Old Dog, New Dog Birthday Remembrances

     My mother gave this stuffed dog to my dad for some special occasion or another, and he fell immediately in love with it.  With out hesitation, he named the dog "Rufus" and demanded to have his photograph taken with him.  They looked good together, like two outlaws ready to rob a train and split the spoils.  Or at least like two retired outlaws ready to curl up on a comfortable couch somewhere. They had the easy camaraderie of partners. Somehow, there was almost a sort of family resemblance.  Rufus made Dad laugh, which was harder and harder to do back then as he struggled to accept his cancer diagnosis.

   
     Dad got such a kick out of his photo shoot with Rufus, he decided to reenact it with Isabel, our yellow lab puppy.  He showed up one day at the house giggling and obviously very pleased with himself, and took out a costume cowboy hat and bandana that he had purchased for this purpose.  She obliged, and we got a photo that he referred to affectionately as the "Old Dog, New Dog" pic.

     It also happened that Isabel and my father shared a birthday.  They were a few days apart, but close enough to be birthday buddies, and I got the idea to throw them an Old Dog, New Dog birthday party. Isabel was turning one, and Dad was turning seventy-one. It seemed meant to be.

     By the time my father's seventy-third birthday rolled around, the cancer had advanced considerably and he was in a lot of pain.  He didn't want any fuss made over his birthday, and liked to joke with a wry humor that, "this birthday business is for the birds.  In fact, after this one, I'm not going to have any more of them."  Never-the-less, I cajoled him down to Yappy Hour, an off-leash puppy playtime at a local winery, and we had some chocolate cake while Isabel devoured a can of Alpo, turned upside down like a cake with a candle in it, candle and all.

    Last year was the first time that his birthday came around, and he was no longer here to celebrate it, just as he'd predicted.  Dave took the day off from work, and we drove upriver to the special site where we'd scattered some of his ashes.  We took Isabel with us, and the kids.  Timmy threw the chuck-it for Isabel, who ran and played happily.  We gave her a can of Alpo, dutifully, with four candles in it.  This time we managed to prevent her from consuming the candles along with the cake.  It was, I believe, as he would have wanted it.  The old dog may be gone, but the new dog still remembers.

    He would have been seventy-five today.  I decided, after some deliberation, not to reenact the ritual.  This year, I didn't want his birthday to be a commemoration of his death.  I wanted it to be a day of celebrating life--his life, my life, the gift of life itself.  The old dog will never be gone.  He is in everything we do--Emily's passion for books, Timmy's new found obsession with the Sound of Music, my efforts to play songs for the kids on the guitar he gave me, my mother-in-law's thoughts as she watches another season of his favorite t.v. program, Dancing with the Stars, Dave's consideration as he treats me with extra tenderness today...

     Happy Birthday, Dad.

A five-star day

Do you ever have one of those days that is at the same time ordinary and extraordinary?  Today was one of those five-star days, all for simple sweet reasons, like lunch with friends followed by a fun play date, chuck-it  in the rain for the puppy with a reappearance from the sun in time for an early evening run, and a family outing to Froyo Yogurt for dessert.

Mommy's view in the bathroom mirror this morning--sibling revelry in the bedroom.  Standing on Timmy's favorite book.  Shedding the new Mary Jane's to put on big brother's tennis shoes instead.

Timmy was excited to be going to Nana and Pop's house while Mommy went to the Olive Garden for lunch with friends.

Emily and Amelie playing on the stairs.

Amelie is an excellent little Mommy to her dollies.  I think she thought Emily was one of them!

 Nicole and Emily go way back.  Minnie, on the other hand, is a new friend.

Fun with Grady!

A gorgeous drive home through the orchards.  By the way, this image is mine but the idea for the in-the-rear-view-mirror scenery shot was shamelessly stolen from Mary Collier of MKC Photography.

  This is the sign of a successful play date!  Another stolen photo idea--the sleepy kiddo taken from the front seat (NOT while driving, by the way)--thanks Kristi Brons Ahrens of Be Fruitful Photography for this one!  No credit for originality, but I should get a few points for practicing what inspires me :o)

Nothing beats chuck-it in the rain, except watching from inside and at a safe distance!  The view of the hills from our backyard and the puddle on the lid of our (broken for over two years why do we even still have it?) hot tub.

Then the sun came out long enough for Isabel and I to enjoy a lovely late afternoon run.

Froyo yo yo!  It's frozen yogurt, so it must be good for you, right?  Never mind the copious quantities of chocolate syrup and peanut butter cups adorning it.  Baby made a break for it, but was lured back by temptation!  Like I said, nothing out of the ordinary, yet everything just perfect to make it a five-star day!

Hockey Dad

How did Big Dave spend St. Patrick's Day?  Playing in the St Hatrick's Day Hockey Tournament, of course.  He had a great day playing to his favorite audience in the stands because the Daddy Fan Club was out in full force.

Timmy says that "someday, I want to be Big Timmy."

Who's Daddy winking at?

There she is :o)

Applause and a mouth full of bunny.

Team Hulse!  Go Big Dave!

Proudly waving to his fans.

She enjoyed the game and is proud of her Daddy, but baby's favorite part of the game was...

...the Bunny Boni.

Lucas' eyes

I had a wonderful time photographing member families at our Greater Wenatchee Parent Child Preschool's night out at the Wenatchee Wild hockey game.  I thought that this young man's eyes were especially sensational!

Trip to the coast

We packed up the extended Hulse clan and came out to the Sequim area for the weekend.  We had a delightful morning exploring the beach area along the Dungeness Spit Wildlife Refuge.  Emily slept in the backpack on Daddy while Timmy climbed over drift wood, scrambled over rocks, and ran wildly down wooded trails.

Waking up with a wood-burning stove in the room.

Looking down the wrong end of a telescope.

Dungeness Spit.

Captain Driftwood.

Happy Hulses.

Peek-a-boo Mommy and Timmy.

Gull at rest.

Gull surveying the scene.

Gull in flight.

More driftwood to climb.

Socks for gloves.

Trail runner.

Truly Me, Photography--Miss Meagan

I had a positively delightful afternoon yesterday playing dress up with a smiley, giggly, soon-to-be-one-year-old darling named Meagan.  Mom wanted some pics that capture her sweet girlishness to show off at her birthday party this Saturday.  Here she is!