Goodbye Eddie. Goodbye Shelby. Goodbye my dear friends.

In 2014 we said goodbye to both Eddie and Shelby within a fairly short time period. I have thought very hard about how to best write this and decided to write their stories in one post. While they were clearly individuals with their own story, for me their lives and time with us was so intertwined that I can't help but think of them as a pair. It was less than two months between saying goodbye to Eddie and to Shelby. And I can't help but think of it as an end of an era.

We adopted Shelby in June of 2002 at a shelter in Arkansas when she was roughly 6 weeks old. Her name was Betty Lou and she was part of a litter that had been left on the side of a road.

We adopted Eddie in March of 2003 at a shelter in Elizabeth IL when he was roughly 6-8 weeks old.

Shelby and Eddie grew up together and shared their lives together. During the majority of their lives they were best of friends. They couldn't be put into separate play groups at doggie daycare as they cried for each other. They snuggled on one bed when a second bed was right beside it. They could annoy each other with that minimal effort that comes with growing up alongside each other.

They were always in the same room at our apartment, they traveled in a pair even at home.

I know that in their final year they had a different relationship and I often wonder if they knew they were both suffering from terminal illnesses. I often wonder what Eddie thought when suddenly Shelby was gone. It was only weeks later that he passed away. And I wonder what Shelby thought about rejoining our family without Eddie.

One hot summer day I went to the office as usual. Shortly after I arrived I saw I call from Dan, which is weird, we rarely call each other during the work day. He sounded choked up, congested and said that his mom called about Eddie. Eddie wasn't able to stand up with his back legs. He said it was bad and that his mom was pretty shaken up. Now I am pretty often a rock during emergencies and was all business - it was probably something like what happened to Shelby when we were on vacation in 2012, just get him to the vet and they will get him the medicine and all will be fine.

A little while later Dan called back. It wasn't so simple this time. It was likely a stroke and he was not going to make it. I went to the bathroom to cry.

Eddie was such a dear friend. He wanted to be friends with everyone and greeted you with a smile. He was full of joy. Simply put, he loved life to the fullest.

One warm fall day we went for a family walk. Shelby was dragging behind me and threw up clear, foamy throw up several times within a few blocks. It was clear that she wasn't feeling well. Shelby had always had digestive problems and had spent the bulk of her life taking medicine. Dan and I talked and realized that she hadn't been eating much, even for Shelby. I noticed one night as she snuggled with me that she was extremely thin.

She would act better and then get sick again for a few days. Over the course of a week she deterioted quickly. We made an appointment with the vet. Part of me knew that this was it, part of me was hoping that it would be something simple and she would just need a diet of rice for a few days. At lunch that last day she didn't even come over to get bites from the kids or eat what dropped. I fell asleep during the kids' naptime and woke up while Dan was at the vet with Shelby and had this immediate fear that I didn't get to say goodbye.

We took the kids to the vet and said our goodbyes. It was so hard. I was heartbroken.

Shelby was a dear friend. She was a little bit introverted and reserved until she knew that you were a friend and she was safe. She loved to snuggle and to run through grassy fields and sunbathe. Shelby was a loyal companion.

With Jaime I wonder how long his memories of Shelby will last. It was a major life moment for him when she arrived. I mean, it was a big-huge-deal to Jaime! Jaime loved Shelby. He snuggled her, gave her his snacks, always wanted to go take her out, always wanted to hold her leash, said "good morning Shelby" every day. He forgave her for her faults and she quickly realized that he was an allie/buddy. It has been five months and when we pass by the vet he will start talking about "Shelby's doctor" and "Shelby very sick, had to say goodbye to Shelby" etc. He also has memories triggered by the pet store where we would buy her food. Sometimes these memories of his come out of the blue.

It is heartbreaking to lose a pet. They become part of the fabric of your family and are then gone all too soon. Shelby and Eddie brought so much joy to our lives and were part of a major chapter. They were part of so many adventures. They were true companions. They were loved so very much.

Shelby and Eddie were our family. We miss them deeply. Goodbye my dear friends.

September Everyday

September was another hectic month.

Weekends were filled with park time to take advantage of the warm days before winter and naps and dog walks.

I started to work from home twice a week. Dan started a new job in lower Manhattan. It was the first time that we both worked in the city and in the same neighborhood. We met for lunch and were able to commute home together which was a little strange, to have Dan part of my work day!

We had a new nanny also, she turned out to be pretty horrible so we restarted that search/interview process....again.

Here are a few snapshots of those everyday moments from the month.

Monkeys, such monkeys.

Jaime loves to climb the rocks and to say hello to the work trucks and tractors in Central Park.

We would often take Shelby with us when we were going to do a both a short playground trip and walk. We would have to tie her up outside the fence which was always a sad site. She was so thin she could get through the fence. It was such a balance act with activities for kids and dogs. Jaime was starting to ask for the playground when were out as it is where he would get to play with other kids and run more freely.

One Friday afternoon of working from home day, I took kids and Shelby to Riverside promenade with the scooter. That was a handful. At least Ellie was content to chill on the top seat of the stroller.

We went to the street fair on Columbus. The bouncy house stuff is right after our corner and Jaime really wanted to try it out. He was not about to go in the bounce house but wanted to try the obstacle course. He was a little young for it but had fun. It turned out that he was "racing" Bruce Willis' daughter. I would never have even noticed if Dan hadn't and then pointed this out to me. Next up was the huge blow up slide (not pictured, not sure why) and Jaime ended up loving this even if he did get a little confused about crawling up there all by himself but he did it. He went up the very steep, slippery ladder and then found his way over to the slide and went for it. On the third round I did have to go up because he was just sitting at the top and holding up the line - it was actually very steep and made me a little nervous so I was even more impressed with how brave he was to do this by himself. We also were in line with Mr. Willis' daughter again for this ride. The first time Jaime went down he did a little spin out and ended up face first at the end... Mr. Willis was standing by me and said "Wooooaah!" and this was our rubbing shoulders with A-listers in NYC moment... at a neighborhood street fair! Ha!

Another random work from home day, we were going to go out but got rained out so cuddled up on the couch to watch Nemo. Me and the kids and the Shelby.

That wrapped up September. Pretty much your average city kid life for the two little ones and working parents stuff for me and Dan.

A Food Market & Square Dancing

One mid-September Saturday we headed down to the Garment District for dinner and ended up having a truly perfect New York evening.

I had read about the Urban Spaces Garment District Market and thought it would be a lot of fun. I knew that Dan and I would enjoy samping some different and tasty goodies. I thought with Jaime it could go either way if he would actually eat anything but one thing is for sure, he tends to be more open minded about food when out and about.

Jaime ended up trying a bunch of stuff and enjoying himself immensely. Ellie was laid back and ate what bites we sent her way. There was so much to take it from a sensory perspective - visually, taste, and sounds. I love getting to expose the kids to such a wildly different tastes and dining experiences.

After filling our bellies we didn't want the fun to end so decided to walk over to Bryant Park. We discovered  a square dancing event in the middle of the city! It was so amazing.

Initially Jaime had a blasting hanging out by the fountain and Ellie enjoyed a little bottle break.

Then Jaime spotted the band and dancing and had to get closer to join in. He was so happy. I hope to never forget his sweet little face filled with joy and fun.

He was thrilled with the freebie hat. I swooped on the line just before it was enormous so that was a win for me.

We danced and twirled and giggled. Until it was time to head home.

We were out well past bedtimes but it was worth it. It was a great evening.

Apple Picking 2014

Late September we headed north to the Hudson Valley for our second annual apple picking trip. We had such a good time at Wright's Apple Farm in 2013 that we decided to head back to this spot again. It is pretty low frills, has abundant apples on the trees including low hanging fruit for little chubby toddler hands (some places get seriously picked through immediately), and that is perfect in my book. Plus they allow dogs.

Jaime was thrilled to get a car ride. He has been pretty obsessed with all things that go and since we don't have a car he doesn't go in one often. Shelby was pretty excited too - she alwayed loved car rides and history proved that it would usually take her to an adventure.

Apple picking was different from last year - still a blast but a different experience. This year with a very high energy two year old that has his opinions and a serious desire to show independence so there was a different energy. Jaime had a blast. I probably harrassed him too much telling him what to do (all in the name of perfect photograph memories).

Everyone was having a great time and we decided to walk to the lake. We thought it was going to be close (completely unsupported by factual knowledge) and after a pretty long walk we gave up. So we again probably harrassed our two year old way to much, this time trying to get him to keep moving back towards the car. I know he was annoyed with me at this point! But don't get me wrong, while we might have lightly ruffled each others feathers, it was still very fun.

Jaime loved picking apples and filling up his bag. He also loved finding ants on the apples that had fallen. We had to keep an eye on his bag as those slightly decaying apples with ants would find their way into our bags.

Ellie stayed in the carrier but loved taking in all of the activity. Shelby loved getting to be in a more rural setting and getting to sniff. Both of them were content being along for the ride.

After our bags were full we headed into Gardiner to our favorite spot for sandwiches. Such a good lunch after all the activity.

Then we headed home... One thing about renting a car for such an outing is making sure you rent it for long enough. We surely pissed someone off by having the car still while they wanted to head on for their plans. Oh hourly car rentals, such a convenience and annoyance.

Fort Tryon Park and Cloisters

On Saturday morning in September we headed waaaaay north to Fort Tryon Park and the Cloisters. It is at the most northern tip of the island and a very long subway ride from the 86th station to the 190 street station. It feels like a different world.

The park was pretty spectacular. It was very lush, filled with very steep hills and different enough from our everyday parks to feel like an adventure for Jaime. It is a pretty significant walk to reach the Cloisters. The park itself was actually the location of a battle during the American Revolution War (did you know I was once a history major? I find this stuff interesting.)

The Cloisters are the medieval art branch of the Met. The building is five Abbey's from Europe reconstructed. Pretty neat.

Jaime loved hiking up the hills in the park so he was completely worn out by the time we got there. He just chilled in the stroller. Dan was not that interested so he played kid sherpa.

This was more of a me-trip pick. I enjoyed the architecture and gardens immensely.

After a quick run through the museum we had lunch at A New Leaf in the park. After lunch Jaime and I chased butterflies in the park gardens on the way back to the train. By the time we carried the stroller out of the lower level at the 86th street A/C station we were Done.

It was a nice little adventure and crossed one of my must-do-while-in-Manhattan list items.