Monday, March 14, 2011

A Little Piece of Heaven

First, let me say thank you for all of the beautiful comments you left about the loss of our family pet, Boo, it truly touched my heart. It was a bit of a difficult weekend realizing all of the daily rituals, previously taken for granted, that Boo brought to our lives. The first time I returned home after losing her, I remembered the sound of the scamper of her feet on the wood floor, racing to greet us each time we returned. Each morsel of food dropped on the ground by our children (and me) would be followed by a "Boo" and she would quickly gobble it up- so many little memories for us to miss. With this loss weighing heavily on our minds, we made the decision to try to find another little dog to love. We started at the local animal shelter,wanting to rescue a dog. We said a prayer that we would be guided in choosing the right one. Without success we turned to the Bichon rescue- thinking this was the breed we'd like to adopt. No local Bichon's were available in our area. We then turned to the local online paper and found a Bichon-poodle mix that we thought was cute. Without any luck reaching the owner, we continued to research and found a new breed, a Coton de Tulear. We set an appointment with the owner. A few hours before the appointment we received a call back from the Bichon-poo owner. I explained that we had another appointment, but would like to see all of our options. I told of our loss and he asked what breed Boo was. I answered, "A maltese, terrier mix." "The reason I ask," he continued, "is that we also have a 9 week old maltese puppy - would you like to see her?" We agreed to meet- he was driving to my side of town for a family get together. We loaded up the kids and made a pact we would not make any decisions until we went to both appointments. Let me back track a moment and tell you about a special connection I have with my Grandmother who passed away 9 years ago. After my "Nana" who lived with us the last 6 months of her life, passed away, I noticed when life became stressful (I was the executor of her will) I would see multiples of the same number, whenever I would look at the clock, such as 11:11, 1:11, 2:22, 3:33, etc. I soon realized it was her way of letting me know things would be okay. I feel like I have her guidance when making big decisions and I see those repeating numbers, sometimes several times a day. The night we lost Boo, I washed my face and was heading to bed. I looked at the clock and 11:11 stared back at me. Now, my Nana was not really an animal lover, but somehow I knew my Boo was sitting at her feet and she would take care of her. Now, back to our puppy appointments. When meeting the Bichon-poo, I didn't feel the connection I had hoped for. I asked the owner if he had also brought the Maltese- "Yes, she's a little more expensive, so I didn't want to get her out of the car, if the price wasn't okay." I thought that was very polite of the seller, but I had to see all of my options. The minute we saw the little teacup size maltese I knew she was the one. However, we had agreed as a family that we would go to both appointments. After driving to North Phoenix to see the Coton, I again just didn't feel a connection. We asked when the Coton was born (something I didn't think to ask about the Maltese) and the owner said, January 1. It wasn't until we were driving away, empty handed, that I realized the birth date was 1/1/11- had I made a mistake? Despite the number connection, I had to follow my gut and quickly called the owner of the Maltese to let them know we were returning to purchase the little teacup. When I hung up the phone I looked at the clock and it read, "11:11" I knew, we were meant to have this little dog. When meeting up with the owner he provided her records, feeding schedule and instructions. Imagine my surprise when I looked at the birth date and saw, 1/15/11- not multiples of the same number, but my Nana's actual birthday! All day long we recited names that would honor my sweet Nana: Nan's, G.G (what my kids called their great grandmother), Agnus and Agi (my Nana's middle name), Maxi (Nana's first name was Maxine) Moe (Nana's maiden name was Stenmoe) and on and on. Nothing seemed to fit quite right. This morning, Mr. Right decided to weigh in our little bundle of joy- when the numbers on the scale read 1 lb 1.1 ounce, I picked her up and said, "you were just sent from heaven weren't you?" and the name "Halo" came to mind. And so here is my little piece of heaven, Halo...

she's the perfect little pocket sized puppy. Here she is bonding with Mr. Right...
I'm so grateful we found our little Halo and so grateful for the time we had with Boo. Love, Kelly.

12 comments:

  1. She's adorable!! My mom's Maltipoo, Lily, will be 17 yrs old in May. I hope you have Halo for many many years to come!!

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  2. Kelly, so sorry about Boo, and so amazed that you had such an experience with this little darling,it was really touching.

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  3. That is the sweetest story ever! I am not a dog lover myself, I mean I love dogs but not all the work that comes along with them. But your little Halo is ADORABLE! I would love to have a pocket puppy but I'm afraid my children would break it lol. Have fun with your new little addition!

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  4. Oh my....story gave me chills. Halo is adorable :)

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  5. The story brought tears to my eyes. What a precious pup.

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  6. Kelly:

    I LOVE THIS STORY. This might be the best thing I've ever read on your blog. And I've read many, many special things here.

    Halo is a great name for a sweet dog and your family!

    Peace,
    Edie

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  7. Awwww Halo is so sweet!

    Often people when losing a pet can't bare the thought of getting another.

    I am like you though.. I know I would miss refilling the water bowl with fresh water, letting my dog out when he needs to go & giving him a little treat every now and then off my plate. I don't think I could go long without having a k9 friend.

    Congrats on the new fur cutie, I am sure she will bring alot of joy to your family.

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  8. So happy for you, your family & Halo! Thank you for sharing your story & allowing your online friends to grieve with you & celebrate with you. We have a lil snauzer/yorkie cross that was unexpectedly brought to live with us. His name is Billy & I call him Boo. Your 'boo' story really got to me. Seems like sometimes angels are brought to us, some stay, some go but they are all such blessings.

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  9. I would love a little one like that! She' soooo cute.

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  10. Oh what a sweetie. We had a Mati mix at the retirement community where I worked. Best co-worker and therapy dog I EVER had...and such a good friend. She really made hard days at work FUN. They are so sweet and loving. And cute, too. I hope you have many long years with your new family member and friend.

    TIffany

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  11. I stopped by to read your views on the new ebay fees and I got the sweetest story instead! Looks like your Halo was just meant to be. What a sweetheart! We are just starting to look into dogs - the Coton is one on our list!

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  12. that is the most precious story I've ever heard. I have alot of number sequence experiences as well so I know exactly what you mean. Halo is adorable

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