Happy Sunday and Happy Father's day. I hope that you all had a marvelous weekend. Here in mid-Michigan we have had the most beautiful weather. Sunny, low humidity, and temperatures in the low to mid-70s. These last three days are the types of days I live for and were just what I needed after this week.
On Thursday morning, we said goodbye to Hershey. He was here with us for 104 days and, thankfully, most of them were really good days. Unlike the old dogs that came before him, Hershey never showed any signs of feeling sick or slowing down until his last week with me. And even then, it was hard to tell that he wasn't feeling 100%. It started with a few days of pickiness about his food and refusing to eat more than one small meal per day, and it ended with him completely refusing to eat anything for the last couple of days he was here. He really didn't start to slow down until his last 4 days, but his happy little spirit was always there and his tail wagged until the very end. We did what we could to get him to start eating again, but the treatments that were given to help him feel better and encourage eating just didn't work. I tried valiantly by syringe feeding him bone broth and baby food for a couple of days, but he was clearly telling us all that he was ready. And so I listened.
While I was sad to let him go, it was the right thing to do. I didn't want him to suffer and I let him die with dignity. And like all of the other dogs who I have had the privilege to be with until the last breath, I held his paw and let him know just how loved he was.
Hershey came into the rescue in early February and came to me in early March. In the months that he was in our care, he was loved by three foster mom's and countless others with the rescue who stepped up to help with his transports, watching him while I traveled for work, and watching his journey as I shared it with all of the other volunteers via Facebook. Hershey had quite the fan club and was very well loved.
While his life could have ended much differently when he found himself in a shelter at the age of 15 after his owner died, he was one of the very lucky ones. He made it out of the shelter and lived what was left of his life to the fullest. I am so proud and happy to have been part of his journey and to know that, because of the goodness of many people, he didn't die alone and scared in a shelter like so many other dogs do every day...dogs with a lot more life to live and so much love to give. Hershey must have known just how lucky he was and he didn't waste a minute. Thank you to our friends near and far for sharing his journey with his. We felt all of the love.
Last Sunday, we had beautiful weather and headed off to Hillsdale with Vanessa to get some miles on the North Country Trail. We didn't know how far we'd get, but I was surprised at how quickly Hershey slowed down on our hike. We got in a mile before deciding to let him take a break and changed our plans a bit.
This old railroad bridge is slowly falling apart and will soon be replaced by a new, safer bridge. I felt like I needed to capture the original bridge as part of the history of the NCT.
We moved cars and I thought after a break, maybe Hershey would be able to go a bit farther, but he continued to get slower and was clearly ready to stop hiking. So like any crazy dog mom on a hike, I loaded him up in the rescue harness, which I had brought with us just in case, and we finished out our hike. We hiked a total of 2.5 miles that day, and I probably carried him for the last 3/4 of a mile. It was definitely a workout!
We made a quick stop to pick up a geocache on the way home and Hershey insisted on getting out of the car to find it with me Since everyone was out of the car, I tried valiantly to get a good picture of Peaches and Hershey together. This was the best I could get.
Monday Hershey had a vet appointment and I knew then that if he didn't start eating by the next day, we would be saying goodbye to him soon. So I made sure that he was going to have the best last days of his life. We drove with the windows down since he loved to watch the world go by.
The temperatures on Tuesday were dangerously hot, but Peaches continued to insist that I let her outside so she could watch the birdies. Every single time I let her out, I would find her like this within 30 seconds. I never left her outside for more than a couple of minutes, and she grumbled about coming inside every time. Crazy dog!
When the temperatures cooled a bit on Tuesday evening, we headed outside to enjoy some fresh air. The garden is growing and my bleeding hearts are still blooming.
It was nice to be able to be outside so that Hershey could wander and sniff and Peaches could watch her birds.
Eventually we all relaxed on the patio as the sunset and the first lightning bugs of the season made their appearance. It was a wonderful night that I will remember fondly. It made me think of the Summers of my childhood.
Wednesday I knew we'd be saying goodbye to on Thursday morning, and I wanted to make sure he had the best last day that I could give him. We took car rides, visited the pet store, and then stopped at Tasty Twist for ice cream. Hershey was so happy as we sat there. His tail wagged at everyone that walked by us and he seemed to really enjoy our special trip.
I really wanted to give Hershey an ice cream party, but since he hadn't been eating, I didn't know if I'd get him to eat any ice cream. I drizzled some of my melted peanut butter shake on a dish, and by some stroke of luck, he was tempted enough to take a few licks.
We spent the evening outside again because it was beautiful. I didn't want that night to end and stayed out with Hershey sitting next to him on his dog bed snuggling him until I knew we had to go inside. We stayed out until after dark before heading inside for bed.
Thursday morning came and I spent some quality time snuggling with Hershey. Before heading to the vet, we made a couple of stops, first at Soldan's Pet Store and second at Farm and Home, to allow Hershey to wander around slowly and to say hello to as many people as his little heart desired. I couldn't think of a better way for him to spend that last hour of his life. His tail never stopped wagging.
It was a long morning, and an even longer afternoon of work, but once my work day was over, Peaches and I headed outside to enjoy the evening.
It is never easy saying goodbye, but Peaches sure did her best to make me feel better. She's such a good girl.
With the beautiful weekend weather, we decided to head back to the Hillsdale area for another hike on the NCT. We had a couple of small sections to get out of our way and one longer section I wanted to do. We started in Lost Nations and did an amazing hike through the woods.
We had a couple of fun water crossings and Peaches was happy to dive right into the water.
We had a short portion of road walk. I found this armor pretty interesting and we had a nice conversation with the owner about the history of this piece.
We then moved on to complete a 1 1/2 mile section of the Baw Beese trail section that we had missed last week. There were several geocaches along this section of the trail, and luckily the bugs weren't bad. It is a nice little section of the trail
We then left Hillsdale and started our drive north We made a stop at Fireman's Park in Litchfield and did a 2 1/4 mile section of road walk between the Calhoun county line and the park.
Not much interesting to see in that stretch, but we did see some cows. We have now hiked 52 of our 100 mile goal on the trail this year and we only have 17 miles left until we complete hiking all of the trail in Hillsdale County. As we enter July and expect hotter temperatures, we are not planning on much hiking for the next several weeks. But I look forward to getting back on the trail when the weather is better for hiking.
The most exciting thing that happened this week was that I was officially able to share my new puppy. This little girl is 7 weeks old now and will come home with me on July 1st.
For the next couple of weeks, Peaches and I are going to make the most of our time together before this little girl joins the family. I can't wait to bring her home and show her the world!
My little Fiona is 2 months old now and growing like a weed. She's become quite the little "talker" and loves to hold herself up. She is doing well and I just can't believe how quickly time is going. I'm excited to go visit her tomorrow.
This time of year is one of my favorites, and just one reason for it is strawberry season. Strawberries are one of my favorite foods and there is nothing better than fresh picked strawberries. These will be eaten fresh, made into strawberry shortcake, and frozen for use over the winter. I may even make a small batch of freezer jam.
Tomorrow is officially the last full day of Spring and we will be celebrating the Summer Solstice and longest day of the year on Tuesday. Sadly this is when the days begin to get shorter as we make our way toward Fall, but I'm going to make the most of the next 6 weeks and all of our amazing daylight and summer weather and fruits and veggies. It's going to be a great Summer.
