We were just working on getting together the May kits for the design team and I couldn’t resist taking a photo to share!  These are some of the papers in the May kit.  I love the subtle hues of these papers.  Although maybe I should let customers get their April kits in hand before I start talking about May!  I can’t wait to share the rest of the kit…

Hannah is now going downhill at a rapid pace now.  On Saturday we did our usual 2 mile + route that is extremely hilly.  She was dragging a bit for the last 5 minutes but otherwise was fine.  Today I tried to walk her around the next cul-de-sac and by the time we got back to the house her hind legs were shaking.  Last night she was unable to even attempt the stairs to go up to our room where she always sleeps.  That’s when it really sunk in that she is going to be gone and it is going to be soon.  That realization turned me into a sobbing mess.  She had a bad night and I was up with her for most of it.  I was afraid when I got up that today was going to be the day we needed to call the vet.  Fortunately, in the morning she was a bit better.  As I was getting ready for the day I was trying to think how I could appreciate her and make her happy in the time she had left.  I decided that today would be “Make Hannah Happy” Day.  Alice was finally well again so Jack and I dropped her off at school (Jack is still under the weather although this morning he was much better, just not back to school better) and then launched into our adventure.

First I had to tell him about Hannah.  It was awful to see him sobbing so hard.  He then said to me a bit later, ”Mommy, Hannah is never going to have babies!”  It was such a sad, cute statement!

Our first stop was a local coffee drive thru.  Hannah immediately perked up once she saw where we were and knew that a whipped cream covered biscuit was headed her way!  Next we visited our old neighbors at their salon and she received lots of pats.  Next was the animal supply store where she got to do a wee bit of cat staring, get some treats and pick out a rawhide bone (something she’s never had before).  After that it was over to Wendy’s house where Wendy decided her cat Shelby had to take one for the team. She let Hannah sniff at Shelby and then let Hannah chase her for a bit.  Shelby ran up a tree and Hannah stood there panting and shaking for about 20 minutes in utter bliss.  Next it was off to see Scott at work — she loves to pay him a visit (from the car that is!).  We headed back home, had our little walk, a couple of customers stopped by (got her excited for a couple of minutes each time), and then her standard poodle boyfriend stopped by for a visit.

Up until that point she thought the rawhide was just for carrying around.  Once she realized that you could actually EAT it she was obsessed and refused to put it down and didn’t care who was there to see her.  Later this evening we went and visited our neighbors that she loves and thus concluded “Make Hannah Happy” day.  I think we succeeded in our mission.

Unfortunately all the commotion was a bit too much for Jack and by the time we got home he was feverish again and shaking up a store.  Hard to balance the needs of all your babies…

Perhaps Hannah didn’t always receive all the attention she should have had (real life and small children all too often intruded instead).  Despite that, I do feel better knowing that we are doing all that we can to make her last days as happy as possible.

Sorry for the downer of an email; it’s just where I’m at right now.  If you have a dog give it a big hug and a treat!