Fond Farewell

Well, it's been a rough week for us. We had to say goodbye to our dog, Oakley, on Wednesday. His health was not improving, and by Wednesday he could barely stand or walk. He was such a good dog and never complained a bit. I knew he was dying, but it was still a really difficult decision to have him put to sleep and I cried all day. I couldn't even talk about it without totally bawling, so I had to have Ryan set up the appointment and take him there Wednesday evening. Andrew went along and stayed with Oakley the whole time. Andrew had a really hard time that evening and didn't think he would be able to sleep, but eventually he was able to get some rest. We were all doing a little better on Thursday, though still quite sensitive about the whole thing. I think Ashley, Andrew and I have been the most affected by this loss. Alexia is pretty resilient and doesn't get so emotional about that kind of stuff. Austyn has come to me a few times and told me he misses Oakley. He was a bit emotional the first night as well, but has been doing better. It's just amazing how the loss of a pet can have such a strong effect. It is probably more so since he has been with us for so long.

Today the kids are going off track. They will be out of school for just over 3 weeks and return on April 8th. Andrew will be off school for a couple days next week, for spring break, so I might try to do something fun with the kids then. Jenny & Brent will be off next week for spring break as well, as Jenny is a teacher and Brent is currently attending school. So, maybe we can do something fun with them.

Ryan is looking to switch to another company within the Carpenters Union, as to try to minimize his commute. He has been working in Clinton since before Christmas, which is about 90 miles round trip everyday. They just transferred him down to a different job location this week, in Lehi, which is not quite as far as Clinton, but still about 70 miles round trip. With gas prices as they are, we are really hoping to find something closer. He is applying for a company that is actually only about 10 miles from here, so we will see how that goes. I guess Ryan knows a guy, from his carpenter training, who is currently employed there and has put in a good word for him. As it is still in the Union, his pay and benefits would remain the same, so no stress there. He may even learn something new!

We had clouds and rain for most of the day yesterday, which went along with my gloomy mood. Today we've had more sun, but still cooler than it has been. More rain and possibly snow is in the forecast, though the overall outlook is bright and spring like. :-)

The kids are home now and already bored, so I better get them occupied with something before they wake up Adalyn. That's all for now.