Heartbreak

We rescued Izzy from what was sure to be not the best living situation when she was only a couple months old. She ran right into Ace's lap; practically begging us to take her & give her a good home. We already had Belle by that point; she was 2 1/2y and they got along fine, but we hadn't considered getting another dog. At some point, S.W. (who now, again, goes by her middle name) taped a Polaroid of her to our desk. We discussed it and decided she'd be better off with us than in that situation, so we took her. Izzy and Belle grew up nicely together; they played & cuddled, and Izzy would chase after Belle when Belle chased after her throw toys (Izzy never was one for toys). After Belle died, Izzy went into a bit of a funk... We all did. When Izzy's smile came back, we knew it was time to get her another dog. That story is here.
Over the last (almost) three years, Elvis took on the role of Izzy's service dog. As her health has declined, he's told us when she has to pee, when it's time to eat, has cuddled her when she didn't feel well, and much more. He's been very protective of her. So, last Monday, after many months of her having all sorts of trouble, including running blood work & X-ray and putting her on meds, we had to put her down. She could barely walk, couldn't squat to pee without falling down, refused to eat (we tried all sort of foods... nothing worked). We knew it was time. Princess said goodbye to her before she left for school that morning, and Ace & I took her to the vet. She started her life with us in Ace's lap, and she left this world in his lap, too.
Unfortunately, you can't make a dog understand that his best friend is dying. I think he knew she was sick; he had been peeing over her spots outside for a few months and had been by her side more than usual. This wasn't the first time we'd taken her to somewhere without him, so at first, he probably didn't know she wasn't coming back. Those first couple nights, he seemed ok. Night three, however, he barked & whined multiple times througout the night; keeping Ace & I up like we had a newborn. When we put Izzy's blanket in with him, he seemed better. Ace even put Elvis' blanket in there; fluffing it up to take up more space in the huge kennel he's used to sharing.
He's been sleeping better, but still seems depressed. He comes out of his funk a little when he gets to go on walks or car rides, but when we took him to the groomer today, he cried and didn't want to go with her. Maybe it's humanizing him, but I wonder if he thinks we just took Izzy somewhere & abandoned her... and he's next. :( He was, of course, excited when we picked him up, but it's heartwrenching to watch him go through this. I'd like to get another dog, but Ace seems more hesitant... not that he doesn't want another, but it's too soon. He also mentioned "leaving them alone" when/if he goes back to work, but that's not even within the near future, and two together is much better than one lonely dog.
Anyway, we're keeping an eye on him and eventually will get him another dog. For now, Ace is trying to take advantage of any nice days to walk him & work on uninterrupted training, and times he can bring him in the car with him.

Brainiac... and then some

Princess took the PSAT, along with most of the juniors, back in October. We got her scores back last week. She rates just above expectations and came in with a overall score of 1070. This puts her on-track to get a Merit Scholarship next year. She also brought home her transcripts so far, as they were working on forecasting for next year. Her grades put her at 51st of 323 students (rated higher due to her Honors status), and she only needs 2 one-year and 2 semester classes next year to graduate, but if she takes three additional electives, she'll have a Chancellor's Diploma; this is her current plan.

She was missing a class needed for an "IP Focus", so changed to "Theatre Focus", which only requires one more class -- IB Theatre, which is on her list for next year anyway. She also asked for traditional Senior English (because it sets them up for Writing 121 - a required college course), Graphic Design, online PE (yes, this is a thing), an editor position for Yearbook (which she was asked by her teacher to apply for, and she had to get a letter of recommendation from another teacher to do), and possibly retaking ASL1 (to ease into PCC's ASL classes). One of her classes this semester is a dual credit course, as well, so that also helps out with her PCC for two years plan. We won't know her final Senior schedule, of course, until registration, but all in all, it looks like a great final year for her!

As for the rest of this year, she has a trip to New York planned for Spring Break, their next play opens next week (one more planned for a May open, I think), and is waiting to hear back from Girl Scouts about a PAID summer camp counseling position (her Skype interview - yes, this is a thing now - went well and lasted 35 minutes... a great sign!). We came up with a viable plan for practicing for and getting her Driver's license, as well, and she still plans to buy my car as soon as that happens (which sets me up to buy that truck I want).

Quick "rest of the fam" update as well -- Ace has embraced his Stay At Home Dad role (rides, homework help when needed, cooking, cleaning, etc) but has also taken on a more active stock market role for us. He's started trading options (which is not easy to understand, but he's been researching for a few months and watching/listening to online classes). It's only for our personal portfolios, but the idea is to eventually draw a small income from it so we don't have to pull from the savings account anymore (not that we're pulling much now; our monthly output is fairly low, considering). *I* have a huge work update, which I'm waiting for a couple things to happen before I announce... but keep tabs on my FB page for a big announcement soon. I am also working with a friend to design a real website! That should launch May 1st, but may be ready sooner. Gamerboy is still in Springfield, going to school at UofO, and doing janitorial work. He also took on a new roommate (his old ones moved out because they're having a baby!); that seems to be working well. And, Squeeks seems happy with her new (ish) boyfriend, and is back to working at both the theater and the grocery store (online orders). I have a feeling, due to some hints she's made, that she may move in with said BF before the end of the summer... but we'll see. :)

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And for those who are curious, I caught a few posts semi-recently (and had some info shared with me by certain people) that makes me wonder if Wildebeest is FINALLY letting go and learning to accept Gaston's relationship. KC was, with Gaston, at his & Wildebeest's daughter's cheerleading competition down in Salem last weekend; that's a good sign (unless she came regardless of how Wildebeest felt about it?).