It takes truly special people to know there is no such thing as "it's only a dog"

Oh Mary, I am so heart broken you lost her. I know she's left a big gaping hole in your heart and your home, a hole that can never be filled, just mended with time and warm memories.

Semper, wonderful tribute.

*****tears***********************
i am very sorry mary. mine is all too fresh as i lost my old man in january (why i wanted to set up a memorial page).

on another note, 60's today and i heard the meadowlarks singing. BUT, we have snow forcasted...oh, illinois, is there anyone like you?

I shouldn't have read Sempers post, I'm crying again.

Spring-This morning as I pulled back in the driveway I thought to myself 'its not really spring until the street sweepers come through and clean up all the sand.' Guess what came by about an hour later, the street sweeper!

So.....yes FTM, ILL. has a psycho twin sister, NE., as we have snow in the prediction for Sunday and Monday. pooey!

Mary, may I add my condolences about our loss to those of the others.
There is not much I can add to what has already been said.
Going through the loss of a dear, unconditional love giving companion, is a hard row to hoe.
"Horton"

Oh, Mary, I'm so sorry. *HUGS*

*sob*

Brenda

As long as we remember them, they are not truly gone. We can still feel them with us if we let go the hurt. Sandy

fishy, lmao! love your choice of words :)
we have our first tornado watch of the year today.

today: saw @ 150 american white pelicans flying over within 15 minutes ( i get to see them during both migrations only). oops, wrong thread.

I really feel for you, too, Mary. I had feared the worst when you didn't have her back before bedtime... black dogs on the road at night just don't stand much of a chance :(

Looking at her pictures (I agree the one with the four sleepers is also one of my all-time favorites), and then at the one with just her and Gretchen on the couch, I see enough gray around her mouth to know at least she lived a fairly full life, but I also know that doesn't make it one bit easier...

The other night in the birdwatching thread when I went to my Photobucket page to look for my wren photo, I had to look through every page of pictures, which included a bunch of shots I took of my poor, sweet, Gizzmo just before I had to put her down in September of 2004... Been 1.5 years, but I still got a lump in my throat and almost broke down, and it's happening again right now... I HAD to go get Tater Tot and put him in the bed with me that night... just HAD to.

Here's to all your sweet memories of Sasha,
Jeff

nonono, fairy, not the wrong thread! I may have lost my Sasha, the biggest kisser of the world, but spring is still on its way!
Thanks all, again, you have no idea how much you all help me to get from the crying part with the acutely hurting heart to the sighing sad part. Which is only just short of the sad smiling part etc etc. DH had a good cry yesterday, so he will be on the mend now. Grandson's birthday party is today, so we can do a lot of hugging with the kids. Yes, Jeff, we're taking Gretchen everywhere... she's coming to the birthday party. Semper, old friend, thanks, and girls, the hugs mean a lot.
DH printed up a lot of pictures yesterday, we're going to make a collage and hang it somewhere in a significant place where we see it a lot. Like the bathroom. (Not kidding!) We don't have as many good pics of Sasha as of Gretchen, because she doesn't! show up! being all black!. Jeff, she was 7 1/2, all of it with us. They were sort-of rescue dogs, but only really their mom, the young fellow that adapted her found out she was expecting, and we took the last two puppies off his hands.

Now, back to spring:
Our pond is defrosting! and we could see the big goldfish and our koi Demetrius yesterday. I started the trickling water change - a few hours every day, as the artesian well allows. Did I mention the flock of blackbirds and grackles?
And then there is that other sign of spring - I'm getting itchy to clean out the nest - eh, I mean, springclean the house...

:) Mary
*Look, I can put a smiley with my name again*

Ummm, something must be wrong. The National Weather Service is saying we could get snow today, and it's already snowed quite a bit up in the foothills surrounding the valley. They have also said that this is one of the coldest air masses to come through this area in March.

Spring?! Where ARE you?! LOL

Brenda

SPRING PEEPERS!!!!! Okay, just one but he's peeping his heart out. I wish I had a way to record it. And check out this male goldfinch molting into his summer colors....

{{gwi:166456}}

lol,jeanner. i expected to scroll down and see a frog pic. i was praising your skills yet again: "how the heck did jeanner manage to sneak up on a spring peeper with a macro lense!" :)

well, we had a hale blizzard this afternoon (absolutely a hale blizzard some large marble sized) AND that was before our second tornado watch of the year!

Sounds like you're having "a hale of a time," FTM :-P Seriously... hope nobody got hurt.

Jean, some cameras will also record a little audio... maybe yours will... what about just a regular tape recorder?

Got warm enough here today I couldn't get dry after my shower this afternoon and had to turn the AC on, and it's still on right now... March 11, and AC is running... Go figure! And sitting down here under my ceiling fan, the last of my hair is just FINALLY drying.

Y'all send me some more winter, PLEASE!
Jeff

I C E O U T !!!!! YEAY!!

At least, on MY pond. And the daffodils have their noses up an inch! (Probably a little sniffly...)

I hear there really were nasty tornadoes and other bad weather. I hope we didn't set that off with our thoughts of spring?
I hope you midwesterners are all OK. And Californians too. Send the stuff on to Jeff!

:) Mary

Just one more hijack Mary:-) Received this from my sister Ceil who takes old dogs nobody wants. She currently has 8!

IF I DIDN'T HAVE ANIMALS

I could walk around the yard barefoot in safety.

My house could be carpeted instead of tiled and laminated.

All flat surfaces, clothing, furniture, and cars would be free of hair.

When the doorbell rings, it wouldn't sound like the kennels .

When the doorbell rings, I could get to the door without wading through fuzzy bodies who beat me there.

I could sit on the couch the way I wanted, without taking into consideration how much space several fur bodies would need to get comfortable.

I would not have strange presents under my Christmas tree -- dog bones, stuffed animals , nor would I have to answer to people why I wrap them.

I would not be on a first-name basis with three veterinarians.

The most used words in my vocabulary would not be: out, sit, down, come, no, stay, and leave him/her/it ALONE.

My house would not be cordoned off into zones with baby gates or barriers.

My pockets would not contain things like poop bags, treats and an extra leash.

I would no longer have to spell the words B-A-L-L-,
F-R-I-S-B-E-E, or W-A-L-K or make up new code words when they learn to spell!

I would not have as many leaves INSIDE my house as outside.

I would not look strangely at people who think having ONE dog ties them down too much.

I'd look forward to spring and the melting of snow instead of dreading mud season.

I would not have to answer the question Why do you have so many dogs/animals from people who will never have the joy in their lives of knowing they are loved unconditionally by something as close to an angel as they will ever get.

How empty my life would be.

That really made me smile, Comettose.

Me too! Having had a max pet occupation of two dogs plus two cats, most of the above things ring true!!

:) Mary

alas.....spring break is over. in more ways than one! 9am today was 60*. by noon it had dropped to 40*. tonight is supposed to be down to 20*! not to mention that we wind advisory and gusts up to 40mph, last i heard it was only 40mph. beat that, nebraska! wait, don't beat that. i am afraid of what might happen.

jeff, not hurt, but they are trying to send our physiology into shock. further north had a tornado warning issued yesterday and now snow is on its way.

love it, ct!

Perfect CT! That is a love/hate list. Love that I have to make space for all the furry bodies on the couch but hate the leaves and pine needles!

What is up with this weather? It actually rained MUD here Sunday along with our hailsnowrain showers. Apparently very high winds and the drought in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas sent enough of their topsoil up into the great stormy sky to rain mud on us. After taking advantage of the nice weather last week to wash windows I was pretty disgusted when I woke up Sunday and they were worse then before I washed them.

Fishy-squinting through dirty windows to see the robins.....and is that grass getting greener or grayer?

ok, illinois concedes! holy longhorns, batman!

"It actually rained MUD here..."

Wasn't there a disco song in the late 70's or early 80's about that:

It's raining mud! Hallelujah!
It's raining mud! Amen!

-Def1

Last weekend the snow was melting, the Canada geese were flocking in by the hundreds, lots of ducks moving thru, and I saw several bald eagles hunting the river. I had 2' of open water on my pond...Monday there was a foot of new snow 60 miles south of here. I escaped that one but the NW wind was raw, the ground frozen again and the windchill -2F. Pond is froze over again. Tonight they're predicting 2-4" or 4-6" or 6-8" of snow depending on which channel you watch.

But the ewes get fatter by the day - only 10 more days 'til the 1st lambs are due!

Last year April vacation - this is near where my sister lives in Holland.
I love lambs!!!

:) Mary

{{gwi:166457}}

Sarah, there's a holdout at the corner of what's now a busy intersection in town -- a working farm that's down to about 30 acres or so, but they've got the original barn and house, and some beautiful little black lambs out in the field with their mamas! I saw them for the first time yesterday and thought of you. It's in the 20s/30s here the past couple of days -- I'm sure they're keeping warm.

Mary, Holland! Pictures beyond my wildest dreams! I love the homestead. Here it's mud season, that 2 month season between snow and grass...(here in MN every season lasts 2-3 months!) And today it's frozen again. But the lambs come regardless, I prefer to lamb late, easier on the sheep and the shepherdess!

Zinniachick, those little black lambs may turn white! Suffolks do that. I understand the holdout. As part of my job I do ultrasound on sheep, I have a client that has a sheep farm 2 blocks from the Mall of America (the biggest shopping mall in the USA...please correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not into malls) right in the middle of suburban metropolitan Minneapolis/St. Paul. I've been doing work for them for the past 5 years. Take at right by the mall, left at the intersection, then right thru the green metal gate and your're in paradise. I would think the neighoring apartment buildings would LOVE them. And they have a special relationship with the local police department 'cause the ocassional sheep...or llama...does break out! It's a fully functionally farm, 150+ ewes, ~30 goats, border collies to herd them, etc. The owner lets the University of MN students get hands on experience here.

Unfortunately, this century farm can never be passed down to their children due to restrictions - it's under the MSP airport runways - and cannot be sold for residential properties. That's ok with this generation of owners, when they stop raising sheep, they will turn it into wildlife sanctuary, it's hilly and has many sloughes, etc. A wonderful assest for MN. I can't get anyone to believe there's a working sheep farm 2 blocks from the MAll Of America! (Gotta get pix!)

Happy Spring - lamb photos asap! Sarah

oooooooo, nice, mary! i love thatched roofs!

Mary,
I know i'm late posting this but I wanted you to know how very sorry I am about Sasha. She was a beautiful girl.

My heart is still on the mend after losing my bird Lilly in December, so I know what you are going through. It's not easy, but eventually the pain lessens and fond memories fill that empty space. Hugs.....

I've been looking forward to Spring so I can start a memorial garden.

I think we are getting close......the pond only has a thin sheet of ice in the mornings and the fishies are ready to eat!

~Dawn (mamabirrd)

Happy first day of spring!

{{gwi:166458}}

We got somewhere between 5-6 inches of snow yesterday and the prediction is we are in for at least another 12 inches.
I just love our spruce tree when it is covered in snow. It is even prettier when the male cardinal is sitting in it (looks just like a Christmas card) but he isn't around today, probably keeping warm somewhere.

i can't see a thing!

hey, its cold outthar! and windy..no fair :(

Should I mention that it got up to 88°F today with sunshine? :oD

Happy ponding,
Scott

Sorry FTM, my fault. I had to LOL as I was sitting here watching all the closings for tonight and tomorrow, you know its crappy out when the bowling alleys and tanning salons are closing early. LOL

Anyway that picture doesn't do that tree justice since it is hard to differentiate the spruce from the pines behind it.

Scott some how I knew we would hear from you! :o)

Us complaining proudly of our bad weather wouldn't be the same without you, Scott.

Folks, make sure to never tell him that we are secretly planning to move down to his backyard with our tents and campers and portapotties and coolers full of goldfish, koi, and waterlilies next winter. Shhhhh.

:) Mary

Heres a sure sign of spring :^(

{{gwi:166459}}

I don't know why this robin is mad at me, I didn't ask for this!

{{gwi:166460}}

Oh Jeanner! PRICELESS!
Those are great pics. There was a pic of a robin all puffed up on the front page of our paper today that I loved but it doesn't compare to those at all!!!!

LOL Mary! It's a BYOSS (bring your own sunscreen). We should all be able to get a good deal on it when its on clearance next fall. :o)

Fishy, I love the pic of your spruce tree! Doesn't that mean spring will be "out like a lamb"? :D

Oh, Jean! LOL Maybe he thinks you're the weather lady. Such beautiful, clear shots, as always! He is so handsome when he's angry.

Brenda

***LOVE*** your photographs!!!!!

C with 3 Ds :-)

makes you just want to poke him like the pilsbury dough boy, jeanner!

Another sign that Spring is here... A pollen count of 100 is considered HIGH. Our reading today was 3,200! No wonder this has been dubbed the "pollen capital" of the world. *SNEEZE*

Gee, not much pollen here yet. Hardly any insects so far. And no mowing until Mother's day.

Heehee.

:) Mary

Mary, are you saying that they make you mow the lawn on Mother's Day!? LOL Of course not. That would be cruel and unusual punishment.

The Govenator finally declared a state of emergency for some counties south of here in Cali due to the rain. Luckily, most of the danger has been in agricultural areas and not residential...so far. I thought it was bad back in January...

{{gwi:166461}}

...when this fisherman along the Sacramento River fell asleep while on sturgeon patrol. LOL Notice the toppled chair on the roof? That was probably from his wife high-tailing it out of there, like normal people tend to do. (BTW, no one was harmed in the taking of this picture.)

Sorry to all of your allergy sufferers, though! :(

Brenda

WOW! Mrs. Fisherman probably (and wisely) decided to abandon RV once she realized this ain't no 3 hour tour.

Around here Azeleas have always been {{gwi:166453}}.

Semper, I love that mailbox!
And the azalea!

My forsythia burst into bloom this morning. *Grin* I love spring!

:) Mary

No, Brenda, I make THEM mow.

:) Mary

Yo MaryO! Happy Birthday! Have a great day.

Well, lets go build something....

Happy birthday to you, Mary Mary, quite UNcontrary! I hope you have a marvelous day, full of celebration and cuddles (animal & people)! :)

(Oh, Semper, my mom has GOT to see that pic of your Azalea! So beautiful!)

Brenda

Happy Birthday MaryO! :-)

C with 3 Ds

Thankyouthankyou, all!
*grin*

Now, they should hook up the new LCD HD TV... After they're done making me dinner... and cleaning up the dishes... and birthday dessert, mmm...

:) Mary

Hey Brandy, speakin' of family, how's the Godfatha???

He's a contendah, Fi guy! He had his thyroid removed, and he was given his first (of I'm not sure how many) highly concentrated, radioactive iodine pill on Saturday. He had to be avoided like Chernobyl for 3 days after ingesting the pill, and then I think he'll have more tests to see how it's working. The docs think they got all of the cancer out during surgery, so we're hoping for the best (of course!).

Spring really is a time for new beginnings.

Thanks so MUCH for asking, Mark! :)

Brenda