HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY

MUSKETEER!

Today is his birthday!

Peanut butter pumpkin safe for dogs birthday cake!

And what is left after breakfast dessert:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUSKETEER PUPPY!

Why I'm Not Myself

After three years of battling ovarian cancer, my Mom won the gift of going to heaven to be with my Dad, her parents & brothers, and with God.  I got the call, minutes after she passed on Monday, February 5, 2018.

Musketeer has been an AMAZING puppy, more than usual.  He's had a LOT of messed up blood sugar levels to help me deal with and he's been very protective of me, leaning into me and looking up at me with his kind eyes.

The moment we sat down at the funeral, he placed his paw on my knee to let me know my blood sugar level was going up again.  The rest of the funeral, he was asleep at my feet.  He did a fantastic job holding a sit/stay out at the cemetery, even though it was SNOWING and that normally means TIME TO CATCH SNOWBALLS for the puppy!  After the graveside service, we played catching snowballs right there in the cemetery.

Two weeks later, I have bad dreams and Musketeer has been whining, waking me just enough to get me out of those bad dreams and I place my hand on his fur and I can fall asleep again without bad thoughts in my head.

Thinking is difficult.  Grief sucks.  Blood sugar levels are still all over the place.  Musketeer is at my side, as well as my family and we're all going to be alright.  It just takes time.

Thank you, Mom, for making

Musketeer possible!

I've had enough. I'm sorry. I'm tired. I'm sad. I'm angry. I'm exhausted. Musketeer has been in my life for four months. I've had to speak to a manager at Wal-Mart at least nine times due to employees there either trying to pet, interact with, talk to and distract a vested service dog. I called Wal-Mart Corporate HQ last night and I was told, "We'll send a ticket to the manager and they'll go over it with their employees.". That has been happening for four months. I had one Wal-Mart employee start telling Musketeer, "I know I'm not supposed to talk to you, but you're such a good dog that I just had to tell you all about it!". I think I already mentioned the time when the check out gal asked me what Musketeer's name was and I told her, "I'm sorry, but I don't want you or anyone else who might hear, to call his name and distract him.". She went on, checking out my groceries and I noticed Musketeer giving a pre-alert (startling to lick his lips and slightly wag his tail because after alerting, he gets rewarded with treats). At that moment, the check out gal reached out and started petting Musketeer, making him and me forget all about the pre-alert, which made me drive home with a low blood sugar level. So today I decided to go to the federal level and called the ADA. Talked to them and I was told without a doubt I have a case against Wal-Mart. I had one employee tell me she had a service dog... that was SIX MONTHS OLD and makes her "FEEL BETTER" (feel better dogs are ESAs - Emotional Support Animals) and she showed me a photo of her dog on her phone, it was wearing a service dog vest! Told a Wal-Mart manager about that one too. So I filled out the federal report and I hope folks at Wal-Mart will start treating Musketeer like a pair of glasses or a cane or something like that. I'm sorry for babbling .. just want to have this somewhere.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

2018

BEST Conversation

I have EVER heard

at Walmart

I went shopping on my own today (with Musketeer, of course) and this is what I heard:

Child: PUPPY! PUPPY! PUPPY! I WANT TO PET IT! I WANT TO PET IT! PUPPY! PUPPY! PUPPY!!!!!

Mom: Grandma has hearing aids, right?

Child: Yeah.

Mom: The hearing aids help Grandma, right?

Child: Yeah.

Mom: That service dog is helping that lady.

Mom continued: When we go to Grandma's house, do you yell, "HEARING AIDS! HEARING AIDS! HEARING AIDS!"?

Child: *giggles a bit* No!

Mom: Do you want to PET Grandma's hearing aids?

Child: *LAUGHING* NO!!!!

Mom: Well, a service dog is like Grandma's hearing aids.

Child: *slight pause* Can we go look at toys?

That was MAJOR HAPPY for me!