Goodbye, Fireworks "Pyro" - Forever With Us

July 28, 2004 - July 26, 2018: You almost made it to 14 years little buddy. So many memories and so much love!

Two weeks ago we said our final goodbyes to our border collie who was truly a one of a kind, amazing dog. It's hard to believe he's not here with us anymore and we are missing him dearly but we are thankful for the time we had with him and that Ella got to meet him! Just before Christmas, when I was 30 weeks pregnant, Pyro experienced some sort of a seizure/stroke that really played a toll on him. The vet suggested we look at putting him on a low dose of meds to hopefully avoid any possible future seizures. Thankfully he didn't experience any more of those episodes but he definitely wasn't the same Pyro after that. He seemed happy so we carried on continuing to enjoy him for the time we had with him in hopes that he'd be able to meet baby Coblentz! He hung in there like a trooper but started having trouble being as physically active as he used to be. In June, Pyro started to lose the ability to use his back legs well and would fall on a regular basis. Some days were worse than others and he didn't seem to show much pain or discomfort but as time past we started to realize it was probably going to be time to let go. Most definitely one of the hardest decisions Chris and I have ever had to make. As I held back tears and made the appointment call to the vet, I felt like the worst dog Mom ever. It was a dreaded week, waiting for Thursday to come. As I knelt down beside Pyro for the last time, I had Ella strapped to me in a carrier and as soon as she was level with Pyro she laughed the most precious laugh. She isn't to the point of laughing on a regular basis just yet so for us to be able to hear that in her reaction to seeing him up close and personal was priceless.

There will never be another Pyro or a dog that could possibly even come close to being as cool as he was. He was born the summer of the year Chris and I got married and was owned by the lady I worked for at the time. She traveled a good bit so we would often take care of Pyro various times she was away. When I quit working for her in 2008, we still kept in touch and continued to dogsit for her some. In the summer of 2011, I was having a conversation with her and she briefly mentioned she was possibly looking to rehome Pyro. I talked to Chris and on July 15, 2011 Pyro came for a trial run and never left! Pyro was a well trained and very intelligent dog who spent his early years doing agility and traveled around quite a bit taking part in many competitions. He loved to play and hated bath time. He would chase his frisbee just as many times as we would throw it for him. He could do the following on command without skipping a beat: sit, lie down, stand, back up with "beep beep", give five, and spin in circles with the motion of your hand to cue him to do so. He would inhale rawhides that were meant to take most dogs a few days of chewing to finish and he was a great comfort and source of joy to us in the years that we waited to have human children. There will never be another Pyro and we are so thankful for the time we had enjoying him to the fullest! It's not the same without him in our home but we look forward to sharing pictures and telling stories of him to Ella someday.

 You were loved to the fullest, Pyro. You took a piece of our hearts with you to the grave and we will never forget you! Run free, little buddy, run free.

Goodbye July, Hello August!

Okay, so where did July go? I've been meaning to post here but sadly, it just never happened. Excuses aside, here I am! What a busy month it was. A summary would go something like this....

Several family times...Seeing The Isaacs in concert...Taking pictures of VBS at church...Getting a much needed hair cut...Putting away lots of green beans & lima beans...Getting a dog...AND working on the basement bathroom project!

We've been seriously lacking in the rain department here and I'm ready to be done keeping up with all the watering outside. While I'm thankful for the long days and the warm temperatures I think I'll be glad to see Fall arrive in a month or so. Thankfully the summer hasn't been incredibly humid so the high temperatures seem somewhat bearable. Our green beans are done for the year and the lima beans are nearing the same fate. I was keeping up with the zucchini until yesterday and now I'm afraid I've lost the game. :) I've made zucchini cookies, zucchini bread, stir fry with zucchini, and zucchini quiche. It's so funny how one plant that does even remotely well can produce SO quickly. The funniest thing is when you think you have them all and a few days later you find a ginormous zucchini that had been hiding from you. Oops. The pumpkin plant is quickly spreading to the open areas of the garden that once held the onions and green beans. The hot pepper/tomato plants are doing well and very soon I'll be head over heels in salsa and pizza sauce.

As I stated above, we are now the proud owners of a purebred blue merle border collie named Pyro! About 3.5 weeks ago I was having a phone conversation with my old boss, Terry, whom I hadn't spoken to in about a year. Upon mentioning that Chris has been begging me to consent to getting a border collie, she immediately chimed in and offered to give us her beloved Pyro. I have known him since he was a puppy and used to dog sit many, many times while working for her. Terry trains border collies to run agility courses and already has another border collie with a new puppy to train on the horizon. Unsure of how Pyro would do with the new puppy addition, she decided that sending him to live somewhere else might be a bit easier on him. Three weeks ago we went to pick him up and give it a trial run as we weren't sure how our cats would adjust. Slowly but surely all three are getting to know each other and we're at least at the tolerating stage. Meet, Pyro!

The basement bathroom is nearing the finishing stages as we just got the new flooring put down on Saturday. Chris is seriously nothing short of amazing. I'm continually amazed at how he makes my dreams become reality time and time again. We are loving the new floor and I just finished painting the baseboard today. TOMORROW is a long awaited day for me. I FINALLY get to paint the walls! My favorite part of all these projects is getting to the point where I'm able to make the walls come alive with the paint colors I've agonized over until finally coming to a final conclusion! Once I finish the walls tomorrow we will be able to put everything back as it was except with new accessories. New toilet, new counter, new sink, new faucet, new mirror. More pictures to come.....:)