What a week we had last week! Many good things and bad things. Of course, the worst was losing Zubin on Monday. We all cried...a lot....and it still gets us at the strangest times, but I know that what we did was right. It's so hard to walk down the steps in the morning and not have him waiting to go outside. I'll be the first to admit that I was annoyed many mornings when I wasn't ready to deal with him yet, but boy, I miss him. The picture above is Zubin's last meal...hamburgers from Wendy's.

Monday was also the day that Sarah learned to ride her bike without training wheels. Steve had taken them off the day before, and she just hopped on and started riding. She's now working on jumping curbs and doing figure eights. It seems like sometimes they just grow by leaps and bounds in the matter of days. This was one of those weeks for Sarah.

We also just returned from a trip to PA together. I will post more about that later, as I'm needing to get the kids up for school. Our friends there are all so awesome, and we didn't get to see all of them, but we did our best. Time to start planning the next trip!

The Adventures of Zubin Mehta

Zubin's last few days have been very exciting, no doubt. He has been on adventures I can only imagine. For those of you who don't know, he has run away twice in 3 days, and both times he was gone long enough that we feared he was gone forever. Both times, good people have found him, picked him up, brought him home, and LOVED him. He has been swimming in the golf course ponds, running through fields, playing with other dogs, sleeping with new people in various homes....and God only knows what else. I think people were better to him than they would be with a lost child.

It is so sad, yet so fitting, that he will end this way. He has lived a good life, and has been the best pet I can imagine. But his time has come. He can't control his bladder anymore, he limps everywhere even with pain medication, and his ears are constantly filling up with fluid. Not to mention the growths that are back in his eyes, causing his eyes to water and be flaming red continuously. It is time. We are devastated. Please be thinking of us as we spend our last weekend together with him.

St. Patrick's Day Parade

One of several St. Patricks that were in the parade.



Sarah's float...she's second from the left.




Sarah in full parade regalia.

Black Teeth and Wigs

Danny had a nasty fall about 3 weeks ago, and one of his front teet is quite dark as a result. Thank goodness he doesn't need a root canal or any other intervention!



Sarah got her wig today for dance, just in time for the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin. She is very excited! This was just a quick try-on, and it will need to be much neater for the parade and for any feis in which she participates. For those who are familiar with my hairstyling abilities, you know this will be a real challenge. Hey, at least I don't have to make all of those curls every time!

Too Much Dancing, Or Just Too Old?

So, first off, don't start Irish dance at the age of 36...maybe I could have done this at 34 or 35, but apparently, I'm just too old. We had such a good time at the Ceili, and I loved dancing with Sarah during the traditional set dances.

That said, I am now down a toenail and have a bad limp. The podiatrist asked if I had done anything "atypical," and at first, I said no, but it was definitely the dancing. My big toe was VERY swollen and angry looking. I showed Steve to get some sympathy, but all he said was, " I never knew you had such a long big toe!" Aargh! Is it that hard to know what to say? (I guess it is...)

They removed my nail at the podiatrist so that my toe could swell as much as it wanted to. That was Wednesday, and I'm still limping, but it's getting better every day. I could post a pic....but let's just leave this one to the imagination.

The Last Picture of Sarah's Baby Tooth

Sarah is VERY close to losing her first "top" tooth, and she is very excited. Undoubtedly, this is because the tooth fairy will bring her $2.00. Quite a bit more generous than the stingy fairy who brought ME money :) Just kidding, Mom!

Lessons to be Learned

Irish Dance is a very expensive activity, I'm finding. All of the one time purchases that are required the first year really add up. Since my daughter does not do much outside the home, I really would like to allow her to continue on. So, after I bought the $50 wig and $70 performance outfit, I found out that she also needs warm ups, which are nearly $90. Gulp!

Steve and I decided that we'd keep going, but she'd have to earn the warm ups doing work around the house. She has done everything without complaint, and last night, she washed the kitchen floor on her hands and knees, humming. I wish I could be that cheerful about it!