Christmas Wish

This weekend was particularly hard in our home, as our puppy, Granola passed away on Friday. Granola was an amazing dog, who always was full of energy and love. People always commented on how well-behaved she was and she was incredibly full of life. She loved marshmallows and popcorn. She preferred people food to dog food, so much so that she would push her bowl of dog food into the wall and get it stuck so she couldn't eat it. She was silly. She was warm and cuddly. She loved sitting in front of the heat vent, cuddling up in her favorite white blanket and pushing Drew and I off of the couch. But most of all she loved us unconditionally. So we're a bit heartbroken, and miss her so much already.

About 3 or so months ago we learned that Granola had both an arrhythmia of the heart and heart disease, which meant that her heart couldn't pump efficiently and was beating erratically. The combination of these things, as well as with her age and other ailments gave her a grim prognosis- the cardiologist told us she'd have six months to live. Yet, in all honesty, I truly expected her to surpass the 6 months. No one seemed to have told her she had a heart condition. She still was so happy and active. She'd go just about nuts when she arrived at the park, and as hard as we tried to prevent her from getting excited, she still bolted outside to find the nearest squirrel or stick to gnaw on. Her excitement for the small things was contagious. She loved to chase tennis balls but not return them. Without fail every time we went to Milwaukee she forced her nose into a rain gutter to see if the squirrel who had been there years ago, was still indeed there.

A few weeks ago we took our annual Christmas card photos. This year we decided to feature Granola, so we placed the letters to 'Happy Holidays' around her neck and took photos of her doing what she does best- playing at the park. She was excited to be there, and best of all she found an enormous stick, which she quickly devoured- with pleasure. She loved the park. There were other dogs to smell at the park, things to pee on, small children to play with and lots of geese to chase. At the time, we didn't realize it, but these photos were a blessing in disguise. We now have lots of candid shots of Granola, and we can look back on them with lots of love and admiration. We'll cherish this year's card more than we usually do, as its our last photos with our adorable puppy.

Granola was the type of dog that followed all the etiquette rules, she was nice to other dogs, she walked on her leash, she rarely barked. We were spoiled. For me, Granola was part of the package deal. She was there the first day I met Drew, and as we walked around Lake Calhoun she pulled one of those 100-Dalmatians move where the dog wraps two wandering single people together in her leash until they are face to face about to kiss. No kidding. She actually did that. Its always been Drew, me and Granola. So imagining a day without her puts me in a new perspective that I haven't had for over 3 years. I'm lonely without her, and our house feels much too big.

For those of you without pets whom you are close to, its hard to understand how we could miss a pet so much. But in reality. She was part of our family. She greeted us each day at the door, she always enjoyed our company and never once doubted us. Dogs are amazing that way, their ability to love is endless. So this Christmas, if I had one Christmas wish, it would be to show this baby as much unconditional love as Granola showed us. Its something, in all honesty, I doubt we'll ever be able to do, but spend our lives trying.