Friday, April 9, 2010

Life...Liberty...and...

the Pursuit of Happiness... this phrase is in the second sentence of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

***In my attempt to not be so Late on Linking up this week...I am trying to make this Little post be a Little Less Long. (I'm trying to not be so "Long-winded", as I usually tend to be!***

This is actually about our sweet and Lovable Labrador-Lady Liberty.

(2004 ...in Georgia)

Mr. B has brought home a few puppies for our three kiddos, throughout their growing up years.  He had insisted that the last one would have been Abby (a sweet yellow lab, that we left with our friends in Alabama, when we moved to Kentucky in 1999. -Abby was brought home, after many months of clues and hints written and left in random places by the kids to their dad ..."please, please, please" ...etc...

Well, 3 years later... before having to be deployed to Kuwait and Iraq, Mr. B came home with the sweetest, roly-poly, chocolate Lab!  "Lady Liberty".

(I wanted to insert, here, some of the adorable photos of that day that Mr. B brought her home...but right now, I can't find those piles of photos.)

Here are a couple of when we were in Kentucky of Liberty that I did find.

(Oct 2002...in Kentucky
Liberty is about 6 months old)
One of our dear friends also had a chocolate lab named Cappy (Cappucino).  We would take the dogs for walks, take them to a large field on the post... and would crack up watching those two chasing each other and playing.

(2003...in Kentucky)

When we moved here to Georgia in 2004, both our girls stayed in Kentucky for college and so Heartbreaker and Liberty were even more of a pair.

(2004...in our Georgia rental, 
while our home was being built).
...our furniture was still in storage.

This next photo was taken shortly after Heartbreaker had a biopsy taken from his lymph nodes on the side of his neck and he was diagnosed(at 14 yrs old) with Burkitt's-like, B-cell Lymphoma.   He was to be admitted for his first chemo treatments.
(2005...in Georgia)
Liberty listening to Heartbreaker's music

With Heartbreaker in the hospital for days at a time, sometimes more than a week (in order to do the intense protocol that was scheduled), Liberty was at home all day by herself.  And during this time, whenever Heartbreaker would get a temp higher than 100, we would have to admit him for a hospital stay. Mr. B was working and I was in the middle of a semester, going to college.

Mr. B and I would take turns with getting home to feed and let Liberty out.  One of us would stay at the hospital with Heartbreaker.  The hospital was awesome about letting one of us or both of us sleep in the hospital room when he was there.

We noticed that Liberty seemed to have an upset stomach and would sometimes "spit up" frothy fluid.  Looking back, we all feel that she could sense what Heartbreaker was going through.

We were blessed to have so much support and our faith in the Lord was strong, but it was still stressful at times... & I think Liberty felt that stress.  It was a very hard decision, but after awhile Heartbreaker knew that leaving Liberty alone so much and how it was affecting her, and taking the stress of having Liberty off of Mr. B, Heartbreaker agreed that we should see if someone would take her into their family.

Our dear friends at West Point came to our minds.  After talking with them, they let us know that they would love to have Liberty as part of their family.  We flew Liberty up to their home...It was so sad, but she settled in so well. And they have sent us photos and videos of Cappy and Liberty together again.  Their two daughters love Liberty. And it is so awesome to know that she is being so well-cared for and loved!

(2005...New York)
Liberty & Cappy

(bed buddies!)
Cappy & Liberty

& we are very blessed and thankful that our son~ Hearbreaker ~ is strong, totally healed and is a wonderful testimony of the Lord's healing and grace.

..well...I tried to keep my post a little shorter...

I am joining in with Jenny for
ALPHABE-THURSDAY "L"
&
Alicia for 
FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK.
&
Midday Escapades for
FRIDAY FOLLOW.
(Hop over and meet great bloggers at these sites).

This one was a drawing just completed this morning for a great customer.


This one is another for a gift. 
He was drawn with his dog's name "PORKCHOP" and 
Porkchop was drawn with his owner's name "TRAVIS".

And finally...thought I would share this drawing of our country's Lady Liberty.




This was drawn for a customer's brother who worked in the Statue of Liberty.







Blessings & Aloha!

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

awww, look at Liberty and Cappy! They love each other :-) A happy ending for Liberty!

BIZMOMPH said...

The dogs are cute. The sketches are amazing too!!

Followed you from Friday Follow!!

BIZMOMPH from Google Connect ^_^

The Business Minded Mom

Debbie Petras said...

Oh my, am I the first one to comment today? I hope so.

Liberty is so cute. How sad that you had to give him to your West Point friends. But at least he had a home where there was love. (BTW, I have stories from West Point as my nursing school wasn't very far from there; lol).

Your Heartbreaker is so handsome. How brave he must have been going through so much at a young age like that. I pray he is doing well now.

You did great on keeping this one a bit short. However, I never mind the length of your posts. You are so talented in your artwork and the love you have for your family is overflowing. I also feel the love of God splashing all over all you read your blog like me.

Hugs to you,
Debbie

LV said...

Was good to see you back today. That is great dog and so shiny and big. We have had dogs as long as my husbands was alive, but they caused us to much grief. No more for me. Those sketches you have done of the man and his dog are outstanding.

2003beachbunch said...

So sweet and sad! Love doggies! Ours are just 2 more kids to the crew!

Pondside said...

What a great blog post you've done - I love your four legged family members and I like the way you write - I'll be to read some more.

Anonymous said...

Oh, what a sweet story. I haven't left a comment in a while, I'm sorry...lots going on lately. I love, love, love your doggie and her name. Sad that you had to give her up, but great that she's happy. I lost my doggie companion to heartworm disease Easter weekend. He was an old collie, and had the disease when I adopted him from the animal shelter six years ago.
Wow, I didn't know your family had experienced such serious illness. That's tough...your child, too...can only imagine that one.
Hope all is well now.
Great reading your posts, you write from the heart--always. ((hugs)) Kathy

Grandmabeckyl.blogspot said...

What a dear story of a dog. It's hard to part with a pet. Thanks for sharing!

More Than Words said...

This was so sweet!!

I can imagine how hard it was to take care of your dog, and also be there for your son as much as you could. They say that dogs are very in tune with our emotions, so I believe that he felt the stress too.

What a huge blessing to have someone take him in! I'm sure that was such a big relief for all of you!!

And praise God that your son is doing well!!

Bacardi Mama said...

I love this post. We had a golden retriever that we had to have put to sleep three summers ago. He was 13 and the best dog ever. I still miss him. They really do get to be a very real part of the family. Please stop by. I have a giveaway going on that ends Monday and two new ones starting next week. Have a great weekend.

Jenny said...

What a wonderful wrap up for Alphabe-Thursday's Letter "L"!

I am always amazing at your talent.

This story was so poignant and sweet.

I cannot imagine what you went through at the time...trying to manage everything as you did!

I wish I could give you a great big hug!

But instead, alas, I will give you a great big A+

Annesphamily said...

I love your blog! Thanks for stopping by to visit me please join me soon! Wow! You have a super busy life too! What an awesome family you have! I also love those pooches! You are so gifted artistically. That is beautiful that you share yourself with all of us. I am new to following you! Will be back soon! Hugs from Colorado from me to you! Anne

Kat said...

What a gorgeous dog she is! I can't imagine all that you were going through, and I'm so happy that you were able to find a loving home for Liberty. She looks so happy with her buddy, I'm sure that that was a huge load off of your shoulders. Kathy

momstheword said...

Oh, what cute dogs! My husband has always wanted a chocolate lab, but I doubt if we will ever have one. He would want it to be an indoor dog and I just can't have a big dog like that (I'm allergic to dogs).

Dogs do seem sensitive to moods and things, don't they? I imagine that your dog did notice that something was up. So glad he has a happy home now, and that you get to see pictures of him!

~ Regan said...

Oh my goodness!!! Liberty and Cappy are so cute!! What good buddies! ;) My Coe looks just like Cappy, he's even starting to get a few white hairs on his chin! That was a lovely post, thanks for sharing, I'm always a sucker for dog stories and pictures!

(dental question: Has your office tried 'Icon'? I heard it's a new resin... Wondered if you had any info?)lol sorry....

Unknown said...

labs are the best dogs...they really do feel your pain and empathize! I am so glad you had her and that your son is well....god is good!

Amanda Lee said...

Liberty is a beautiful dog. It's so special to see the bonds these pets form with our kids. I'm sorry your son had to go through his illness, and I am so thankful that he is alright.

MsRay said...

Aloha! As usual, I enjoy reading your posts and browsing through your pictures.

Brenda said...

I have two friends that have always had Labs. They are a great dog! Before I decided I wanted a Scottie, a Lab was the dog of choice. But we ended up with a mutt when the kids were little. He was the best dog lived 14 years. Your drawing are wonderful.

MsRay said...

I love the sketches you make with the names. Very artistic!

Betty said...

It goes without saying that I'm very glad to hear that your son is doing well!! I have a pretty good idea of what you all went through and I always enjoy stories with a happy ending.

mary.anne.gruen@gmail.com said...

What a wonderful story! I'm so glad your son was healed. It sounds like you all went through a lot! I'm glad Libery had a happy ending too. We've got three dogs at the present time.

I've given you an award over at my blog. Don't worry about doing the whole award thing. It's mostly a shout out for your blog.

Tina said...

What a hard time that must have been. I think God made dogs to sense our needs, and to give us comfort. But that we as their caretakers must also know when they have fulfilled that role and need to move on to a place of rest and play with a buddy of their own. We been blessed to have three wonderful labs pass in and then out of our lives. I think of Salli, and Quiddie, and Riley as I write this. Thanks for sharing.

Adrienne said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog this is a beautiful post I am praying for Heartbreakers full and wonderful recovery and I am so glad Liberty had a great place to go to. My son loves our puppies so much they were both adopted

mub said...

It must've been a bittersweet thing finding a new home for Liberty. I think chocolate labs are so pretty but I'm not much of a dog person so I admire them from afar *L*

I so enjoy looking at your sketches! I really admire your talent.

Life With The Boys! said...

Beautiful pictures. Thanks for always visiting my blog. I enjoy you sweet comments!!

VKT said...

What a happy ending for sweet Liberty. I love the pictures!!!! Your son is very handsome. I am sure you had mixed emotions about letting Liberty go.

Steph said...

I'm trying to get my last week's visits in before it's time to come back and say "hi" again. I love that picture of Liberty listening while Heartbreaker plays the guitar. It reminds me of my boys. I really cannot imagine what your whole family and especially your son went through having chemo treatments at the young age of 14. In fact, it brings tears to my eyes. But I hear in your writing the peace and sustaining and healing that the Lord provided. So thankful. It IS sweet and amazing how our animal companions sense what's going on and it was kind of y'all to let Liberty go live with Cappy. Cute lab photos. Thanks as always for sharing the precious stories of your family life.

tracy said...

Hi Maria
What a wonderful testamony indeed!
Your Heartbreak is well!!! and pulled through! Praise God indeed! Caddy and Liberty are both pretty boys together.
Your talents are still awesome as ever!!!
Thank you for your visit,its so good to hear from you and thanks for your warm welcome back.I am so sorry that I stopped blogging with out notice to any one.When I was diagnoist with a dissconective tissue disorder, I became very depressed.It was hard for me to move around,I had to go paty time at work,and that was even hard to do. Even sitting at the computer was painful...so I just stopped...I have received help from my doctor... a Rhumatic Doctor and have had shots of quartazone shots to my hips... that takes the pain away for awhile...I will always have this disorder though.I am back to work until the shots wear off...then I will cross that road when I get to it:) I will indeed e-mail you so we can keep in touch.

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