The bad news

I've received so many emails asking if we are okay.  I didn't mean to be vague about the "bad news" I mentioned in my last post, I just wasn't ready to talk about it.  But you are all so supportive that I feel I should share.

Our dog, Jack, was diagnosed with malignant lymphoma last week.  A routine, yearly check-up found enlarged lymph nodes all over his body and after three days of waiting for tests results, our worst fears were confirmed.  He's been given three months to live.

He's 12 years old and has lived with us for about 10 of those years.  (He's a rescue dog.) Right now, he's feeling fine.  We were completely taken by surprise by his diagnosis.  So our plan is to keep him comfortable, manage his symptoms, and spoil him rotten until his quality of life indicates that it's time for us to let him go.  We are trying not to focus on losing him right now and will just enjoy our days left with him.

I had to put my beloved dog, MaryAnn, down when I was pregnant with our daughter.  As hard as that was, it's nothing compared to being a mommy and dealing with my own grief while trying to help my daughter deal with the loss of her beloved pet at the same time.  Heartbreaking.  I've been lucky enough to find a great list of children's books that are geared towards dealing with the topic and I'm hoping the books will help all of us navigate through these difficult next few months.

Thanks to all our friends and family who have helped us as we dealt with this news.  It means more to us than we can ever tell you.