Fadedwords

Months ago my Dad and I conspired to surprise my Mom with me coming home.  It worked!  I arrived yesterday and walked into her work, and she was shocked.  It was really wonderful to surprise her.  It was a bittersweet day though, as my parents had made the decision to put their 13 year old black lab Jasmine to sleep.  They got Jazzy when I was a sophomore in college, so I never lived in the house with her, other than summers and vacations.  She was a wonderful dog though.  She had started being afraid of absolutely everything, cowering behind the couch constantly.  She refused to go outside, wasn’t eating or drinking well, had stopped enjoying going for walks with my Dad (her favorite thing).  The most scary thing is that she had bitten my mom twice, and just the other day she took a swipe at my Dad.

There was uncertainty though… because Jazzy had some good moments where she acted like herself.  It was a very difficult decision. When I saw her it was clear to me that she had lost SO much weight.  Her body just looked… not right.  I don’t know how else to describe it.  I could see that her hips were about two seconds from giving out.  Her left eye appeared swollen to me.  She was so nervous and worried about things.  I could see that she was not herself.  As hard as it was, I knew that my parents were making the right decision for Jazzy.  When we went to the vet, it took them a very long time to find a vein for the medicine to put her to sleep… because she was so dehydrated.  They finally did though, and Jazzy drifted off and moved on to a place where she will not have fear or discomfort again.  It was heartbreaking to see my parents so upset, and so sad to see Jazzy leave us.

I snapped this photo on the way to the vet’s office.  One last photo of me and the girlie.

Of course, it’s hard not to think of my own furry child when things like this happen.  Merlin is only almost 7, so I would like to think I have several more years with him.  However, his health has not been the greatest lately.  He’s been eating sporadically lately, and he’s limping around terribly.  Obviously I will do whatever I can to address those things, but it will eventually come to a point where I have to make an incredibly difficult decision.  I thought yesterday how hard it was for me (someone who wouldn’t consider Jasmine “my dog”) to let her go.  I can already tell you that when something happens with Merlin… good grief.  I’ll be a hot mess.

Pets are such a wonderful thing, but letting them go is so, so hard.  I hope Jasmine is somewhere running and playing, happy and fearless again.

The past three nights have been filled with amazing friends and celebrations.

On Friday evening I was invited to the rehearsal dinner for my friends Bethany and Rob.  It was at a lovely restaurant right around the corner from the pool I manage.  The food was delicious, the company was fantastic, and just seeing how happy Rob and Bethany were made my night.

Saturday was the wedding.  I was so thrilled to see these two get married.  Bethany looked absolutely stunning, and it was clear to everyone just how deeply they love one another.  Joy radiated from them at nearly every moment.  Not only was it amazing to see two people I care so much about blissful, I had a great time with my friends who were at the wedding.  There was much dancing, and I caught the bouquet!  I’m hoping there’s a photo of that!

Bethany and Rob after they had said “I do!”  Those smiles rarely left their faces throughout the evening.  Truly beautiful.

Last night I went to the Melting Pot with my friends Tracey, Emily, Stephanie and Stephanie.

Me, Stephanie and Tracey at the restaurant.

Three nights in a row reminding me how truly blessed I am to be surrounded by the amazing women and men who are my friends.

I’ll admit it- I’ve always thought NASCAR was kind of lame.  I had zero desire to watch it on television or anywhere else.  I briefly dated a guy last year who loved racing… to the point that he could barely have normal social interaction without watching/listening to the race in the midst of it.

Last year my Uncle was talking with me about how I needed to come down to Daytona and go to a race with him.  I finally agreed, more because he is important to me than having any real desire to go to a race.  He got us tickets to the Coke Zero 400 that took place July 7th.  I was looking forward to the time with him and my Aunt Chris.

I never imagined I would actually enjoy the race itself!

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