baby

The Puppy

3:36 PM

I never had a dog growing up. I had one cat named Mouse up until I was a teenager and when she passed we didn’t have any more pets. After I moved out my mom got two cats. Yet, there was never a dog in my life. Friends had dogs, but I never did.


When I met Daniel he had Izlee, the Dalmatian. After being together for several years, Izlee became my dog as he would follow me around and basically wouldn’t let me out of his sight. Daniel says he was always on to protect me. If I would stop short, there was always a wet nose on the back of my legs.

Two years into our relationship, Daniel bought me a dog – Caesar. He is my first dog. The first one I raised from a puppy to now. He’s nine now, but no one would ever know from how much spunk he has. He still runs around and plays just like a puppy.


I tell you this, because this weekend I lost my dog, to my daughter. I think I had already lost him but it was solidified this weekend.

Ever since we brought Maisie home he has been her protector. He doesn’t let her out of his sight. If she cries, he whines and finds us. Daniel and I say he judges the way we do things. “Changing that diaper wrong, I wouldn’t feed her like that, that outfit? Ew.” I see his look and know he is thinking these things.


He is her biggest fan. She is currently napping and he is outside her room also taking a nap. I had to start pulling her door shut because any noise she makes he would nose the door and run in. He is so gentle with her and when she was younger did not like getting too close because he knew she was fragile.

So flash forward to Saturday night. Maisie was on the floor on her belly and we heard her laughing. Big belly laughing. And when Daniel and I looked, Caesar was running around in front of her. He kept doing it and she kept belly laughing. I had only heard her laugh like that one or two other times. It was almost as if Caesar knew what was going on because he kept running around to keep her happy.


I looked at Daniel with tears in my eyes and told him about how in love I was that my two favorite things in this world were entertaining each other. I took video of the exchange between them and I think I have watched it 100 times since last night. The laugh is infectious.


My only hope is Caesar stays young and spry enough to help her grow up. I can only hope she loves him and cuddles him with as much love as I have for him.

baby

The Missing

6:14 PM

If I had one wish in this world it would be for Maisie to have a chance to meet and know two people who had a huge impact on my life. One being Daniel's dad and two being my Bachia (grandmother).


One of the worst days of my life was when my father-in-law passed away suddenly the day after our engagement party. He didn't get to attend our wedding, we didn't get to surprise him with our pregnancy announcement and Maisie won't get to ever meet him. It stings so much. I miss him and still get emotional to this day even though it's been six years. How has it been six years?

Dan Dennis is a man who once offered me $500 for Caesar. We took it as a joke, but I am sure he was serious. If he would do that for a dog, I am sure I would have never seen my baby had he still been here. He's a man that would make me laugh until my sides hurt and say the most inappropriate things that I would laugh at and the rest of the family would cringe. I feel I got robbed of my time with him because I only got four years. Better than nothing, but so much has happened in those six years.


Maisie would have loved that man. I'm sure he would have been at my house every day to see her. I can picture him telling Daniel and I we were doing it all wrong when it came to everything -- diapering, feeding and even the way she dressed. He'd want to put her car seat in the convertible so they could go motor around. It just tears me apart that she will miss out on these things. So we will do our best to tell her stories and show her pictures so that she can at least know what a wonderful person he was.

As for my Bachia, she is still alive at 92, however, she doesn't know anyone anymore. The last time I went to visit her was very hard for me. I visited her the day of my grandfather's funeral. I think I took my visit with her harder than saying goodbye to my grandfather. She wasn't the woman I remembered or wanted to remember. She was just there. As much as I talked to her and held her hand it crushed me to know she didn't know me.


I'm sure people will think that I am a terrible person for not going back to visit since then, but I don't want to have my memories of her in her current state. I want my memories the fun times -- going to Disney or the Polish Club, her cooking or traveling.

She was such a wonderful grandmother that did anything for my brother and me, so I am again crushed she has no idea I had a sweet baby girl. I can picture it now, she would dote on Maisie and want to spoil her even more than she spoiled us grandkids. She'd want to dress her in fancy outfits and teach her how to make pierogis. It almost hurts more knowing she's alive but will never know Maisie.


I promise my next post won't be such a bummer, but I felt I had to share how important these two people are to me and how I wish my daughter could feel that too.





Popular Posts