Family Day

After such an emotional day on Sunday, Brian decided to take Monday off of work so that we could have family day.  It was so nice to have a random day home all together without anything we really had to do!  So what did we do?  Our favorite thing - hung out in the pool!

Even Ashley joined in on the fun when she wasn't napping.  She loved being in the float.

Miss Independent looking all cute :) 

Trevor loved having his buddy in the water with him.  They were giggling up a storm watching each other do tricks.

Ashley really loved kicking her feet while above the beach area.  Probably reminded her a bit of her jumpy office!

Trevor really liked pulling her around the pool and she loved it too.  These two are so cute together.  And so good!

We had a nice family day but definitely felt Randle's absence throughout the day.  Especially after the pizza delivery man rang the doorbell and then it was silent.  Normally Randle would have been whining loudly and scurrying from door to dining room patio door in anticipation of seeing who is coming over.  Even though it was kind of annoying, it was nice to have a good watch dog and protector.  No one would mess with him.  Well, until they saw how docile and friendly he really was.  Miss you Randle!

Bye Randle

Brian and his buddy Randle really are connected at the hip.  And when Randle wasn't feeling good, his master Brian knew right away.  After getting back from MN Brian remarked how Randle seemed different.

 Seemed sluggish, lost weight, wasn't eating...just wasn't himself.  After picking him up they went to Brian's office where Randle got comfy in his bed under Brian's desk.

He seemed to enjoy the car ride home:

At home that night Randle ran right to his bed.  Nothing like being at home!

 Sara kind of brushed off Brian's comments about Randle because he often wouldn't eat food after coming home from the pet hotel.  And he probably didn't understand where the rest of his family was.  We really weren't separated all that often.  On Tuesday night the 28th Brian, his parents and Randle went out to dinner then to another spot for gelato and all seemed well.  But on Wednesday night he didn't seem good and when Brian sent the below pic to Sara, she too was concerned.  You can see his shoulder blade sticking up, that's how skinny he was :(

So on Thursday Brian took him to the vet and that's when we learned his creatine level was higher than the vet had ever seen.  Running the IV all day seemed to help give him a little spunk back but Brian could tell that he was hanging on to see the rest of his family.  What a fighter!

On Friday he went to work with Brian so that he didn't have to go in the kennel.  Plus he likes Brian's work.  Look how cute they are together!

On Friday afternoon Randle greeted the rest of the family at the airport like he was the healthiest and happiest doggie in the whole wide world.  When we got in the car he assumed his favorite position on Mommy's lap, head in the sun!

That night he got lots of cuddles from everyone but he didn't move much from the couch.

 Ah, it's good to have everyone back together. 

 Randle's spot :)

Sara agreed that Randle's time was probably near, although it was hard to tell.  Sometimes he'd be a ball of energy (like running across the street to see the neighbor after getting home from the airport) and other times he'd be a sack of potatoes.  But his tail was always down, he just looked groggy and he still wasn't eating.  Brian came up with the idea that Randle needed a bucket list.  So that's what we did.  It was or wasn't a good sign that the movie Bucket List was on the TV later that Friday night :(  We had a whole list for Randle: frosty paws, buddy sticks, sweet potato fries, Miller beer, full peanut butter filled kongs, eating better food than doggie kibble - maybe a steak?, a run in the park, car rides, stroller rides/walks, continued sleeping on the bed....You see, whenever Mommy was away Randle got a special treat - sleeping on the bed.  With him not feeling well, he for sure was going to continue having his spot...cuddled up to his Master.

On Saturday we spent the day around the house.  Low key and Randle seemed to really enjoy that.  His family was back together and he liked that.  So did we.  Randle spent a lot of time on the couch again but would pop up to get some water and eat his new human-grade wet dog food. 

Around 5:30, Jim/Annie and Nicci/Mike and families came over for dinner and swimming.  When he heard the car pull up, Randle ran right over to give them a big greeting.  Maybe he's okay after all?  Ugh the ups and downs not being able to tell.  Brian's cousin Sarah is a vet and made it sound like Randle was feeling nauseous like he had the flu which we totally saw.  But then he'd be his normal self and it was hard to know what was going on.  That evening though Randle seemed in his glory having family all around.  He was scrounging for food under the kids table as usual.

 And he sure liked spending time with Uncle Jim.  You have to know that Uncle Jim was just as excited as we were when we got Randle.  He came over to our house not more than 5 minutes after bringing him home.  And seeing that he lived not more than 5 minutes away he came over almost every night and weekend to play with his little buddy.  Uncle Jim must have known something that Sara was too afraid to acknowledge because when it was time for Uncle Jim and crew to leave and say goodbye to Randle....well, it was so sad.  Which then made Sara even more sad and it made it that much more realistic that Randle's time with us here on Earth was probably a lot shorter than she wanted to admit. 

Sarah, Brian's cousin along with Randle's vet here and the PetSmart corporate vet all said that we'd know it was Randle's time to go.  Not that it would be easier to have him hit by a car but at least then we wouldn't have to choose when it was his time.  We were very afraid of sending him to doggie heaven too early or too late.  If only doggies could talk.

As it turns out, Randle did in his own right.  Overnight Saturday Randle was just restless and wouldn't stop licking his paws.  Brian had read that mouth sores were a final stage of kidney failure and it looked like they had appeared.  Brian was smart to think of giving Randle a 'doggie downer' pill from when he used to fly with us to Arizona.  Instead of fighting us like usual with pills, he swallowed it easily.  He must have known we were trying to help.  Given the awful night, his lack of eating and drinking, urine output, not really being able to stand on the tile without his back legs bowing out, and just looking like he was hurting, we decided that Sunday would be his final day on Earth.  :(

We think he knew that too and went around doing all of his favorite things that morning.  Which mostly consisted of laying in the sun.

 And when it got too hot in the sun, Randle moved over to the shade. 

It wasn't long though before he was back in the sun.  He always did like the sun!  Dada got in some time with him - giving him ear rubs and belly rubs and just talking to him about all of his favorite memories.  There were a lot of them!  We had Randle for 8.5 years :)

 Randle was such a good subject for Mommy and Daddy to take a lot of pictures this morning. 

 Whether it was from the sedative pill or the kidney failure, Randle's eyes just weren't the same today.  One looked left one looked right.  It was probably easier just to keep them closed.

 Mommy noticed that even his paws were affected by the kidney failure.  Usually they were jet black.  Today, they were ashy white :(  It was his time. 

 So we loved on him a little longer before asking Grandma and Grandpa Hillins to come over and watch the kids so we could take Randle in.  It wasn't fair to keep him miserable just so we could soak up a few more moments with our precious doggie.  While on their way we took one last family photo with Randle.  Our family of five:

 We all got to say goodbye.  We face-timed with Grandma Jeanne and Papa Steve so that they could see Randle one last time while we all played upstairs.

Sara and Randle spent time in the courtyard reading the paper on the couch just like they used to do way back in our St. Louis Park home.  And Papa John rubbed his ears and Grandma Pauline petted his legs. 

Mommy got one last special hug:

 And probably the saddest yet somewhat calming moment of the morning was Trevor's innocent hug and kiss for puppy Randle.  He squeezed him extra long then planted a kiss right on his nose and said 'Bye Randle.  I'll miss you."  We can still hear those words so clearly.  Wasn't sad to Trevor, he was more like 'see you later' but yet knew something important was happening. 

 When Mommy got the call in Minnesota about Randle's creatine level and thus kidney failure, Trevor sensed something was wrong.  Sara had tears in her eyes and took the call in the garage.  Of course Trevor followed and in seeing Mommy cry kept bringing her special toys.  They must do that at school for kids that are sad.  When she hung up, Trevor wondered why she was crying and she said that Randle has a disease.  She didn't want to say he wasn't feeling well or was sick because then Trevor would associate those words with dying when it came to be.  He gave Mommy a big hug and said 'it will be okay.  We'll see him soon.' Such a strong and sensitive little boy.  And so empathetic.  Love, love, love him.

So as we left the house on Sunday, Trevor shouted from the living room 'Bye Randle' and we wish we could have recorded it.  Randle and Trevor were such good buddies.  Trevor could do anything to Randle and Randle would take it.  When Randle would hide under the table fearing going in the kennel, Trevor would march right over and grab his leash and say 'here you go Mommy.  Let's go put him in his kennel.' Then we would go upstairs and he'd hold Randle's kong while Mommy put peanut butter in it and then he would say 'get in your kennel Randle.' We hope those words never leave our hearts because they were just too cute.  This was going to be hard.

On the way to Banfield Randle just wanted to lay on Mommy.  Didn't even want to put his head out the window.  We talked to him about how much he meant to us and how thankful we were to have him in our family the past 8.5 years and how thankful we were that he held on for the last year and a half since learning about his kidney failure and especially for being so strong to wait until Mommy and the kids could get back from MN.  When we pulled into the Petsmart parking lot Randle didn't even have the energy to whimper and get all crazy with his whining sounds.  But he did pee quick on the rocks.  One last marking.

We had to stand in line for what seemed like forever to check in.  We had called earlier and they said 3:00 was the best time to bring him in but we couldn't wait that long.  It was 12:30 and we guess they were wanting to go to lunch.  Thankfully they stayed around to see us and it was the same vet that Brian saw on Thursday.

 Such a process to check in and pay and put in his catheter and whatever else.  Wait, wait, wait.  We could give them some pointers to improve the procedure when someone comes in to do the tough job of putting their pet down but we digress.  We noticed that he had blood dripping from his goatee while we in the room and we took that as a sign that we were doing the right thing at the right time.  Didn't make it any easier though.  This picture was taken just a few minutes before Randle began his journey to doggie heaven.  And as you can see he was ready, we were not.

 Before the vet came in it was a very emotional time for all of us.  We let him know how much we loved him and asked him to continue watching over us.  Things we probably should have told him much more often while he was home with us but we knew that he knew how loved he was.  He was a member of our family - always will be.

When the vet came in she asked if we were ready and we were because we didn't want him suffering or miserable any longer.  Randle didn't even fight us when we laid him on the table.  Brian kept his arms around him and put his head on his chest.  Sara put her head on the table and looked in his eyes while rubbing between his eyes.  The vet gave him two vials of sedative before the euthanasia.  We just kept repeating 'we love you' and within seconds he was gone.  Brian and Sara both knew at the exact time it happened.  Even before the vet said he had passed.

We had brought his favorite jammies to wear but we didn't put them on.  Instead we covered him with his first blanket and his pal Sylvester that he used to cuddle all the time when we first got him.  Seeing him like this and then just leaving him in that room was the hardest thing ever.  We decided to do a private cremation with his blankie and Sylvester so they said he'd be ready to come home in about five days.  We plan to purchase a special plant or tree or cactus and bury him underneath.  We'll make a special nameplate of sorts to place by it but something we can take with us if we move.

Oh Randini the weenie, we miss you so much.  We know you are healthy and happy up in heaven and watching over us.  Best part for you - no kennel!  You are probably eating socks and chasing the other doggies, going so fast that your tail is down steering you like a rudder.  You are probably yodeling away too.  If you ask Trevor about Randle he says that 'He's up in Heaven playing fetch with God.'  So that is how we picture you until we are all reunited again.

This is one of Randle's final car rides.  Ears flapping in the wind and bringing smiles to those around him :) (like the lady in the Mustang) We will never forget you.  We love you!  'Bye Randle'

 

RIP Randle Roslansky Hillins 10/23/04 - 6/2/13

Minnesota!

 Ashley got to take her first flight and boy was she excited to go to Minnesota!!  The rest of the family was too!  Sara and the kids were going for two weeks and Brian was just going for a quick weekend trip. 

Ashley did fabulous on her first flight and so did Trevor as usual.  We landed around 8:00pm to cold, rainy weather but that wasn't going to stop our fun.  Plus, we were a little bored with all of the heat and sun we have in AZ ;)  After landing we picked up an old favorite of ours - Punch Pizza and brought it to the hotel we were staying at and ate it poolside (along with some wine) with Grandma Pauline and Papa John who were also in MN to go to Lauren and Brooke's dance recital.  We stayed at a hotel since we got in so late and we had plans in the morning to meet some of our close friends at Lion's Park across from our old house.  Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate with our plans and after much hemming and hawing we decided to have everyone meet at Edinborough Park, an indoor park with lots of fun areas for the kids to play.  We enjoyed seeing Alex and his blue hair!, Sophia, Myles, Reagan, Anna, Charlie, Benny, Bridget and Mac along with their parents.

 Our time there went too quick but soon it was time to get to Jeff and Dawn's so that we could all hang out before they needed to leave for a gala (how fun!!).  The girls really enjoyed holding Ashley.

 They couldn't believe how big she is!

 Of course we had to get a pic of all of the girl cousins in all of their pink...

 ....before we added in some blue!

 We enjoyed a yummy bbq lunch and the kids had their own little table which works perfect.

 Ashley tried on Leah's birthday crown and hmmm...it seemed to fit just right.  And look pretty cute too!

We left their house around 6:30pm to head to Sara's parents house and within two blocks Trevor was out cold. 

On Sunday, Sara's parents hosted their annual Mother's Day celebration (just a little late since they were in Italy for the beginning part of May).  All of Nana Jeanne's siblings came along with Aunt Alice's family.  It was nice to see everyone and introduce them to Ashley.  We thought we'd get a cute family pic while we were there but nope, Trevor didn't want to get in.  Stinker.  That's okay, it's nice to have one with just Ashley we guess.  And no, we didn't purposely color coordinate.  We just tend to do that a lot. 

 Sunday was an okay weather day during the party so Sam and Trevor got to go outside and help their Daddy's build a car with Sara and Jim's old Omagles.  And have some ice cream of course.

Inside Nana got to hold her two big blue-eyed granddaughters!

 The cousins sure enjoyed seeing one another!

 On Monday Daddy had a very early morning flight (read, he left the house at 5am) and the weather was once again rainy so we stuck around home and played with all of Nana and Papa Steve's toys!!  Mommy remembers playing with this one at Grandma Kelly's house.  It's great because it helps Ashley practice her sitting!

 We purchased a mattress designed to fit into the pack and play that Nana and Papa Steve have at their house.  Once we moved it into the room Sara was sleeping in she did pretty good.  Definitely better the early nights of the trip and better for naps than at night.  What an angel.

 Trevor was such a good boy while Daddy was away.  Listening, not whining, helping with his sister and playing independently.  We think it's the Grandparents magic!  In any case, he was so in love with the monster truck that Myles and Reagan gave him at the park that we went to Target for him to get another one and have them race.  Pretty sure Trevor just wanted it because Sam had a Spiderman monster truck but whatever, he did play with them a lot during our time in MN.

 Even Superman goes super boomers.  Trevor was chasing his Omagle down the driveway and skidded along with it.  Ouch!  He's a super trooper though and didn't throw too much of a fit!  Was back on his hot wheels in no time.  Plus he had to put on a good front for his new 'girlfriend' Sam - Sara's parents' neighbor with whom he hung out last year.  After seeing her again he said 'she's pretty!' The best part is that she has a pretty personality too.  She may watch the kids on another trip to MN so Sara and her parents can go wine tasting together!

 On Tuesday Sam didn't have school or daycare so we headed to the Cities and met Annie and crew at the MN Zoo.  The boys had a lot of fun chasing each other to each exhibit.  Sometimes even stopping to look at the animals.

 The girls had fun too! 

While Nana Jeanne was feeding Elena, Annie and Sara took the kids to see Trevor's favorite exhibit...the fishies!

 Secretly, Sara wanted to see if Ashley was as big of a fan of the fishies like her brother was at this age.  Yep!!

 Tuesday evening we tried the rice cereal again.  It had been 8 days since she had it and boy was she ready!  She loved the stuff!

 The weather was always a bit chilly but that was okay.  Like we said, it was a nice break from the heat and it gave Ashley a chance to wear some of the gifts she received....like this adorable pink sweater!

 Ashley loves being a little sister!!  Such a happy gal!

 Practicing her model pose :)  Check out her hair too.  We think it is going to stand straight up like Trevor's!!

 We were in the car a lot this trip but the kids sure didn't seem to mind.  At one point Sara looked back and here they were holding hands.  Precious!

 Every evening around dinner time Ashley had her cereal.  After a few days of mixing breastmilk with the rice cereal we tried just using water and it was a hit!  If you didn't get the spoon in fast enough she wasn't shy about grabbing the spoon and leading it to her mouth!

 On Saturday Sara and the kids headed up to Leah's 3rd birthday party.  Dawn made her a princess cake and boy did it look good.  Almost too good to eat.  Almost...her cakes are delicious!!

 The kids played very well together, like usual.  The hit of the party was the big princess bouncy house that they rented.  The weather cooperated and a fun time was had by all.

 We even got a picture of all five kids smiling....a Grandma Pauline request!

 After her party we headed over to Jim and Annie's for the kids to play a little bit before going to Houlihan's for dinner.  Well, that was an experience and a good reminder why going out to eat with two 3+ year olds is not always a relaxing time!

On Sunday we headed back to the Cities for our Goddaughter Elena's Baptism.  Elena wore Ashley's Baptismal gowns and added tights and shoes because it was so cold.  Part of her gift from us was a special Christening headband and personalized bracelet that she can use on her wedding day as a garter and a wrap around her bouquet.  She looked so pretty!  No she didn't wear the bib during the service!

 Although we are Catholic, it was refreshing to hear the Pastor during the homily ask the congregation to look around for families with small children.  Everyone did.  She then asked people to tell those parents with small children 'good job' - she went on to say how it isn't easy bringing small children to service but faith is important in families and going to church together is important.  She went on to say that a quiet church is a dying church.  That message resonated well. 

Elena did great during her Baptism.  Didn't cry when the water was being poured over her head and when the Pastor was holding her up to the congregation and announcing her, Elena flashed the biggest smile for all to see.  Her timing was perfect.  Sam did good too.  He was fascinated with the Baptismal fountain and what started as just dipping his fingers in quickly became playing with his whole hands.  Once again Sara was amazed at the Pastor's reaction.  Instead of making a big 'no no' deal about it, she said 'It's okay, it's Baptismal water.' That was then his pass to roll up his sleeves and really play.  It all worked out! (And amazingly Trevor knew not to even attempt to play.  Well, maybe one quick finger touch to the fountain but that was it).

Here is the Roslansky side minus Brian :(

 Here are three of Elena's sponsors - just missing Brian and Nicci and Mike.  Love the reflection in the water!

 A picture of brother and sister.  Actually looks like they like each other.  He he!  Of course they do!

 And all of Elena's family in attendance!  Speaking of attendees with small children :)

 On Memorial Day Monday the weather was once again cold and gloomy so we headed to Lakefield where Sara's parents grew up.  Sara's Uncle Don was in town too so we all headed to Spirit Lake, IA to enjoy the Godfather's buffet where Sara and Brian used to take her Grandma Kelly.  Yum!!  Afterward we headed to one of Uncle Don's farmlands and he gave us a ride in his Ranger.  

Trevor thought the ride all around his property was the coolest thing ever.  We were one with nature!  Guess what is on Trevor's Christmas list now? 

After that we headed to the cemetery where Sara's grandparents are all buried.  Ashley slept through 'meeting' Grandma Kelly.

  Same with Grandma Roslansky.  Trevor wondered if we should wake her up for this important event!  It was a long car ride (two hours each way) but it was worth every second to be able to capture these pictures and share memories!

On Tuesday we spent some time cleaning.  We meaning Trevor ;)

 And we spent some time outside.  Sam, the neighbor came over and played quite a while with Trevor.  Even bringing him over to her house to get some trucks!  Ashley really liked watching from a stroller!

 Trevor loved pushing Ashley around in the stroller and Ashley loved it too.  These two are going to be inseparable.  Well, we hope it continues anyway!

 One of the big things that Trevor really enjoyed was playing with Sara's old legos.  Well according to the box Sara was crossed off and Jim's name was there but then Jim was crossed off and Sara was there.  Ah, memories!  Trevor was big into making shooting ships. 

 On Wednesday Nana and Papa Steve watched the kids so that Sara could go to the stylist she's been going to since she was 14.  We decided to go back to Sara's natural hair color.  Turned out pretty cute!  Just what Sara wanted!

 Besides eating cereal, we also focused on having Ashley take a bottle.  Well that was easy.  She had no problem so a date night is in Brian and Sara's future back in AZ!!

 Ashley seriously couldn't get enough of the car toy.  Looks like Dada better start saving his money to buy his little princess a car!

 On Wednesday evening we tackled making cut out cookies since it was something we hadn't done before but he sure likes pretending with playdough.  It was a hit!  He really liked making gingerbread man cut outs!  Probably because they were the biggest!

 And he really liked putting sprinkles on before the cookies went in the oven. They were pretty tasty!

 What did Ashley do?  She was perfectly content chewing on old toys and rattles that Sara remembers from when she was little!

 On Thursday, Sara's cousins Katie and Anne along with Katie's son Max came down to visit.  It meant a lot to Sara that they did that!  It was nice seeing them again after the 'Mother's Day' celebration.  Trevor enjoyed showing Max all around and sharing his cookies and ice cream!

 It was while we were eating lunch that Brian called to give an update on Randle.  Brian said that on Wednesday evening after he got home from work that Randle wasn't himself and then had a pretty restless night so he brought him into the vet on Thursday morning.  This picture screams 'Mommy I don't feel good' which made Sara sad that she couldn't be there to take care of him.  Sara kind of wondered though if Randle was just missing his family.  We were gone for close to two weeks at this point.  

Well after the vet ran some tests we learned that Randle's kidney disease has worsened.  His creatine level was 13 and the vet had never seen over an 11 before.  Ugh.  We decided to run an IV all day to see if that could help flush out the toxins so that he would be more comfortable and hopefully hang on until Sara and kids came back the next day.  Please say prayers for Randle!!!

Well of course on Friday morning, the day we were leaving the sun comes out!!  So we soaked it up with lots of driveway time until we needed to leave for the airport around 11am. 

 And of course we took one quick pic of the kids and their MN grandparents.  Sara purposely dressed the kids in the same outfits that they had on when Brian last saw them in MN so it was like no time had really passed between seeing them again!

 On the way to the airport Sara noticed that Ashley had her first tooth slit - bottom right.  The crater is there just waiting for the little tooth to poke up!  So that may explain why fussy pants was up constantly at night!  Every 1-3 hours.  Even with her comfy mattress.  We thought it might have been an ear infection but nope.  Teething.  Next time we'll try Tylenol :)

We met Uncle Jim and family at the airport because they were flying to AZ for vacation at the same time we were!  Different airlines but approximately the same time.  That was nice but it caused us to get to the airport a bit earlier than we normally would.  Not a problem for these travelers though.  After going through security and saying 'see you soon' to Jim, Annie, Sam and Elena we got some fries and had a little picnic on the floor. 

 After that it was nap time for Ashley so Sara wore her in the bjorn and we walked around.  She slept, Trevor watched the airplanes and before you knew it, it was our time to board!  We boarded last since we didn't have anything to put overhead and that worked out good.  Why board early just to sit there?  We had a 3+ hour flight to sit. 

We had window and aisle seats but the guy in the middle gladly changed to the aisle when he saw us.  With us boarding last he was probably thinking he had the row to himself, but nope it was a full plane.  The kids did great on the flight.  We played, watched the ipad, read books, rocked Ashley to sleep and then we landed!  We didn't talk much to the guy next to us until the end when he admitted he was a bit nervous upon seeing us but couldn't believe how good the kids were.  Sara said 'yeah, they did pretty good.'  He said 'pretty good?  No they did very good!' :)

When we got past security in AZ we saw Daddy and Randle there to greet us.  Wow did we feel special but the best part was seeing Randle get all excited and spin in circles until we all petted him.  He was glad his family was back together again and so were we!  We had a fabulous trip and were thankful that Nana Jeanne and Papa Steve let us stay so long so that we could have many special memories.  But, with Randle's condition it did feel good to get back home!  Xoxo