Friends, thanks for your prayers and concern. One thing that helps me and my family deal with all the sadness is the hope of Christ's second coming, when death will be no more. We have a blessed hope, those who believed in Him will rise!

As far as mom, it's been difficult getting ahold of her lately. My sister stayed a while with her and they are usually running errands together.

Otherwise, she has a faith that moves mountains to sustain her-the "energizer battery" which keeps her going and going . She is still very active in church and is always looking for ways to help others.

I thank God for her!

Songbird,
I suffered one loss this summer and can hardly deal with it, I can't even begin to imagine what you must be going through. I'm so sorry and will pray for you to have the strength to handle these tragedies on a daily basis.

Last night I talked to mom. She was staying over at my aunt's house, since my sister returned home on tuesday. She went to her house in the afternoon and was comforted to find her dog on the porch. (In the morning she'd searched for it without a positive result, which caused here to be concerned.) The poor dog has truly missed mom's hubby and wasn't eating well. It was a great "reunion" when mom arrived!

Mom was so happy to see her puppy safe and sound! I'm so glad for her!

TVC, how are you hanging in there? I'm sure it's hard being out of town.

song, dogs are such funny animals. I bet he's missing the heck out of your mom's hubby. I know how sad our dog gets when our oldest goes to college. She was moping around last night when we returned from taking our daughter so I think she's missing her too. Poor things. I wish they could talk!

Oh Dotsie they can talk, some people just can't understand their language....

We've had grandkids off and on all summer. The dog slept, swam, and played with them all the time. The oldest ones went back to school last week and the two year old went back to daycare.

We're lost without them and the dog has been so sad. She's gone to the guest room a gillion time to look for them and she just mopes when she doesn't find them. She's just now wanting to play all the time again. The grandkids just called and want to come over for the weekend.

I guess it takes us all a while to adjust.
smile

smile, I always pciture your home as Grand Central with all the grandkids coming and going. It sounds like such a warm, loving environment!

Our biggest summer losses here in drought-ridden AL (a 2 yr. stint) have been the hard work of spring in plantings- folks all around us are losing turf, shrubs,vegetables, perennials -and the annuals are a long gone whim, unless you are dilligent with the hose.Down here they call it a hose pipe, not the spigot (like in NJ where I grew up, I laugh to call it hose pipe but if you want to be understood....). It is very daunting, and makes you feel really selfish wanting rain when so many folks have been experiencing overwhelming rains (like in AZ, what is that all about, they don't get that much rain there!!). My summer losses have been of a quieter, smaller nature- the leaves on the trees are going due to heat stress, the flowers are struggling to keep up- a 5 minute rain here is something to go out and dance for. Sorry too for the farmers that depend on nature to support their crops- no corn, no tomatoes, no cotton, weak soybeans. But in my own little sphere, it is sad to see all the hopes of spring dashed in the bake of this drought. I know "you pays your money and you takes your chances", landscape is not like sustenance - but it still aspects your psyche to see lovingly tendered plants succumb. Worse knowing, that once it all has succumbed around Dec, we will get rains aplenty. Oh well, sorry to whine so!

Judy: The loss of vegetation, for whatever reason, affects all sooner or later. And some, more than others. It is still a sad loss. I know it affects us profoundly. I can't imagine living in a place without all the beauty and hope that vegetation provides.

Then I think... how many times do I take this or that for granted? Do we fully appreciate what we have? Perhaps not.

The things I have always missed from the Midwest and longed for were the bountiful trees, plants and flowers back there. Palm trees are not lush nor beautiful, just different and the greenery here in Vegas is man made if at all. If I ever moved from here it would be to somewhere green, lush and alive with vegetation....