91 degrees

nothing says pumpkin patch weather like a saturday afternoon with a high of 91 degrees.

yet, we went, since a few months ago we'd committed to the outing that SAS had arranged for its employees and families.  who in their right mind would have ever anticipated an october day that was hotter than most of the summer was?  (apparently not the pumpkin patch owners, who had quite an elaborate hot cider tent set up that wasn't doing much business.)

truth be told, chris and i were sort of dreading it.  we had just sat through an hour-long soccer game in the blazing sun with sweat running down our backs, and the idea of eating a picnic lunch on some dirty wooden table way out in durham before traipsing through a wilted corn maze was understandably not high up on our bucket list.  but that's when our children will snap us out of our funk -- just when we've convinced ourselves that something is going to be terrible, they get those smiles on their faces and those sparkles in their eyes and you realize how blessed you are to have kids at this age where such outings are cool and exciting.

well, maybe not cool.  did i mention it was 91 degrees?

stopping for a breather in the middle of a hot and dusty corn maze

just kidding around (pun intended)

the kids beelined it to the "exotic and weird" pumpkin area -- hence our dark green (almost black) and bumpy one

farewell, super

a good friend of mine saw the tears in my eyes a few weeks ago as i mentioned the looming necessity of saying goodbye to super.  "you know," she said, "when we did it a few years ago, i swear it was the most grown-up thing i've ever had to do.  more than buying a house or a car or even having a baby.  having to decide the when and the how of something so monumental as ending a life -- and then doing it -- really rocked me to my core."

yes.  just, yes.

we finally said goodbye to our beloved super last friday morning. she joined us in asheville almost seven years ago, on susanna's six-month birthday, and was a huge part of our family ever since. we waited much longer than we should have to say goodbye (funny how i can't bring myself to use any other phrase), but we just couldn't take that final step.  with every trek up or down the stairs with her 55-pound body in my arms, i would hold her just a little tighter, soaking up her warmth and feeling her heart beat through her fur, knowing that i wouldn't have the luxury of doing so for much longer. 

i went back through my archives and found an email i sent the blue ridge boxer rescue group shortly after adopting her, giving them an update on her transition into our family.  it brought such a smile to my face that i had to share it here. 

yesterday marked one month since we've had super here with us.  we cannot believe it's only been a month!  it feels like she's been a part of our family for forever.  she is just such the perfect pet for us.  she's playful, loving, happy, protective, wonderful with the kids -- we couldn't ask for more.

she has some funny quirks ... for some reason, she LOVES to retrieve one shoe from a pair in our closet, walk around with it, and then drop it in some random spot in the house.  every evening before we go to bed, we have to canvass the main floor, retrieving lost shoes to reunite with their partners.  she doesn't chew on them or play with them; she just likes the shoes to be separated from each other, i guess.

also, wherever we are, she HAS to be in the midst of the action.  if i'm lying on the floor with liam (our two year-old), playing with cars or blocks, before i know it, super has wedged herself between us.  if i come upstairs in the middle of the night to feed our baby, within a minute, super has awoken from her sleep and followed me up, just to make sure everything is okay.

oh -- and my favorite -- she doesn't just wag her tail.  she shakes her whole butt!  what a cute and welcome sight each time we come home.  we always had to put our old dog in the crate or laundry room when we were gone, since she wreaked havoc in the kitchen and near trash cans if we weren't around.  super just hangs out and causes no problems, so we let her have free reign of the house.  so, as soon as we walk in from the garage, she's there to greet us, shaking her little behind as happy as can be.

thank you, and to everyone with BRBR, for all that you do.  you saved super's life.  what a gift! 

2-year old liam, bending down to give super a kiss

tiny susanna couldn't even sit up yet, but she loved to be near her pooch

farewell, our sweet supe-doop.  we love you infinity times infinity.