Happy 6th Birthday, chicken little!  Jake got a new condo (one that comfortably houses his new bed but that also keeps him from peeing on his brother’s bed in the middle of the night — this is a gift for Melvin (and me) also!).  I also got him a blanket/cave contraption – he seems to like the idea of sleeping bags so I got him a furry one.  He immediately bonded with it, Rug would be jealous. I need to get used to seeing this furry thing because every night when I turn on the bedroom light, I scream thinking Chewbacca’s baby is in Jake’s condo.

He got a new, AWESOMELY-WONDERFUL, bad-ass Sirius Republic leather collar!

A frozen Kong stuffed with banana, pumpkin, blueberries and peanut butter awaits him (and his brother) as does this mini-birthday cake.

But what Jake really wants, a forever with his brother‘s butt…signed, sealed and delivered!

For those of you wondering, Melvin has not enjoyed this week as much as Jake.  He pretty much just wants the Jake attention to end.

Oddly enough, Jake and I have a bit of a connection in terms of his birthday…

Six years ago tomorrow I was rushed to the hospital and given a bit of a grave diagnosis. Apparently my body thought it would be fun times if my lungs filled with blood clots. How dare it attempt an uprising!   While that night was scary, it does not define me. That’s life.  It’s not always pretty or easy or logical.  It is what it is.  Find your happy and run with it. Obviously, I’m fine now!

Six years ago tomorrow, Jake was born.  At the very moment I was being rolled into the ER, Jake’s googly eyes were seeing the world for the very first time.  I didn’t know his birthday when I adopted him.  He came with a folder and although I looked the info over, I mainly did so to look at his vaccination dates.  It wasn’t until we went to the vet for the first time and they were entering him into the system that they asked if I knew his birthday.  I looked and there it was.

Same day.  Almost to the hour.  My little pea-nugget.

As we continue on the week-o-Jake…

Melvin has been professionally photographed, more than once.  If you have been to my home, or examined blog photos closely, you know that his face adorns many a wall.  Sadly, there is currently only one photo of Jake in the whole damn house.  To make matters worse, it’s not even a real photograph, its last years Christmas Card, in a frame.  I’ll pause while you judge me.

I’m happy to FINALLY announce that Jake was recently photographed and now our biggest conundrum is which photo to put where!  See how I did that, I moved from barely any photos to oh so many.  One minute I suck, the next minute I rock. Boom!

Here are some of my favorites, all courtesy of the very talented kate with a camera!  What I love about these photos is that they perfectly capture my little Tonka Truck’s vulnerability   He’s a misunderstood-muscular-punk-rocker with a take-no-prisoner-hit-man approach to life — but at the core, he just wants some love.

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Photo credit: kate with a camera

Most of Jake’s vaccinations are due this week.  That’s because one year ago, his family gave him up for adoption.  What I know about that is this…

• There was a husband and a wife and a yellow lab
• The yellow lab was the husband’s dog (so to speak) and the wife got Jake as her dog (as a puppy)
• Come last September they made the decision that they only had time for one dog, and that dog was not Jake
• The wife was sad to surrender him

Jake was given up for adoption the week of his 5th birthday.  I’m guessing they were not the type of people to celebrate dog birthdays so they likely didn’t know.  Or maybe they did.  Either way, one year ago a decision was made by strangers that would change my life forever.

Melvin and I were meant to be together. Jake was meant to be part of this family.  That means, their former families were supposed to have them first. I rescue dogs, they all have previous owners, a past that I have zero control over.  Then… our lives collide, and that is a little thing I like to refer to as sweet, sweet destiny.

I will kick of this Week-o-Jake with the very first picture I ever saw of him, just about one year ago to the day.

Yesterday was the five-year anniversary of losing sweet Max.  He was the best dog.  Deciding to let him go and the subsequent grief that followed were some of the hardest days of my life.  But now, the grief has long faded.  Now, thoughts of him warm my soul, even memories of my last days with him bring me smiles.  I didn’t wake up yesterday knowing it was the five-year mark.  It just came to me during they day. He enters my mind often, and I feel so blessed each and every time.

Today I woke up and I thanked Melvin.  I didn’t see it back then but Melvin is a key reason I moved forward.  I really had no choice.  Melvin had only been mine two months when we lost Max so I’m not even sure Melvin noticed Max was gone.  He woke up that next morning, FULL OF EXUBERANCE and he needed walked.  That September walk turned into December turned into March turned into June. Life is meant to move forward.

I have said before, that I probably got Melvin for all the wrong reasons, I knew Max was going to leave this world and I knew if I didn’t have a dog when that happened, I would wait too long and feel too much guilt looking for one.  But Melvin’s mug shot on the rescue site made me feel love at first sight and I knew the wrong reason had led me to the right dog.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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