Sweet Little Petunia

A couple of months ago the white cat that came with the house had kittens. This is the 4th or 5th litter she's had. She's an outside cat and her kittens always run off when they get big enough. We want to get her fixed but just never have it in our budget. (we named her Old Lady due to her sad eyes and looking older than she is) The last time she had kittens there were complications and all 4 kittens died. They are now buried underneath the willow tree.

This time she was bigger than she was last time. We estimated on at least 5 or 6 kittens. She ended up having them underneath the house and figured it would be a while before we saw any of them.

A couple of days later she brings out 1 itty bitty kitty. All white except for 2 little dots on her head. We waited and waited for Old Lady to bring out more. Sadly we discovered that the rest of her litter did not survive.

Meet Petunia, the surviving member of that litter. We haven't officially said we are keeping her, but the kids adore her and Matthew is the one that named her Petunia. We all think that's a very sweet name. I'm fine with the whole thing as long as she stays an outdoor kitty.

Matthew and his bucket o' cuteness.

But who knows, things may change. Either way, we are enjoying having a little kitten around. Watching her catch bugs and imaginary things in the grass is nightly entertainment.

The Dog-R.I.P.

Am I really going to write a blog about my dog? Yeah, I am. Only because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Plus, there's a story to tell and I feel like telling it. So here it goes.

Our dog died last Sunday.

We'd had him for around 6 years. His name was Daxter (or Dax, or Daxie-poo, or the unflattering nickname my mom gave him the last time she visited. *snicker*)
He'd been with us through the best of times and the worst of times. The highs and lows. The lefts and rights. (you see what I'm trying to say here.)

He was much beloved by Matthew and a loyal companion and running buddy to Matt.

Although we'd had him awhile, he was still very much young at heart. Extremely hyper-active and very playful. And although he had all of those qualities, I feel that I must share...I couldn't stand him.

We obtained Dax the same way we obtained a few of the pets we've had over the years.

Matt: "Hey babe, I was wondering, would you like to have a (insert animal)?

Me: "No." (Mentally preparing to stand my ground)

Matt: "Oh....well I thought you'd say yes. I already got the (insert animal) . It's really cool! "

Me: *sigh* (mentally giving in) *rolls eyes* "whatever, as long as I don't have to feed it, or take care of it in any way."

I have to hand it to him, I mostly never did have to take care of Dax or any of the other random pets we've had. I say mostly because there's always that rare time that I have to do it. But it's slim to none.

Now I will also say that I have also brought home a couple of cats. But I came to realize that it's enough work for me to take care of the kids and the house and feed the monsters that live in it. So I swore off bringing any pets home until I feel I can manage it. (it probably won't be any time soon.)

So, that's how we got Dax.

Here's the story on how he died.

Sunday night, Matt decided to go for a run. He never goes at night, only in the mornings, but he has to pass his PT (National Guard Physical Test) and he's been trying to run as much as physically possible.

He then took Dax with him. He loved to go running with Matt.

Just the week before I went walking while Matt went running and we were outside stretching and talking. Suddenly we became aware of a whining sound. It was Dax, standing outside his doghouse shaking and whining at us. He knew Matt was getting ready to go run, and he wanted to go.

When Matt came bursting through the door he told me this is what had happened:

They were over by the bridge (about a mile away from the house). Matt was running on the left and Dax was over on the right. *Dax never could stay by Matt when he ran, he was always ahead or behind, sniffing or checking something out* Matt saw the car coming and figured the dog would get out of the way.

He did...mostly.

But the car got him right in the head and he died instantly.

Poor Matt was pretty shaken up, he started carrying him home, but the dead weight was just too much for him. Plus he realized he was a mile away from home, and he really didn't want to carry his beloved dead dog all the way home. So he came back and got the car and we buried him that night.

Matthew was pretty upset the rest of the night. He just sat in my lap and cried. And I cried right along with him.

Now Matthew knew good and well that I didn't like that dog and I wasn't about to start pretending I did. I didn't think that was fair.

But I explained to him that I would miss the look on his (Matthew's) face when he came inside to tell me something Dax did. Or the joy and companionship Matt got out of his running buddy.

Plus I have to admit, that dog was loyal.

He would get off his chain and go running around town. But 10 minutes later he'd be back on our front porch. He always knew where home was. No matter what...or where.

So, farewell Dax. We are glad you got to go on one last run.