So Many Pandemic Fosters of 2020

foster fail puppy Sadie at the beach

We all know 2020 had its challenges. For me, I took one of what probably could have been 4 or 5 work trips in early March and came home just in time to be with Chicken as she passed from this world. And a week later, the world came to a screeching halt as the coronavirus pandemic became a global threat. I’d had a couple fosters early in the year, and once work travel was off the table for awhile that turned into well over 18 months at least, I was able to foster like I’ve never fostered before. When […]

Losing Chicken

As the world dealt with a pandemic beginning in the early spring of 2020, I lost one of my very special angel dogs, Chicken. Chicken was a spunky, 2 pound local celebrity and retired therapy dog, so her loss was felt deeply. Chicken was approximately 15 years old and had been without teeth for about 5 years. In the last three years of her life, her entire jaw had dissolved. (This happens sometimes when dogs lose all of their teeth, which is why I’ve had several fosters foster fails who have had major extractions, but the vet has left a […]

Foster Love in 2019

5 foster dogs and 1 foster kitten

I always do a year-end review at this time of year. And the number of fosters I’ve hosted each year is always a bright spot for me. Being able to look back on the memories with each precious soul who spent some time in my home with my pack learning how to be loved (maybe for the first time) warms my heart just when I need it most. I started 2019 with two hospice foster dogs, Muffin and Tina, and they have both moved on to new homes after a few months because they weren’t quite as in need of […]

Finding Myself Finding More Heart Space

Today is December 9, 2019. It wasn’t until I was at an intersection on a gorgeous stretch of a Kansas county road on my way to pick up my fifth foster dog this year that I realized it has been exactly a month since I turned 40 and on the same day put down my beloved Coco. Coco – a dog I had adopted nearly two years ago when she was 10 – had been the third loss of my sweet old dogs I’d experienced in six months. She had diabetes when I adopted her after being featured on Susie’s […]

Make The World Gentler

I’ve spent a good amount of my life figuring out what I “should” be doing with my life. And I’ve stayed in my little box. As I’ve gotten serious about connecting to my inner voice and trusting myself more than the world around me, I’ve added regular meditation to my daily “work.” I haven’t yet mastered the art of silent meditation, so I rely on guided meditations on YouTube to focus my thoughts and tune me into my true inner voice. There is a terrific one by Jason Stephenson called Connect to Your Ideal Self that has been really helpful […]