Thursday 13: 13 Things That Have Happened In My Life During My 7 Year Blogging Absence

Click on the pic above to play along!

1. Backes-At the time of my last blog entry, I had an 11 year old black pug named Mushi Mu. Mushi started showing signs of illness in May 2013 and tests determined he was suffering from diabetes, kidney failure, and severe pancreatitis. His quality of life had taken a downward spiral, and as much as it broke our hearts, we decided to end his suffering. He passed away in my Mom's arms. Neither mom or I had plans to own another dog until December of that same year when the director of our local no kill animal shelter contacted us about a pug mix that was arriving from a shelter in St. Louis.  Mom went to meet him in person and the first thing he did in the acquaintance room was lift his leg and pee on her! Mom was like, "That's it...he's ours!" 😁 We named him Backes, after David Backes of the St. Louis Blues. He's stubborn, smart, and likes to get into mischief, but he has brought great joy into our lives. He's my Backydoodle, Doodlebug, Doodlydoo, and Turd Ferguson (when he's naughty).

2. Pippin- I got to spend 15 wonderful years with my beautiful tiger striped tabby cat, Pippin Took. Unfortunately, he started suffering from health problems in spring 2019, and by the time I made the difficult decision to euthanize him, he was down to 10 lbs. For most of his adult life, he was a big boy who weighed 18-20 lbs. October 2, 2019 was one of the hardest days of my life. He went to sleep peacefully while I held his paws, kissed him, and told him what a good boy he was. There will never be another kitty like him.

3. Jolene- I was surprised as hell when my sister called me on the night of January 20, 2017 to tell me she was pregnant. At that time, she had a 10 year old, Madilyn, and a 9 year old, Claire, so we all thought her diaper days were far behind her. Her husband Justin had always told her they could have another baby when the Cubs won the World Series, thinking 1) it would never happen and 2) in the slim chance that it did happen, Sara would be too old. Lo and behold, the Cubs did the unthinkable and won the World Series in November 2016, and on August 23, 2017, Jolene Anne made her debut. Justin kept his word!

4. RIP- Sadly, I've had to say goodbye to too many loved ones. My Grandma B. (pictured above) passed away in August 2013 two months short of her 98th birthday. My step-grandmother June passed in April 2015. My Aunt Jerry, who was like a second mother to me, died in August 2015.  My Great-Aunt Carol passed in January 2018. My cousin Amy died at the age of 43 in October 2017. And two of my students, Jessica and Nick, passed away in autumn 2017, aged 19 and 13 respectively. 

5. Chicago Cubs- On November 2, 2016, history was made when the Chicago Cubs won the World Series, ending a 108 year championship drought. For us long suffering Cubs fans, this night will never be forgotten! Our dedication and years of being ridiculed for supporting "the lovable losers" was finally rewarded. I just wish my Grandpa Don would've been here to see it. He's the person responsible for introducing me to the crazy ride that was, and is, Cubs baseball. He would've loved it all. I can only hope he was partying in heaven with that crazy bastard Harry Caray😆

6. St. Louis Blues- June 12, 2019 was one of the happiest days of my life. My NHL team, the St. Louis Blues, won the Stanley Cup! It took 52 years, but boy was it worth the wait.

7. On My Own- My mom moved out of our house in September 2016 to be the full time caregiver for her mother (my only remaining grandparent), who had fallen and broken her hip the previous month. Four years later and I'm still enjoying the quiet and privacy that comes with being without a roommate. My mom and grandma live close enough to me that I can get there in a minute in an emergency, like what happened 2 months ago when my mom fell off the back stairs and broke her leg.

8. Work- I'm still working at the same school with children who have severe/profound special needs, but in August 2016, the principal moved all the assistants to different classrooms. It was a shock at first, going from the class I had been in for 16 years to the one next door, but it helped that I knew the teacher well and had helped her out in the past. In a way, I'm much happier since the change.

9. Hair- After years of wearing my hair short and swearing I'd never grow my hair out again, I had a change of heart in 2016, so now I'm long again. 

10. New Sister-In-Law- My brother, Bart, married his long time girlfriend, Beth, on February 13 this year (February 13 is also my birthday😉) He really lucked out on this one- she's sweet, smart, funny, beautiful, and has the biggest heart of anyone I know. She treats my two nephews like they're her own. With their marriage, I also gained another niece, Jennifer, another nephew, Dustin, and a great-niece, 4 month old baby Emma.

11. Disney World- I've been "home" two times over the past 7 years: first in June 2012 with my mom, brother, and nephews, and most recently in June 2018 with my mom. The last trip was extra special because I finally got the chance to meet my friend Kristina in person for the first time! We met through our Xanga blogs in 2004 and have been close ever since. Mom and I were scheduled to go back this June 20-27, but thanks to COVID-19...plus her broken leg...our plans got scrapped. We have our fingers crossed for June 2021.

12. Weight- After losing and gaining the same 40-50 lbs. over and over, I decided enough is enough and went back to WW online September 2, 2019. My weight loss as of today? 63 lbs. I'm still 35 lbs. away from my goal weight.

13. The Big Five-Oh- Celebrated this milestone birthday in February 2019.