In memory of Keno 2002-2009

I can hardly believe I'm writing yet another tribute for yet another one of my little ones. This past year has been so difficult for me in so many ways, but the most challenging moments have been watching my little family get smaller and smaller as time goes on. If you're a long time reader of my blog, you'll remember that I lost my little Noel back in March of last year. In December, I said my goodbyes to my sweet Zoe who had been battling cancer for several years. Three months later, my beloved Beowulf slipped from my life. Little did I know then that Isabel, my dearest companion for the past ten years, would start on a journey that she would never finish, and she passed away just four months later in July.

After all this heartache, after all this pain, I honestly thought I wouldn't have to make such a hard decision again, but there I stood Monday morning facing my worst fear like I had done so many, many times before. As Dr. J started to explain to me the extensive and painful surgery that Keno would have to endure should I wish to keep him alive, I couldn't help but wonder if I wasn't stuck in some sort of twisted horror movie that just keeps repeating over and over again. I starred blankly at him as the words fell from his mouth. Tears streamed down my face. His words became a tangled mess of confusion in my head, and I started to feel that deep ache in my heart. It's an indescribable pain, really. My heart, having been ripped open so many times before, was once again bleeding in pain, and all I could feel was the deep throb of sadness.

I looked at my little man and knew I couldn't be so selfish as to put him through all of this just to keep him by my side. I knew that letting him go was the best option for HIM. I knew what I had to do, yet my confused mind could not process the thought of saying goodbye, again, to another one of my family members.

Keno passed on so peacefully, and I'm so grateful for that. It was as if no one else was in the room except for the two of us. I held him in my arms as I had done so many times before. I nuzzled his nose with mine and whispered that I loved him and that I was doing what I thought was best for him, not for me. He gave me one last approving look, then laid his head down and was gone.

And once again, I was left to find my way home through a waterfall of tears. All the past wounds that had started to heal were ripped wide open, and the pain of losing all of my furkids over the past year, over the past decade, came flooding back. Just when my heart starts to heal and I feel I can move on, another one slips away. It's just not fair.

They all hold such a special place in my heart, and I wouldn't trade a second of my memories with them for all the time in the world. Thinking back on Keno's life with me over the past five years, I feel blessed to have had the pleasure of being his "mama." We rescued him and his brother, Poker, when we lived in Vegas back in 2004. The operator of the shelter said she was waiting for the perfect couple to take them home since their previous owner had to go into hospice care. I was so honored when she said we could take the pair home. Their shenanigans kept us on our toes, and although Keno's personality took a while to shine through, we knew he was pretty special from the start. He was such a rambunctious little guy, and he had a thing for wanting to stick his nose near our mouths to identify us. I remember he would get the most beautiful winter coats. He truly was the sweetest little thing.

He loved rolling around on his back in what I liked to call "The Otter." He especially loved playing in the curtains. I'm so glad I captured it on film.



We had recently bought the pair of them this very plush bed that we named "The Bowl." Keno took to it immediately, and I often found him either snuggled up inside snoozing or in the "pop goes the weasel" pose.

We will miss you, Keno. Be well with your brothers and sisters, and until we meet again...

XOXO,
mama & daddy

And the give-a-way goes to...

Elizabeth and Patti! Ladies, please e-mail me your choice (i.e., earrings A or charm B) and your address. Thanks for playing along :) I'll be back next week with lots of pictures and projects to share. Have a good weekend everyone!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month - Give-a-way for a Cause

*Please note that this post will remain at the top of this blog until October 15th. Scroll down to see new blog posts.*

This past weekend I had the opportunity to participate in a Scrap Pink event: Cupcakes for a Cure. Our goal was to raise money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization by inviting women to participate in this fun scrapbooking crop for a small fee. In return, they got to scrap their hearts out and eat yummy food all day long! We had an on-going silent auction, free hand massages from Arbonne to help ease those tired scissor-wielding fingers, tons of give-aways, and more candy than you can shake a stick at! For all of our efforts, we managed to raise $2,232! Now that's not bad for a first annual event. If you'd like to read more about the fun time we had as well as see some pictures, you can go here. The following group photo is definitely my favorite from the day. These ladies (and one gentleman) are beyond terrific, and I love them all!

My contribution to the event was making breast cancer awareness jewelry to sell. Since Breast Cancer Awareness Month is now upon us, I'd like to offer these items here on my blog. I am proud to be contributing part of the proceeds to Susan G Komen for the Cure. All the crystals you see are genuine Swarovski crystals and add that extra little bling! The prices are listed above each of the items. I will accept PayPal (send to nature_journey@yahoo.com) or a check. Shipping is $1.50 for the first item and $0.25 for each additional item. If you're ordering from outside the US, please contact me for shipping information.

Bracelet (made from stretch cord) - $10

All Earrings - $10

Earrings A

Earrings B

Earrings C

Earrings D

All Scissor Charms - $8

(You can also put these on your cell phones or use them as zipper pulls!)

Scissor Charm A

Scissor Charm B

Now for the super fun part - the GIVE-A-WAY! I am happy to offer YOUR CHOICE of any of the above items to TWO lucky blog readers! Just leave me a comment and you're entered! If you want to increase your odds, you can do one or more of the following:

1. Become a "follower" of my blog (located on the right side bar). Already a follower? Let me know and I'll throw in an extra chance for you to win!
2. Subscribe to my blog (located on the right side bar). Already a subscriber? Let me know and you'll get another chance to win!
3. E-mail a friend and let them know about this give-a-way. Just leave me a comment telling me you helped spread the word, and I'll throw in yet another chance to win!
4. Mention this give-a-way on your blog, and yup, you'll get another chance to win.

There you go! Easy-peasy. I hope you all participate, and remember, a good portion of the proceeds will go to Susan G Komen for the Cure.

Fine print: This give-a-way will end at 11:59 pm PST on October 15, 2009. I will throw all names in a hat or bowl and have my hubby draw a name. Winners will be posted on October 16, 2009. If the winners do not contact me by October 23, 2009, a new winner will be selected. Good luck!

One Proud Wife

That's me - one proud wife. I'm always proud of Travis because he's such a good guy and has the most incredible work ethic of anyone I know, but last week I was more than overjoyed when he received a surprise performance award at work. He truly is a hard worker, and I'm so happy that I'm not the only one who recognizes how devoted he is to his job. Normally, I'm not present when he gets an award, but this time not only was I there, but I knew about it before he did!

A couple of weeks ago, one of Travis' coworkers called me up and invited me to an employee appreciation picnic at the base. She said that Travis was receiving an award, but he didn't know anything about it. My presence at the picnic was also going to be a surprise. For over a week, I keep this little secret all to myself wanting so badly to tell him, but knowing it would be a better surprise if I said nothing. I decided to take Sedona with me, too, so that everyone could meet her as well. She was such a good girl, and she was a big hit with all the employees. Travis was beyond stunned to see me since apparently everyone had been told they could NOT bring spouses or any other family members to the picnic. I thought it would dawn on him that maybe he was getting a really big award, but he later said that it didn't even cross his mind. He was so happy to see me and Sedona that all of his thoughts were on us.

When the time came to present the awards to several of the department heads, I could hardly contain myself. I was beaming with pride and so thankful that I was able to be there to see him accept his award. The look of surprise on his face when the Commanding Officer said his name was exactly the reason I had come.

Because I was taking care of Sedona while he was accepting his award, I actually didn't take any pictures. GASP! Fortunately, public relations was at the event and their new employee took some awesome pictures and sent them to me (thanks, Sylvia!). These first three pictures show Travis with the Commanding Officer, who will be leaving the base at the end of the month (he will be missed, that's for sure).

Finally, here's a picture of out little family.

And, of course, what special event would be complete without a handmade card? Here's what I came up with for Travis.

I have more fun stuff to share since we went to the air show this past weekend. Stay tuned for that! Also, don't forget to enter for a chance to win one of my breast cancer awareness pieces!

Sick...ick

Looks like I might have caught myself a little bug, and not the cute little ladybug either. I was feeling great yesterday. I even went on a fantastic run last night and really pushed myself, but right before bedtime the sniffles started. Today I'm just feeling extremely run down and can't shake this need to sleep some more. So, off to bed I go. I'm bummed I can't share anything crafty with you today. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow :)

The bandwagon came...

...and I jumped on! I've been seeing a lot of ladies use this poky kind of item to hold up their cards for pictures. Check out Dawn McVey's blog and you'll see what I'm talking about. Turns out that poky thing is called a "floral frog" and is used to hold down flower arrangements. I hadn't really given much thought to getting one, but then I came across one at Michael's the other day, and it leaped from the shelf into my little hand basket! They're jumpy little buggers...

While showing you all my new frog, I thought I'd also share a great find from Staples. I found these pens on clearance for $2 (with tax). They're perfect for keeping in your purse because they're only four inches tall, but better yet, they're ideal for including in handmade paper crafting stationary sets. At 40 cents a piece, you can't beat it!

Today, I'm pooped. I ran nearly three miles last night in the sweltering heat (it's still around 90F when I go for my runs in the evening time) and my body is letting me know that we had a good workout. I'm actually going to get crafty now since I have some pre-orders to fill. Pre-orders of what, you might ask? Well, here's another sneak peek.

I can't wait to share what I've been up to!!

Tiger Love

Today I'm sharing another layout from the San Diego Zoo trip. I've been using all 4x6 pictures on my pages so far since that's what I had printed out at Costco a couple of months ago. I'm naturally simplistic and clean in my designs; hence the use of a lot of straight lines. This particular layout tells the story of my BFF's love for tigers. While she was on the prowl for these big cats, I was hunting down the hippos. I haven't done that layout yet, but I hope to soon!

I'm actually getting ready to pound pavement, so I'll blog at you all later!

I like the sound of crinkled plastic

Heaven help me it's true! The sound of plastic crinkling as I examine a new pack of paper at my favorite scrap store is just as alluring to me as the "cha-ching" of a slot machine is to a gambler. I was at Michael's yesterday and as I picked up the new Making Memories Halloween pack, I realized that the sweet sound of plastic crunching together in my hands makes me want to buy, buy, buy! LOL! My hubby chuckled at me as I told him this realization, and he likened me to Rebecca Bloomwood of Confessions of a Shopaholic. We had just watched that movie that night before, so it must have been fresh in his memory. Yes, not only does my hubby sit with me through chick flicks, but he tags along for the shopping ride, too. I'm a lucky girl :) I didn't end up buying the paper pack since I'm saving for other things right now, but I couldn't turn my back on these great stamps from Inkadinkado. I can't wait to unwrap them...

In other crafting adventures, I'm diligently working on making some really fun items to sell here soon. Here's a sneak peek.

Are these little guys cute or what?! I'm especially fond of this one.

Lastly, I have my panda bear spread to share with all of you. This layout is part of my scrapbook about my trip with my BFF to the San Diego Zoo last year. Who doesn't love cuddly panda bears?

It's back to the drawing board or bead board or design board...whatever it is, that's where I'm heading now. Ciao for now!

Hello world

Looks like I took an unintentional break from blogging! I've been enjoying the last few weeks of summer by hanging out with friends, scrapbooking, and running. We celebrated Memorial Day with the traditional pot-luck BBQ. Check out those ribs...yum!

Of course, I jumped in the pool with this cute little thing whom I've known since she was cooking inside her mama. She's quite the little water baby and enjoys spending time in the pool!

Just a few days before our BBQ, wildfires began to burn throughout our area. Actually, I wouldn't call them "wildfires" since that implies a natural event. These fires were set my mentally unstable individuals who have cost hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage, displaced hundreds of people and animals, and caused the death of at least two firemen. It's been a sad time here, but we're fortunate that the fires only caused minor disruption to our lives. We had smoke blow over us for a few days making my evening outside runs impossible. Normally when I run, I have a gorgeous view of some rocky mountains right next to our house. (Note: these are NOT the mountains with the fires.) This is the view I see as I start my run.
As I head back home, I usually see the much larger mountains in front of me, the mountains that are still being devastated by fire. To show you how bad it got over here, I snapped a few pictures of the smoke blowing in one evening. You can see the enormous cloud of smoke making it's way over the house (note the blue sky to the right of the picture).

Turning around 180 degrees, you can still see the smoke cloud moving toward us from the southwest (the smoke was moving from right to left in the picture).

Just a few minutes later, you can really see the contrast between the sunset sky and the dark ominous cloud of smoke on the horizon. The silhouetted mountains are in the range of the large Station Fire that has burned nearly 161,000 acres, and is the largest fire in this area in recent history. As of the time of this blog entry, the fire is 93% contained and is expected to reach full containment by Saturday evening. All of this caused by one individual. Sad.

Remember in my last post how I said I had done some scrapbooking recently? I finally snapped some pictures of my layouts! I'll share them over the course of the next few posts. This first layout is about one of my favorite parts of my trip to the San Diego Zoo last year with my BFF - the birds.



This past weekend, my mom and I attended our town's first annual Fall Festival. The town provided a bus tour of historical sites which was really a lot of fun. They had vendors of all sorts and live music. Unfortunately, by early afternoon the wind had picked up and we were baking. At least my feet got tanned this time!

Lastly, I want to share my movie-BFF's new blog: Staci Layne Wilson's Kix & Flix & Pix. Like movies? Like shoes? If so, this blog is for you! Staci is an entertainment reporter who happens to l-o-v-e shoes. She combines her two loves into one fantastic new blog. Seriously, who wouldn't want a pair of leopard high heeled shoes? (Yes, that skinny little thing is none other than Staci herself modeling her fab shoes.)

And you have to go check out the story behind these bad boys.

My weekend is jammed packed with errands to run and stuff to get accomplished. I WILL be back in a timely manner to show you the other scrapbook layouts I made as well as share with you an endeavor that's been months in the making. That post will include a giveaway that you won't want to miss! Blog at you soon :)

A Perfect Weekend

Ever have a near perfect weekend? I just did! Between a day of scrapbooking and a day at the pet fair, my weekend was filled with relaxation and fun.

Friday my girlfriend came over and we spent the entire day scrapbooking. Now I haven't actually scrapbooked in about a year, so I was so happy by the end of the day when I realized I had completed eleven 12x12 pages! Ten of those pages were double spread layouts, and one was a single page layout. I haven't taken pictures of them yet, but I will soon. For now, I'll share some cards that I made at my other girlfriend's house last Wednesday. She called me up for an impromptu card making session. I'm glad she did because we had a blast!

This first card is a-la Jennifer McGuire style. I fell in love with her simple owl card she posted on the Hero Arts blog.

This next card uses two new sets from the brand spankin' new Stampin' Up Holiday Mini Catalog - Grateful Greetings and Gifts of the Earth. The Holiday mini goes live tomorrow!

Saturday was especially exciting because we took Sedona to our town's annual "Paws and Claws" event. I had to take special care to pack lots of water and make sure that Sedona stayed cool. It was over 90F by the time we left at 10am, and it was expected to reach 105F. Why oh why they hold this event during the hottest part of the year is beyond me. You better believe a call into the event's coordinator is on my to-do list today.

We arrived at the fair right when it was scheduled to begin - at 10 am. Apparently we weren't the only eager ones to be out and about because there were already over a hundred people there!

We encountered some of the cutest pets. Here's an adorable little guy who actually enjoyed wearing sunglasses!

Sedona was very curious about all the wildlife in attendance. Here she is get acquainted with a desert tortoise.

I was super impressed with how many wonderful pet parents I met at the fair. It warms my heart to see happy, healthy animals enjoying life. Speaking of happy, healthy pets, here's one now!

She was tired by the time I took this picture and no doubt she was hot, too. Luckily, I had come prepared with lots of ice water. Plus, there was a hose available so that we could spray down our pooches. She got soaked twice :) There was even a point where I took her back to the car and blasted the air so that we could both cool off. In my efforts to keep her nice and cool, I completely forgot to put sun tan lotion on myself, and you guessed it. I have a killer burn on my neck and back. Ouch.

Toward the end of the show, we made some new friends.

Not too long after snapping this picture, we were joined by one more.

It was a Great Dane extravaganza! Oh my goodness did we attract crazy attention. Sedona always garners a lot of attention while we're out, but having three Great Danes in one place really had people flocking to us! We even had a clown pay a visit. See her feet?

By this point, Sedona is tired and we were ready to head home. She was such an incredibly good girl. She's always well behaved, but her demeanor never ceases to amaze me. This last picture we took is one with my friend's dogs, Heidi and Lucas.

It was a long morning, but well worth the time. We met lots of great pets and their people. Plus we enjoyed seeing lots of fun exotic animals and learning more about our local rescue groups. I'm still going to call the event's coordinator to see if the pet fair can be moved to a different time of the year since this was the reading in my car when we left:

I'll be back with more projects this week! Until then, happy Monday :)