puppy love

Sometimes Hope comes wrapped in tan and black fur, with floppy ears, a big lolling tongue, a long wagging tail and the name, Blue. 

We bought our first dog yesterday.
A 14 week old German Shepherd puppy.
My husband has wanted a German Shepherd since before we were married. 
That’s been over 14 1/2 years ago now. 
We needed something happy and hopeful.
A dog is both. 
He helps us look past May, when the chemo treatments end. 
He helps us think about the day that my husband is done with all these doctors and surgeries and make plans for a cancer free future.
We just knew he was our dog. 
From a google search my husband did on Monday, and the pictures of him playing with a kitten that were e-mailed to us later that day. 
A brief talk with the breeder on Tuesday to set up the appointment to meet him on Saturday. 
Thankful for a second call on Friday, before someone else came to meet him Friday afternoon. 
Gave us a chance to put a deposit down, to say aloud and with certainty, he’s going to be our dog. 
A visit with my parents, grandfather and cousins on Friday night and Saturday morning in Southern Illinois. 
Then on to meet our dog and bring him home. 
Oh, how we love him. 
He fits into our family just right. 
Keeping us all more on the go, more unplugged and more together, than we’ve been of late. 
My husband is talking about renaming him. 
The boys and I agree though, that Blue is just right too. 
Today is Day 2. 
So far so good.
Thank you for sharing our happy news. 
We are kicking off 2012 with Hope, and will be busy loving and chasing and training our new dog, Blue. 
Thank you for your continued prayers, as my husband gets hooked up to his third round of chemo on Tuesday. 
Unhooked on Thursday, which is when the nausea usually hits the hardest. 
We’ll keep in touch…and share puppy pictures too. 
Oh, he’s super great and wonderful and pretty as can be, handsome actually, as he’s a boy dog. 
The girls are getting more outnumbered all the time. 
One mom and one girl cat, who is Not Amused. 
One dad, two sons and one boy dog, our newest addition. 
Love,
Janean
P.S. We are so keeping his name…if I get to add any weight to my vote at all…and because I’m trouble enough to try to get you on my side to keep it as is. Happy Sunday! We’ve played all morning with our puppy and he’s sleeping in his kennel with the door open, in time for us to go to church in about 30 minutes. We’re going with a smile, always. But today’s is a little brighter, due to Puppy Love. 
NOTE: I originally posted this on Sunday, January 8, 2012, the day after we brought Blue home, on my husband’s Caring Bridge page. I’m posting it here today to explain where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing instead of Tumblr-ing. I’m A Dog Mom now. A Puppy Mom to be specific. We’re going for walks, playing with his rope toy AND doing the things that need done to take care of my family and household. Still figuring out how to do all that and write too…hoping to figure it out SOON. 

A Clarity of Conscious: Live…

aclarityofconscious:

2012 resolutions

Live every minute,
But watch for the moment,
The oft overlooked and insignificant moment,
when God whispers.

The still, soft voice,
When you least expect it,
Telling you He has not forgotten,
And is still very much by your side.

Live every minute,
with no thought for the…

I love this poem and the man who wrote it. He is still surprising me, in wonderful ways, even twenty plus year after meeting and marrying him. 2012 feels hopeful. So thankful for that. 

A Clarity of Conscious: Live…

a Mississippi morning dawns

with a whisper of sounds

from the river road

a crowing rooster

and the warm colors

of the sunrise

from deep orange

to a whisper of pink

still showing 

along the horizon

I stand in the old pasture

rolling terrain

reaching from atop the bluff

to the mighty river below

how I love this very spot

and the people who reside

on this rocky hill

and the glow

of the January sun

on my face

as I visit my grandfather

and parents

my cousins too

at Evergreen Heights

in southern Illinois

my heart home

sometimes the happy shows

there are days you awake

with a sense of anticipation

today is one of those days

for me

my friends are coming over to play

we’re calling it A Planning Meeting

but under that Official Sounding Moniker

it’s a play date

for the women we are

artists and writers too

we’re having lunch

the four of us

fancy chicken salad and a veggie tray

with cookies and cake for dessert

maybe a walk afterwards

with the warmth of the sun

on a rare and wonderful 52˚ January day

rare for the Midwest anyway

my husband is teasing me

calling it a Cackle Party

he’s going out for lunch

instead of coming home

in the middle of his work day

after the daily drop off at 8:20 a.m.

to take my boys to school

I did some errands

just a few

I am home, by 10:00 a.m.

waiting for my friends

I smiled a serene smile

all through the grocery store

must of looked like

I was up to something

well, sometimes the happy shows

and oh, it feels so good

to be happy and hopeful

hello, 2012

so glad you’re here

it’s only day five

and I sort of love you

still grinning in anticipation here

watching the clock

’cause my friends are comin’ over

soon

© 2012 Turquoise Tangles

would have been

today would have been
my grandmother’s 96th birthday
she died on May 1, 2006
each year since her passing
I think of her on her birthday
January 4 shall always be
her birth day
she was a fascinating woman
a marvelous grandmother
an adventurer at heart
brave in big ways
and small ones
with hazel eyes
that twinkled when she grinned
and narrowed in inquisition
often a playful wink
I miss her
still
I love you, Grandma
I am thankful for
the many lessons
taught and learned
that I carry with me
your voice is still in my head
and my heart
today I’ll bake a cake for you
in the heart shaped cake pans
you gave me
long ago
and I’ll think about you
on what would have been
your 96th birthday
enjoy the celebration
from Heaven