Our Ozman

We had to say good bye to our Ozman in early March. I haven't written about it before now because it's honestly still really hard to think about him. His thryoid tumor was growing exponentially and had to started to impinge on his airway, making it hard for him to breathe and sleep at night. But worst of all by far were his legs. They no longer supported him and he didn't even have the dignity of being able to use the bathroom by himself outside. We aren't sure if he was in pain or not, although we know it hurt him when he would fall down, which was really often. He couldn't depend on his legs to let him run around the yard or bounce up and down anymore (and he was definitely a bouncy boy).

It was the hardest decision we've ever had to make and I can't think about it now without crying. We know he's not hurting anymore - that he can walk and run and play just like he could when he was a crazy puppy. But, as much as we know that, it doesn't help with not having him here. He was a constant presence for us for 10 years - a faithful companion and friend and a total mess. We miss him so much.

The missing comes and goes randomly, usually with little things that happen throughout the day. I miss a warm Doodle dog snuggle at night when I'm going to sleep. And a nosy Doodle face trying to get all up in my business, no matter what I'm doing. I miss his nose to the ground routine after every meal. I miss his happy face when we'd walk in the door - no matter if we'd been gone 15 minutes or 5 hours, he was just as happy to see us. He was an awesome dog. My first baby and my best buddy.

We love you Doodle. Thank you for making us better than we were before we knew you.

Annabelle is 7 months old!

Oh my goodness, we're officially past the halfway mark of Annabelle's first year! I know - I say this every month - but I can't believe how fast it's going. It seems like yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital and getting settled in.

Annabelle is officially on the move. She started crawling last week and now nothing is safe. Everything is subject to baby investigation, which means it's going straight into her mouth to be tasted. It's been so long since we've had to baby proof! We're constantly remembering the small things - don't leave cords out in baby reach, pick up anything and everything off the floor that isn't baby tasteable, put up baby gates, put baby in baby containment device before leaving a room, etc. And we're having to teach Lily all of this stuff too. Luckily, she's learned pretty quickly that toys left out are going to be covered in baby slobber, so her toys are pretty consistently out of Annabelle's reach. She's also babbling away - lots of mamamama, and rararara and some dadadada scattered in there too. But her favorite by far is mama - I love it! Lily was a dadada girl, so this makes me happy :)

Annabelle hit either a growth spurt this month or several wonder weeks in a row, because sleeping has been somewhat of an issue. She's normally a great sleeper, but we definitely had a change in sleeping habits. I think she's starting to settle back into her routine, but it was a tired couple of weeks for us. We don't have a well check visit until 9 months, so we're not really sure what her stats are. But, we both agree that she's looking longer and feels heavier so I'm sure she's growing away! We started testing out some solids this month also and so far we've tried bananas, avocado, carrots, sweet potatoes, apples, pears, squash and blueberries. The squash and sweet potatoes have by far been the favorites - she really doesn't seem to be too big of a fan of the fruits yet.

Here's our sweet, 7 month old AnnaB!

5 years old, what?!

Lily turned 5 years old a couple of weeks ago and I'm still coming to terms with it 😩 My little girl is getting so big. She graduates from preschool in a couple of weeks and will be going to Kindergarten in August (we had her new student orientation a few weeks ago). It's too much for this mama! 

But even though it's hard to watch her grow up so fast, seeing her grow into this little person has been so amazing. Lily has the kindest heart - for people and for animals. She is compassionate and empathetic - both things I wouldn't have expected from a 5 year old before having one myself. She has this unfailing optimism that she shows in every situation (well, almost - not so much when learning something that doesn't come easily to her). And most of all, she just has this sweet, sweet light that she shows to everyone around her. She's quick with a hug or kind word when someone needs it and she's never met a stranger. She sings and dances her way through each day, no matter who's watching. She has a heart for Jesus and isn't afraid to share Him with others, even if it's only by her attitude and not with her words. My most earnest prayer is that she never loses this; no matter what comes her way in life. She truly is a blessing. 

Happy 5 years my sweet girl. You are amazing. We love you!