Tag: Family

Happy Thanksgiving

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 43 Comments

Gratefulness. This year, we here at the ‘ranch’ have so many things for which to be grateful. Not the least of which is the fact that my mom survived a gastric aneurysm last month and was placed in hospice care but is now home recovering. If you’re ever going to fail at something, flunking out of hospice needs to be right at the top of the list. We are beyond grateful that once again, this remarkable woman, the matriarch and core of our family will be at the dinner table smiling at all us knuckleheads. We love you, Mom and are sooo very happy and grateful you’re gonna be here this Thanksgiving!

Our family is also blessed to welcome home my niece’s husband and Master Sergeant from a National Guard tour in Egypt. He safely arrived on Monday of this week after being delayed by the recent bombing of a Russian airliner. Welcome home, Elias and thank you so very much for your service to our country.

Lastly, I am fortunate to welcome the arrival (just 10 days ago from California), the love of my life to living at the ‘ranch.’ Wayne and I are settling into a lovely rhythm of being a family and Sam couldn’t be happier either. Frankly though, I think Sam likes him more than he does me. 🙂

image So as you sit around that turkey, ham, prime rib or whatever with all the yummy  ‘fixins’ and watch football, I hope you also take time out to take stock for all that you have to be grateful for this year. These days, in this crazy mixed up world, it’s easy to become angry, sad, even bitter at some of the current events, but trust me, there is so very much of the positive out there as well. I encourage you to take a moment to focus on those things that matter most and at the top of my list is family.

All of us at the ‘ranch’ want to wish you and yours the happiest of Thanksgivings. May you all be as blessed and fortunate as we are in our family.

Live, love, bark! <3

In Memoriam

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 41 Comments

Over the weekend, my son and his family lost their beloved little Marley dog. Marley, a tiny little Shih Tzu , was all of maybe 6-8 lbs. of fur. She looked liked a little black Ewok. A wee one but one who ruled big in their household and she kept her ‘brother’ Copper, a German Shorthair in line. Marley was always sweet to the grandkids who adored their little ‘pocket dog’ and grew up with them. She was 15 years old, hated the snows of Colorado but seemed to enjoy the last 3 years of her life in paradise on the Big Island. As a small offering of comfort to my son and his family, I post the following poem which seemed to be especially appropriate to share with my son and his family as well as all of you, as we all ponder the power our pets have in our lives.

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I’m Still Here

Friend, please don’t mourn for me
I’m still here, though you don’t see.
I’m right by your side each night and day
and within your heart I long to stay.

My body is gone but I’m always near.
I’m everything you feel, see or hear.
My spirit is free, but I’ll never depart
as long as you keep me alive in your heart.

I’ll never wander out of your sight-
I’m the brightest star on a summer night.
I’ll never be beyond your reach-
I’m the warm moist sand when you’re at the beach.

I’m the colorful leaves when fall comes around
and the pure white snow that blankets the ground.
I’m the beautiful flowers of which you’re so fond,
The clear cool water in a quiet pond.

I’m the first bright blossom you’ll see in the spring,
The first warm raindrop that April will bring.
I’m the first ray of light when the sun starts to shine,
and you’ll see that the face in the moon is mine.
(Author Unknown)

RIP sweet little Marley, with love and butt scratches to you.  We will miss you, little one.

Live, love, bark! <3

Release the Hounds

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 11 Comments
Release the Hounds!
Release the Hounds!

I WANT that doorbell!  Not because it’s adorable beyond all get-out and really describes answering the door at the ‘Ranch.’  And not because I don’t have more than one ‘hound’ currently, but because I need the ‘hounds of creativity’ to be released.  I’m stuck.  I got nothing…bupkis.  My brain is on overload and while there are a few drafts in the works, it seems no amount of editing or resource checking has made a difference to magically transform them into something fit for public view.  So what does a part-time blogger do when she suffers from writer’s block?  Come on all you creative types, please dish and share your secret!  Puleez?

My first thought was to binge watch Breaking Bad (what can I say, I L-O-V-E that show), The Walking Dead (meh, not in the mood for Zombies right now but just wait till the season premiers though) or GoT (Game of Thrones).  Yeah, not so much.  Westeros will have to continue looting and pillaging without me.

This past weekend I spent a few days visiting my parents and celebrating my Dad’s birthday.  It was the perfect trip–we laughed, played games and cards, talked politics, watched the most amazing sunset, enjoyed cool evenings under a sky full of twinkling stars with tasty drinks and ate-boy did we eat…only the best kind of relaxing stuff and exactly what I needed after experiencing several rather stress-filled weeks at work.  When I drove home on Labor Day, I hoped the relaxed vibe I experienced at my parents’ house would translate into some fantastic inspiration for a couple posts.  Instead, I slipped back into overload running around trying to get laundry, housecleaning, and yard work done before having to hop back onto the hamster wheel at work.  I didn’t even realize it right away until I noticed Sam gave me that “hey, how come all of a sudden you’re not doting on me sigh” that only he can give following our Monday evening walk and just before plopping down on his dog bed while giving me the evil stink eye.  Personally I think he got a little spoiled with my parents, and particularly missed my Mom’s hugs and treats (I mean who wouldn’t, but get used to it dude, we all have to soldier on—it’s called Reality 101!).

But you know as I look back at the terrific time we spent together, it occurred to me that even though I didn’t get the writing boost I had hoped for, my inner need for family time was well met and far more important.  And right now, I’m good with that. ❤️ Thanks again, Mom and Dad.  Love you!

So until the blog spirits revisit me and release the ‘creative’ hounds, I’ll smile and relish the ‘pawsome’ weekend spent with the people who know me the best and who still love and accept me for it.  Then I’m going on line and ordering that doorbell!

Hope Labor Day fueled your soul (or your creative juices).

Reflections on Hawaii – Part Deaux

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 7 Comments

A few of you mentioned there was a problem accessing last week’s “Reflections on Hawaii” post for which I apologize. For those of you who actually want to read it, here it is again (hopefully). May the Internet Gremlins be on vacation this week.

Reflections on Hawai’i

IMG_1116You may recall my post from last week sharing my joy at being able to witness my granddaughter graduate from high school. The celebration of the entire school was so joyful and remarkable. After the graduation, I was able to enjoy being with my family and to see the sights of the Big Island. Oh Hawai’i, you temptress! Such diversity, such beauty. From cactus to unusual trees along roadsides, to volcanoes and geological formations, the names of which were totally lost on me. I may not be able to pronounce all those Hawaiian names let alone remember them, but they burned their beautiful images in my brain so much so I shan’t forget them any time soon. The people, the culture, the amazing array of plants! Egad, all the things I’ve been seeing…those are freaking house plants in my reality, not garden hedges!

And the smells and sounds! The fresh sea air, I mean, truly fresh, not that salted, almost-bad fish smell that you are more likely to associate with beaches. The pounding of rain on avocado tree leaves in an early morning shower, the coqui frogs in the evening whistling their funny little sound. The smell of fresh Kona lattes every morning (ma-halo to Kim as well as Kevin for keeping me in a blissful state of caffeine-ation) and the cool crisp bubbly swallow of a Kona Brewing Longboard after a long day of sight-seeing. I guess the only two things I won’t be missing are sunburns and poi, but everything else, I’m already missing.

I’ll miss seeing my son first thing in the morning, his humor and amazing knowledge of what’s-what when we were on the road to unbelievable sights of the island, pride in my grandson and granddaughter and their giggle fits about silly things and genuine love and caring for one another, the kindness of my daughter-in-law after she had a particularly rough day at work. The laughter and bond shared by a family connected by something that 3312 miles cannot break (not even when we realized the Mai Tai mix already had rum in it–oops–so much for moderation). And those breath-taking sunsets every night from the lanai. Yes, I’ll miss all of that but have something to look forward to down the road–a return trip. Yeah Hawai’i, you can’t get rid of me that easily.

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Live, love, bark! <3