Friday

Friday afternoon I got a much needed hair cut. My stylist has moved to a new salon. I sneakily tried to photograph it from the shampoo room:



When I returned to the car, I had a message that Lauren was not feeling well. So... we went to the pediatrician's office, again, Friday afternoon.

Brownie: July 4, 1993 - August 11, 2009

Yesterday we lost our furry child. In December of 2007, his lab work revealed that he was experiencing loss of kidney function. Brownie was lucky to be an exceptionally "robust" cat, weighing in at 18 pounds in his prime, because he later managed a nine pound weight loss without too many consequences. (Recall the hunger strike he waged when the girls came home from the hospital.) About a week ago, he basically stopped eating. Skip (shhh... he says he will never admit to this) had been attempting to feed him the delicacies of gourmet cat food, with a spoon, with no appreciable result.

I talked with Brownie last Wednesday, a week ago. At first I told him that he absolutely could not go, that we had a family, that he was part of it, and that he was important to me and all of us (the girls always ask "Where's Brownie?" when heading to "Silver Car," or "Red Car"). He was just so old and so frail. After spending some really good quality time with him, I told him that he had been a wonderful pet, a really good and loyal friend, and that it was ok if he needed to go. He began really declining over the next 72 hours.

Yesterday, we took him to the vet, and I think it's a fair statement to say that I was in complete denial about his situation, realizing that there was nothing that we could do to change the circumstances. Also, I have talked with a few people who had cats who lived to be 18 and even 20 years old. Therefore, I refused to imagine a scenario that did not include a full 20 years. After extensive lab work, the vet -- a very compassionate, empathetic professional -- confirmed that his kidney function had declined to approximately 15% functionality. Brownie's prognosis was not good to say the least; he would likely not make it through the week. We made the very painful decision to avoid additional discomfort and the suffering that would inevitably occur. We wanted Brownie to be at rest -- not suffer -- and to spend his final moments being loved.

By the way, someone should really champion veterinarian medicine for the availability of organ donation.

So. Anyway. If you have seen the movie "Marley & Me," you can imagine how our Tuesday afternoon was spent. It was spent with me saying, "But, I thought I had four more years," and with the vet explaining lab numbers and obviously hoping that I not make the decision to leave with him to suffer senselessly. He did not suffer. He went to sleep while we were petting him and telling him that he was the very best pet ever.

We will miss him.

Below is a pictorial tribute to Brownie, covering the last 3 years. I realize this is a lot of photos for a cat, and that this type of thing puts me dangerously into "cat lady" territory. However, I was cheated out of four years so I am going to indulge in extra photos.
:-)

This captures Brownie's sentiments about the girls, i.e., you can bring home as many babies as you like, but I won't yield my spot!



Surveying the Christmas loot



A favorite place to nap in the guest room



Trying to relax on the floor, but staying on baby alert



Enjoying an early play date



Brownie enjoyed the playground area as much as the girls





Getting some affection from Gracie



"What is this supposed to be?"



Despite the initial rejection, Brownie quickly became enamored of the girls and tolerated ear-pulling, tail pulling and various other displays of affection.





Lending support to Lauren




More napping. It would be easy to joke about his sleeping habits (18 hours per day), but he took innumerous naps with me when I was pregnant so I am giving him a pass on being slothful.



On the outside looking in



On patrol at the swings



Pool-side

Pretty in pink (and lavender)

Cracker flight

After each meal, the girls enjoy some type of cracker treat. In the beginning, the treat consisted of Cheerios, and they progressed to Goldfish crackers. They briefly experimented with graham crackers. They have refined their tastes to include "green cracker," the Club crackers in the green box, and animal crackers. Gracie is asserting herself more and more so now we have to determine which type of cracker is preferred, and we increasingly find ourselves simply offering an array of choices for sampling, much like wine flights.

Toddler life

Ahhh, the highs and lows of being a toddler. Lauren finds that one day she is having a great time at the pool, and the next day she is sitting in her pediatrician's office. :-(

Sleep over

Last night, Lexy (my niece and the girls' cousin) spent the night. In Lauren's mind, there should be a full band playing and an hallelujah chorus being sung while that sentence is being read. Lexy is a big deal.

So today, we all went to the pool and had a blast:

The bow

Behold...



the BOW!!!!

For the past year, we have been trying, unsuccessfully, to sell Lauren on the idea of any type of hair management tool, i.e., barrettes, clips, etc. Last week, the intervention of all interventions took place on their bedroom floor. Long story short, I wrestled her to the ground, executed some type of "hold," styled her hair in a pony tail and stuck with her every second for the rest of the afternoon to make sure she didn't remove it. I realize that sounds harsh, but there have been innumerous attempts involving more persuasive (and less physical) methods. I know for a fact that both of her grandmothers have tried to get her to mimick them and have spent afternoons with Elmo and Cookie clips in their hair. We really tried.

We also incorporated a great deal of positive reinforcement, and much of that was supplied by Skip with lots of, "LAUREN!!! You look so PRETTY!" Flattery was unsuccessful when tried various times over the past year. However, it finally struck a chord so maybe her sense of vanity has developed?

Because the intervention was not the first of its type, I wanted to hold off on declaring victory for a few days to make sure she did not revolt. So far so good.




I tried the same technique with Gracie, but with an entirely different result... no bow.

Google v. Apple

Google is my first love, but Apple created the iPhone, the best creation since the automobile. Therefore, watching the two develop conflicting interests is not unlike watching your two favorite friends have a falling out. (Click here to read.)

Sunday

The girls moved up to a new Sunday school class this week, meaning that they left their much, much adored teacher behind. To say the least, it was traumatic for both Lauren and Gracie, who love their Miss Kathy tremendously. As we went down a new hallway, Lauren leaned over and bit one of my fingers, but I think it was her way of processing all of the anxiety over not heading straight to Miss Kathy's classroom. (Also, she overheard us discussing the new classroom/new teacher situation, and I think the bite was merely her casting her vote.) Surprisingly, our pager did not vibrate during the service so the new teacher(s) must be pretty fantastic.

Saturday errands

First, the farmer's market at Pepper Place




Next, the library





Finally, a picnic at the park