction Time!

We've spent the past two months in the midst of another big remodeling project. 

It feels a bit like, after so many years of things piling up, accumulating, being left undone, getting neglected because of the more immediate focus on surviving every day with my health issues, we're in the mood to 'catch up' at bit on what we've missed.

Carpet is Gone, Window is In.

We live in a ranch style house where I have living space upstairs and Mom has living space downstairs.

This works very, very well for two independent adults living together! 

Choosing Paint Colors!

It's an ideal set-up, EXCEPT for the fact that Mom's space in the basement looks like a cave!

Dark paneling. Little teeny tiny windows. Old carpet that has endured multiple floods. 

Hmmm....Which Color?

We've put in a large window, painted all the paneling in various shades of soothing gray, put in vinyl flooring, tiled the bathroom, and are awaiting the carpet for the stairs. 

We Were SO Ready to Say Goodbye to This Carpet!

What a transformation! 

Still Waiting for Carpet

We still have a lot left to do, including buying furniture, bedding, etc., but we are making progress. The space already feels beautiful, fresh and new.

Thankfully, the most disruptive part of the process seems to be over--me needing to go to Dad's house to sleep for a few days while they put in the new window, Mom sleeping upstairs to avoid the smell of the oil-based paint and the hardest parts of the decision making. I think we tested out at least 10 shades of gray before we decided! 

None of us enjoy the actually process of remodeling, but oh, how I love the finished product and the feel of a space that is just as we want it!

Mom's Cave of a Bedroom

Over the years, I've been able to re-do my bedroom and my bathroom, so Mom is long overdue for something for HER.

In Progress...

I'm so proud of Mom for doing something for herself--something she rarely does. She deserves a space that is homey, comfortable, light, bright, and all her own.

New Big Window

I can't wait to be able to show photos of the big reveal! I think it will be a while yet before we are ready for that, though.

Is That LIGHT in the Basement?!

We're still working on a name for Mom's new space, now that it's no longer going to feel like a cave!

Most of all, I hope that Mom has many, many years of enjoying this new space. I'm over the moon for her.

Blessings,

Emily

Monday Dog Blog: Bee

Tovah And Her Bee

When Mom first met Dayle to pick up Tovah Rose, Dayle sent us home with a little stuffed bee that Tovah had been used to and smelled like her home in NY. This little bee has kept Tovah company in her crate ever since. 

Asher had a similar toy that he arrived with--a stuffed Plush Puppies dog--that he babied throughout his entire life. It was the one toy he never shredded, as if he knew it was extra-special. And I've not yet been able to part with it, even though Gershwin has tried to shred it!

Gershwin Steals the Bee!

G sometimes steals Tovah's bee too! I have told him that it is her baby! He has tried very hard to unstuff the bee by taking off the nose. We have a lot of noseless and earless toys around here.

Oh, How I LOVE Shoes!

Miss Tovah Rose Blossom of the Valley, our delicate little flower, had a bit of a rough week, but as you can see from the photo above, she's back to being a pickle. 

What'd I Do?

Earlier in the week she was unable to open her right eye. At all. I could tell she was uncomfortable because she just hung out in her red bed and didn't ring the bell to go outside all day long. After sending a video of the situation to Jennifer, she decided Tovah needed to be seen. The diagnosis? An ulcer on her eye. 

Thankfully, the first line treatment of antibiotic drops seems to have worked--and when Jennifer was here for book club today she was very pleased with Tovah's progress. :) 

We're so relieved that Tovah is back to feeling better and the ulcer appears to be healing without more intervention.

Nap Time With Mom

Happy Monday!

Blessings,

Emily

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday to my dad!

Dad, Abbie and I went out for lunch last weekend to celebrate (a little early). We enjoyed a leisurely lunch at a local restaurant that I had not been to yet. It's so exciting to be able to go out to lunch, enjoy a good meal, and celebrate together. 

Thank you, Dad, for your constant emotional and financial support throughout my life and, especially, during these years of illness. You are as goofy as ever, still smart as a whip, and always kind, generous and loyal to me. We grow stronger in our love as the years pass.

Here's to a happy and healthy year for you!

Love, 

Champ

Monday Dog Blog: Reunion Balloons

Dinner + Yoga

Blogging has been on the back burner for far too long now, as I've been busy this summer wrapping up the planning and execution of my 20th high school reunion. Even more amazing than being able to help plan the reunion is that I was able to attend (and thoroughly enjoy) the Friday and Saturday evening events. 

The flip side of this all is that I had to give up a lot of other things to do this, and I'm still recovering physically from the prep and attending the reunion two weeks ago.

So, in keeping with the reunion theme, I leave you with this little video of my fiercely brave and loyal Gershwin protecting me from some very mean balloons that I brought home after the reunion. He is one tough dog! :)

(Remember: if you're receiving this in email, you'll need to go to my blog to see the video link.)

After lots of treats and encouragement, I think we've conquered the fear of balloons. Tovah Rose, who is very brave indeed, overcame her fear much more quickly!

I've also included a photo of Mr. G eating his dinner upside down. This summer has been gloriously cool and I've felt well enough to sit outside to eat dinner almost every night--something we've truly savored as it has been years since I was well enough to sit upright for dinner on a daily basis. 

Gerswhin eagerly awaits his dinner. He sat on the top step where I made him "wait" to be released to eat. He was so hungry, he just couldn't make the effort to move down to the step where I had put his dinner and just ate it while standing on the top step. What a goof!

I hope to blog soon about our remodeling, the reunion, our outings and medical updates.

Happy Monday!

Blessings,

Emily

Monday Dog Blog: Shoes

Caught Red Handed!

Somebody still really loves shoes--especially Mom's tennis shoes. But any shoe will do. If we leave our shoes on the floor, little Miss Twinkle Toes can be seen proudly carrying the shoe (almost as big as her) to a place where she thinks she can get away with untying the laces (her favorite part).

No matter that we have three HUGE baskets of toys in this house for the puppies. Shoes are way better.

Are You Going to Let Me Get Away With This?

One day when Mom wasn't home, TRTT snuck downstairs, went into Mom's closet and scattered the shoes all over her bedroom. 

Freshly Groomed

It's a good thing she's so cute.

A Snuggle After They Were Freshly Groomed

I love these two!

Happy Monday!

Blessings,

Emily