Our BEST Amiga!

Amiga passed away on Friday September 9, 2011. She was diagnosed with cancer only 3 weeks before she died. The cancer was in her lungs and was very advanced. The type of cancer could never be determined and we tried some treatment options on her, but nothing helped and the cancer progressed rapidly. Amiga had a hard time breathing and every breath was labored with her worst time being at night. Her appetite continued to decrease until she had no appetite and she started vomiting with nausea. I feel like we did everything thing we could to help her and we had her on medication to help her be more comfortable, but it came to the point where we had no other choice and she did not have good quality of life, so it was not fair to have her endure what she was going through any longer. The reality of all of this was so difficult and our decision was not easy, but I truly had a connection with Amiga and I feel that she just communicated with me that it was her time to go and she was ready.

I have never before in my life loved an animal like I loved Amiga, and had a connection and bond that I feel can ever be replaced. She was an amazing dog with so much love for everyone and anyone the met her just fell in love, she was just a sweetheart.

Amiga was born in Las Vegas and Austin's Mom and brother, Garrett, picked her out. Austin got her from his Mom while Amiga was still very young and he claimed her his own shortly afterward because of how much he grew to love her. There always seemed to be a friendly banter between Karen and Austin as to who's dog she really was, but Austin and Amiga really had an emotional connection and in fact, Amiga saved Austin as he went through one of the hardest times in his life. Then Austin met me, we got married and we were one happy little family. I never have been a "dog person" and was hesitant at first to have an indoor animal, a pit bull none less, but it didn't take long at all for Amiga to win my heart. While Austin was away at basic training in the Army, we were best friends and she was always there to comfort me while Austin was away. When it came time for us to move to Texas, we loaded our belongings up and just Amiga and I drove from California to Texas. She really was a great travel dog and loved riding in the car. I always felt so glad she was with me when I was alone because of the fact that she was a pit bull and other people were intimidated by that, so I felt safe with her.

Amiga had such a connection with me that when I was pregnant with Tyler, she was just different, she just knew what was happening and was so tender with me, although it was an adjustment after Tyler was born for her to understand that she was no longer #1 and this baby took up lots of our time. The first day after bringing Tyler home form the hospital, we put her in a bassinet in our bedroom, and Amiga went over to it and peed on the floor right on front of the bassinet. She also had to get used to a crying baby, and she did not like that. Sad, crying people make Amiga nervous and sad, so she could not settle down when Tyler would cry. It was all an adjustment for her, but she was so good to the little baby and would softly lick her and be very gentle, although she still demanded her attention and would try to cuddle with us and Tyler at the same time.

As time went by and we had Kai, Amiga was pretty used to a noisy house and could really care less if Tyler was banging her toys on her, pulling her tails, poking her eyes etc.. she loved Tyler and Kai just as she loved me and Austin and was protective of all of us. When Tyler went to Kindergarten and it was just Kai here with me at the house, Kai became very attached to Amiga and they were like best friends. When Kai woke up in the morning, she would go get in Amiga's bed and cuddle with her under blankets and love her. She played dress-up with her during the day and would try different outfits and accessories on her, I think Amiga got annoyed at times, but also loved it at the same time.

We have had so many wonderful memories of Amiga and she was a huge part of our family that we will dearly miss. After she passed away, I sat down with Tyler and Kai so we could think about our favorite things about Amiga and I wrote them down so we would never forget and we can always remember what we love most about her. Here are some of the things we came up with

Kai said:

- I loved to cuddle Amiga and get in bed with her int he morning

- I loved that she would get in bed with me and lay by me

- She loved her belly rubbed

- She loved treats

Tyler said:

- I loved how Amiga would cuddle with me in bed

- I loved that she would jump up and spin when I would give her treats

My additional memories:

- Amiga loved blankets and being covered with blankets at night. We always had to "tuck her in bed" and cover her, but make sure her head was still out, so she could see our every move and make sure we weren't leaving the room

- Amiga was my buddy and shadow...she followed me everywhere all day: when I was upstairs, downstairs, outside, in my office... etc. she hated to be alone and stayed by my side all day.

- She protected me. When Austin was gone, it was as if her senses her heightened and she turned into "guard dog" mode. And when Austin was home, if he ever pretended to hurt me, and wrestle me or the girls she would start licking Austin and jump on him to get him to stop. (this was a fun game we played sometime, just to see her reaction.)

-She would nudge her nose into me and lick me if I were every crying or sad

-She hated guns. Even if she just saw a gun, she would start to shake and was scared to death

-She hated loud noises or when someone would raise their voice in anger, she would shake if anyone was fighting, arguing, or yelling.

Enjoy some pic's of Amiga through her years.


































We love you Amiga... have fun in Doggy Heaven, chase as many kitty's as you want. You will be greatly missed, you were such a good girl to us, thank you for your friendship!

First Day of 1st Grade!!

Oh my, can the time please just stop and make this little girl stop growing!

Today was Tyler's first day of 1st grade and boy she was one happy, and excited little 1st grader! Although, Momma still can't get a hold of herself to not cry when I take her to school. I just miss her during the day and I worry about her and if she will be okay without me. I know, I know... it's time for me to grow up! I can't image what next year will be like when I have to take my baby to Kindergarten and Tyler will be a 2nd grader, but we just can't think of that at all right now!

Anyway, she was adorable and excited to go to school this morning! Here are a few pic's of her before school.

Sand in the City

I took the girls to an event in Olympia today called Sand in the City. It's put on by the Hands-On Children's museum and is a fun/free sand castle building event for families to enjoy. The sand sculptures are done by teams, then the public can view and vote for their favorite. They were amazing to say the least, and so fun to see and appreciate the hard work that was put into making them.

I had a great day, it was so nice to just enjoy the sun, and spend the day with my girls doing something so fun with no time schedule, just enjoying being together. I posted a lot of pictures of the sand sculptures, but try to notice the detail on some of these, they were just really neat.

Although we had a great time, I often thought about my dear husband who is studying SO HARD for the NCLEX test he will be taking next week. We missed him today, but we know his sacrifices are for us and we love, love, love him.

It was fun to actually watch them working on this one. I helped the girls notice all their very cool and unique tools they were using. It was like a construction workers belt full of paint brushes and many other tools they use to create the scene.

The guy on the right was working on the boys hair, very tedious work that takes patience, especially in the very hot, bright sun!

This was a favorite of the day... Angry Birds!

More of the Angry Bird Scene.

Oh oh.. an unhappy pig that an angry bird needs to kill.

Yup, Kung Fu Panda.

This one was done by REI. It's hard to get the entire scene in my camera picture, but it was a whale, octopus, canoe, and people in the water.

The girls also really liked this Winnie the Pooh one. Roo is on the end pulling Eor, Kanga, Christopher Robin, then Pooh Bear. On the other side of the hole was Rabbit. So, so cute.

Notice how they really made the sand look like spilled milk.

It was a very hot and bright day, so Kai had to take turns using my sun glasses. You see, these kids aren't used to the bright sun in their eyes too often out here in the NW.

Face Painting is always a favorite and they made themselves kitty's.

Playing in the giant sand boxes. Making their own sand sculptures was lots of fun!

There was a rock climbing wall for kids to do and the girls really wanted to try it, so we stood in line. We watched many other kids try and enjoy their rock climbing attempts, and I observed that the kids about Tyler's age and even older would make it a few feet up, then the instructor would pull their foot or leg back down if they weren't heavy enough for their own body weight to bring them back down (it was a weight bearing type of rope/belay that would allow you to come back down and take the slack as you climbed up). When it was Tylers turn, she got in her harness and started to climb the wall. She climbed, and climbed all the way to the top in a matter of a minute with no problem at all, she was a total natural climber and pretty strong for a small little girl (her uncles would be SO proud), BUT when she was at the top, she didn't weight enough to pull herself down, she just dangled at the top. The instructor tried to climb the wall a little to see if he could reach her, but he wasn't even close. Tyler just waited at the top patiently, and I think she just enjoyed being up so high and hanging out. The crowd was very impressed that she made it to the top. She was eventually rescued.

This was Tyler's "rescue mission attempt" from one of the employees, but he couldn't reach her and ended up putting a harness on and going up on the rope next to her in order to pull her down. As he was pulling her to safety, the crowd all cheered, Tyler thought it was all great fun and I was very impressed with her climbing skills! Sister, on the other hand, could use a little practice.. cute little Kai, Kai.

After the fun with the sand, we decided to cool off at the plash park in Olympia. It was a hot day here in WA, so the water was great!

This was our view from the slpash park, with the state capital building in the background... such a beautiful place we live! See Kai wrapped in the blanket on the ground?

We had a wonderful day and enjoyed seeing the sand, playing in the water, and just hanging out together. We really, really missed Austin, but sent him lots of pictures and we know he is doing what is best for our family. Good luck my dear, we love, and appreciate your determination and hard work. We believe in you!