Rogue the Wonder Dawg

"I guess you don't really own a dog, you rent them, and you have to be thankful that you had a long lease." - Joe Garagiola

My eyes are heavy as I type this, saddened by the loss of our sweet pooch. A few months ago we learned what we thought was the arthritis of old age was a tumor.

Pain meds and prednisone bought us six weeks of having our puppy back in fine form, and then he slipped back. The tumor had grown.

Because the boys hadn't had a chance to say goodbye, we opted for another, stronger, course of steroids. Every day of the last two weeks has been a blessing. Seeing Rogue gain his energy and strength for a while, as well as having our private time to tell him what he meant to us.

Today he seemed fine, until after lunch when he started throwing up. At first I wrote it off as his overzealous consumption of Grace's hot dog bits. But after his second spell, I knew something was off. Though he didn't complain, he couldn't seem to get comfortable, unable to decide if he wanted to be inside or out.

Eventually he came in, having more trouble with walking than usual. Within the hour his breathing was laboured. We thought this might be it, so made an appointment with the vet. The boys each took some time alone with him, and Jeff left work. But after I helped him up one last time, he went and laid by his favorite chair. And as I held him, he rose above us.

Jeff was saddened that he didn't make it home in time, but glad that we were able to give Rogue a peaceful, loving goodbye.

We will miss you, black dog. We will miss the way you introduced yourself to the neighbors (through the fence), the way you thought the blankies I gave you were food, how you loved the smell of baby so much you were able to predict my labor. The way you'd jump for ice cubes, burrow your nose in baby carseats, and dance with us in the kitchen. How you would bark like crazy at the doorbell, and then check the pockets of whomever was at the door for treats. No, I won't have to yell for you to shut your beak, chase you back in the house when you wander to the neighbors, or wonder if Grace ate her dinner or if you helped. But I will miss every moment I don't have the opportunity now.

Thank you for teaching us how amazing it is to be loved by a dog. Forever.

Luau!

The boys and I talk about going to Hawaii all the time. One day, we'll make it there. But to keep our daydreams sparkling we attended a luau hosted by our gym. Okay, so we went because there was a drawing for a free trip to Hawaii and we were sure we'd be the ones saying Aloha.

The weather was in true Oregon June form. That is...it was sprinkling. We sat in wet seats, but for the most part we were dry. The kids got to try kahlua pork snadwiches, coconut rice, pineapple coleslaw...and weren't impressed. Neither was I, but I assured them food at an actual luau is much better.

The entertainment was lots of fun. For the last month they've been offering hula lessons, and making it particularly easy for the kids to take the lessons. They had them during date night, and if the kids were in the play room during lesson time, they'd take them out for you.

The dancer did a traditional performance, then had the kids (and a few brave adults) show off their newly acquired skills. So cute!

Then it was time for what we sat in the rain for - the fire dancer! My kids love fire, but they're very cautious about it. Probably all those lectures about our fire pit. The idea that someone would play with fire, dance with fire...well, that they had to see.

It was great, but not something I'll be putting on my list to try! I'd catch something on fire!

Yellow Belts!

The boys had their first belt test for Taekwondo...and got their yellow belts. They've been taking classes for a while, but never had much interest in testing.

The process was really impressive. All the kids in their group went through different moves together, each group sitting down as those ranked higher moved on.


As part of the process, each kid got to attempt to break a board. I'll admit...I envisioned bleeding and broken bones. But no one bled! No one whined. These kids just put their feet and fists and elbows through the boards as if they were styrofoam. It was awesome.

I enjoyed watching the kids go through the process and looking ahead to what is in the cards for Bayley and Hayden. It was amazing what some of these kiddos could do. The finale of board breaking was a stunt that was truly movie worthy. The boy jumped over three other boys to kick through a board. AMAZEBALLS!

The other kids were so excited for it, there was competition over who would crouch down and be leapt over!

The boys were so excited to get new belts. Hayden immediately declared we needed to do something to celebrate, while Bayley was more understated - "I'm glad I got a new belt. I was bored of the white one."

New Tradition

The boys are following in their fathers' footsteps. No, they aren't infatuated with accounting, college football, microbrews, or golf. This time...it's fire.

At the end of the school year they both came home with lost of papers - mostly workbooks and the like. I went through them to put together summer worksheet packets...but that still left a lot of...opportunity.

The boys decided to torch it. Yes, they sent their school year up in flames. Anyone who has known Jeff for any length of time...thinks he deserves it. But me? What about me?

Last Day Of Preschool

Grace had such a great time at preschool this year. She mastered her numbers and colors. and made lots of new friends.

Next year we'll work on letters, writing our name, and using the potty by ourselves.

Over the summer we're going to focus on holding a crayon and learning to use scissors.

The baby-girlfriends decided that they are big-girlfriends now. Which was equal parts adorable and bittersweet. They are our babies, and they are growing up.


Afterwards, the girls gave Miss Renee and Miss Shelly flowers, and then had a pizza picnic lunch. Or tried to, until Grace decided she wanted to go home. So we smuggled her friends home for a playdate.

3rd Grade Performance

At the boys' school, the kids start learning the recorder in the 3rd grade. They also learn about music in different parts of the world. (Yes, the music curriculum there is made of awsome.) At the end of the year, they show off their stuffs to the parents.

Hayden was Peer Gynt...which meant he got to be chased around my his friends, and then got to sqaure off against the king (his friend Owen). It was quite the laugh.