Goodbye to Alvin

The reality of leaving has been setting in of late.

It especially hit home when we gave our doggy friend Alvin away to a beautiful older lady on the other side of town, I am still silently grieving over giving him away...

From the day we brought Alvin home, over a year ago, I prayed that he would be a blessing to others. To some I think Alvin was rather annoying, the barking, jumping etc. but for me I loved his cuddles and adorable face, and he was a wonderful blessing to me. And now I am praying that he will be a blessing to his new owner, a lonely older lady who has loved cocker spaniels all her life and was devastated when her last dog died a few weeks ago.

I am sure he will be very spoilt and will love being the centre of her attention, unfortunately he didn't get a lot of attention in our home (mostly lots of cuddles from me!).

So giving Alvin away is the beginning of packing up life as we know it over here in Australia and preparing for our move to the USA!

With around 4 and a half months to go, I sometimes get rather overwhelmed at what needs to be done and what we are waiting on the Lord for.

But I am learning to rest in and wait upon Him alone to provide, guide and strengthen me each day.

Make me know Your ways, O Lord;

Teach me Your paths.

Lead me in Your truth and teach me,

For You are the God of my salvation;

For You I wait all the day.

Psalm 25:5

A donkey's back

This week we have decided to read portions of the Easter story to our children each night leading up to Easter and then have our children draw a picture of what happened in the reading. I hope to collect the drawings each night and put them together in a book with the readings alongside the pictures.

Tonight my husband read about Palm Sunday and Jesus' welcome into Jerusalem. As our children were busily drawing donkeys, my husband informed us that all donkeys have a cross on their back.

"Really?" I said, "Yes really, I will find you a picture on the Internet." He replied.

Well he found lots of pictures, none of which I can post here as they are copyright (so if you are interested google donkeys cross and check it out for yourself!).

I was completely shocked! I can't believe I have lived 33 years (almost 34!) without ever knowing donkeys have a cross on their back. I feel rather silly, because I guess that's the kind of information EVERYONE knows, but can I just say that it was such an amazing thing for me to learn about!

I still find it amazing every time I think about it. That an animal which led Jesus as a baby inside his mother's womb into Bethlehem and that led Him into Jerusalem, the City in which He would be crucified on a cross, had a cross on it's back!

After learning about this my children all put crosses on their donkey's backs!

God never ceases to amaze and wonder me!

A week without Rickey

So it's been one whole week since our precious dog Rickey died. I was surprised at how miserable and flat I was all last weekend and at the beginning of the week.

There's a part of me that felt really bad for feeling really bad (hope that makes sense). Here I was feeling very sad and despondent about my dog dying when there are so many other people around me and throughout the world experiencing such greater losses and hardships...But I can't pretend that it didn't impact me in a big way, thank you Julie for sharing your story about the bond you had with your dog.

Even though it has only been a week, I have to say that we have already started talking about our next dog. I couldn't talk to anyone about it for at least 3 or 4 days after she died, but now I have been giving it some serious thought, and discussion with my husband!

We definitely do want to get another dog, there was never any question about that. Whilst it is so convenient not having to look after a dog, the benefits far outweigh the negatives.

The question we are now facing is what kind of dog should we get. I have never really had the opportunity to pick any dog I want before. Rickey was a gift to us, so we never got to choose her, and my mum chose most of the dobermans we had (and there was never any other option but doberman!).

It's something we are both researching. We both have similar qualities that we would like in a dog, we just have differing opinions in what size (sometimes), colour, fur length, facial expressions...! We have both agreed that we don't want a small dog, I am used to having reasonably big dogs around, they provide me with a sense of protection. And of course it needs to get on well with children.

So out of interest sake, what are your thoughts on what kind of dog we should get? Any recommendations or suggestions?

I hope Rickey will be in Heaven

Today we said goodbye to our precious furry friend and companion, Rickey.

She was given to us when she was 3 months old as a wedding present, 10 years ago

I had always lived with a dog, so I couldn't wait to get one when I was married. I had wanted a cat as well, but my husband was not so convinced.

Two weeks after we got back from our honeymoon, my husband informed me that we were going down to the animal shelter. I asked him why, and his response was that we were just going to have a look at some cats. I tried not to get too excited!

When we got down there, it didn't take me long to fall in love with a very affectionate, unusual looking cat. I went in and she was all over me straight away. I brought my husband over, and he too thought she was very special. So much to my delight we went home with a cat, and called her Mooshka.

My husband thought that if we were to ever get a cat we should get it before the puppy came, so the cat could make her standing as boss!

So 2 weeks later Rickey arrived, and the first time Mooshka saw her she went to scratch her. Rickey was about the same size as her, and she cowered!

We have so many fond memories of Rickey in our early years of marriage. For us the early years were difficult and Rickey was such a comfort to me in many ways. She was so fun and affectionate and was such a reliable, trustworthy dog.

She loved her ball and she was a great soccer and basketball player (many of our friends can testify to that!)

During our 10 years of marriage we have lived in 6 different houses for varying periods and Rickey and Mooshka have been with us each time. She was such a good dog and settled in well wherever we were.

When I fell pregnant with my first child, one of my biggest concerns was how Rickey would respond to a baby. She had never really been exposed to any before, and all those horror stories about dog attacks etc. started to worry me.

But prayer is such a blessed thing, I did lots of praying about Rickey and our new baby. And praise be to God, she has been such a wonderful dog to all of our children, she has never shown any signs of jealousy. She has been so patient, gentle, tolerant and fun to play with.

I was brought up with dobermans, 2 of them were often unpredictable. Although they never bit or harmed anyone, I learnt how to be careful, and respectful around them. I have always wanted to have a big dog around our children, it is a good opportunity to teach them how to handle dogs, to treat them with respect and carefulness, and to not be afraid of them.

Over the past 2 years Rickey has had trouble with her ears. Apparently her ear canals are very thin and dirt etc. gets blocked in them easily which then lead to infections. 2 years ago we thought she would have to have a $1500 operation to open up the canals so they wouldn't get infected anymore, but she seemed to get better with a dose of antibiotics the infections stayed away.

But a couple of months ago they got infected again, so we took her to the vet for more antibiotics, they healed up, but I noticed a few days ago she was scratching again. Each time these infections come they cause her a lot of pain, and she howls when she scratches her ears, it was so sad to see her in such pain and discomfort.

Yesterday I heard her snap at one of the younger two children, I didn't see what happened but from what I can tell one of them pushed the other accidentally into Rickey and being startled, she growled back. Thankfully she didn't bite her, but no. 4 was pretty upset.

She has been such a gentle wonderful dog, not a nasty bone in her, but I know what it's like when you are in pain, you are more irritable and can't handle surprises. She was scared when no. 4 fell into her and she responded out of fear. I spent the rest of the day observing her and noticed that she was walking very slowly everywhere and spend most of the day lying down when usually she is running up and down the fence, with the dog next door. I wondered whether she was experiencing pain all through her body, not just in her ears.

Later that day we made the decision to get her put down. She was in pain and we couldn't risk her biting one of the children or anyone else, due to her being in pain. I would have such regrets if anything ever happened, and it would be such an awful memory to have of her.

So last night and this morning we cherished our last moments with her, it was very sad to try and imagine her not being with us. She was such a cuddly dog, just like a bear. We explained what was happening to the kids and they seemed to understand.

My husband took her to the vet this morning, she could hardly climb into his car, it seemed like a big effort for her. He found it very sad and emotional, but I am so thankful to him for doing it.

I spent the whole day out, so when I got home, the backyard felt so empty. I have always hated it when she had to go to the vet and wasn't home, but now I will have to get used to it :(

But I am so thankful for her, she has been with us through so much happiness, sadness, and life changes. She has been one of the few constant, things in our life (apart from God!). I will miss her immensely.

I am comforted by these thoughts by Randy Alcorn though, this is taken from an article called Do dogs go to Heaven.

"In her excellent book, Holiness in Hidden Places, Joni Eareckson Tada says, 'If God brings our pets back to life, it wouldn't surprise me. It would be just like him. It would be totally in keeping with his generous character. . . Exorbitant. Excessive. Extravagant in grace after grace. Of all the dazzling discoveries and ecstatic pleasures heaven will hold for us, the potential of seeing Scrappy would be pure whimsy—utterly, joyfully, surprisingly superfluous. . . Heaven is going to be a place that will refract and reflect in as many ways as possible the goodness of joy of our great God, who delights in lavishing love on his children......'

We needn't be embarrassed either to grieve the loss of our pets or to want to see them again. If we believe God is their creator, that He loves us and them, that He intends to restore His creatures from the bondage they experienced because of our sin, then we have biblical grounds for not only wanting but also expecting that we may be with them again on the New Earth."

And I love this poem by John Piper Alcorn quotes in the article.

And as I knelt beside the brook

To drink eternal life,

I took A glance across the golden grass,

And saw my dog, old Blackie, fast

As she could come.

She leaped the stream—

Almost—and what a happy gleam

Was in her eye.

I knelt to drink

And knew that I was on the brink

Of endless joy.

And everywhere I turned I saw a wonder there.

Thank you Lord for such a wonderful dog.