He's back with us

It's been eleven days since we put Gizmo down and each day does get a little easier. We received his ashes back on Saturday and a certificate saying that he was cremated on the Monday following his passing. Picking his remains was bittersweet.. on one hand I was glad to have him back with us where he belongs and on another it made his passing seem even more real to me. Knowing that I was holding, in a box, what remained of someone who was so dear to me for so many years moved me. Giz really was my first baby. If I hadn't found him and had the joy of being his mama I most likely would've had a child long before I did have mine. Giz was 10 when Nick was born and for all those years preceding my child's birth he really did have me wrapped around his paw.. and boy did he know it. He has us very well trained - his dinner time was 8:00 sharp and I mean sharp. He had some kind of internal clock that alerted him of that time and when it came he'd let us know with a whine or he'd start running up and down the hallway to garner our attention. Yup, he was a funny little man and we all miss him.

His ashes were placed in a plain, but pretty wooden urn in the shape of a brick. I'm planning on having a plaque made with his name and attaching it to the box. I've found myself carrying his box around when I need to feel him with me. Right now he's resting in the kitchen, his other favorite hangout spot in our house. The times of day that I feel his absence most are early in the morning when I always let him out and his dinnertime. Those times are when I've found myself stroking the box and talking to him. He knows we all miss him and I know he's aware of how his absence has effected us. It still soothes me to remind him.

What a sweetheart he was..

I'll close with one of my favorite recent pictures of my boy. This was taken this past spring.. he was looking pretty good for a 15 year old doggie, wasn't he??