Open Letters

Dear Daisy,
Sorry that your last few months here sucked. Sorry that you couldn't pull through. I guess your "nine lives" are up - you always did think you were a cat. Making the decision to (finally) have the vet put you down was very hard for Rich and myself. We loved you as a happy, healthy, active member of our family. Whatever it was that tore you up (literally, making your insides stop functioning) killed a little part of us, too. We will always miss you but are SO SO glad that you are out of your misery, too. Euthanasia is tough... watching a sick dog die in front of us is tougher.
Much love!
Maggs







Dear Annie,
Welcome to our family! We talked about getting a Lab for a very long time, tossing around the idea of having two dogs under the Truitt roof. I'm glad we waited, the timing couldn't have been more perfect! We found you at the pound, your intake form had you down as a "stray." I can't believe you were a stray!! You are such a beautiful canine. Your primary breed is listed as "Weimeriner" but they say you are a lab mix. Hubby thinks you look more like a Lab - I really don't care what kind of dog you are, just so glad that you're ours!! You are so beautiful, did I say that already!? And, today is day two under the Truitt roof, and you're already learning how to behave. You mind very VERY well, you know a few commands, you excersize with us, play with us, and cuddle with us. You make our family very happy Miss Annie!! So glad you're ours. Much love!
Mwah!
Maggs





Dear Cesar Millian,
Thanks for the tips! Rich and I have been reading your books and we've caught a few epsidoes of "Dog Whisperer" on hulu.com ...we are impressed with your insights and are so excited to help Annie be a healthy, happy, loving dog. Thanks for your work :)
Love,
Maggie and the Truitts






Dear Julia,
Preschool starts back up again in two and a half weeks. I'm glad that you can't read yet, because I'd feel bad if you read all about how stinking excited I am to send you back to school, LOL. I've loved LOVED having you here everyday this summer. You really are a super helper - you shine the most when I have you tasks to do... you love to be a mini-me. But, I really get exhausted constantly thinking of ways to challenge you! Being in the house all day every day with 5 two-year-old kiddos takes a lot out of a person... I understand that, babe ;) I'm sorry that you've had so many instances this summer where you've had to decide to either join the 'babies" in their activities, or become adult-like and help mom work with the little ones. At school, at least, you'll get to be among peers ...you'll have teachers that challenge you every single day of the school year. You'll get to do big-girl things and come home everyday at lunch time to tell me all about them. I totally can't wait!! Two and a half more weeks :) Hang in there!!!

You are beautiful, and I love you dearly.
Momma


Dear Rebecca,
I can't believe you're almost TWO! Okay, honestly? The fact that you're almost TWO YEARS OLD is not what surprises me - I mean, I'm not surprised that you're a toddler/preschooler already... what I am surprised about is that you're not even two YET! I keep treating you like you're a two year old. You potty train yourself. You speak in 4-5 word sentences. You "read" books, you write "your name" you color, you run, climb, jump.... you do everything a two year old does. And I keep forgetting that you're NOT two YET. Whoa, momma needs to slow down with you. I've been unfair!
Thanks for growing up fast, though. :) You know how we run things around here - we are spontaneous and always on the go... You know that your dad, sister (and even dog, now) love you so very much and we love you forever and we love you always and it's always and forever unconditional. You are so beautiful, inside and out. I promise not to rush your whole life, I just let the first year get carried away. You are precious - thanks for blessing my life.
I heart you!
Mommy





Dear family and friends in CO,
Julia and I are flying into Denver in a couple of weeks!! We won't have much time for visiting or fellowship - it will be a quick trip, we're using my step-sisters wedding as our excuse to come! I can't wait to see the family - especially dad. I can't wait to share an airplane ride with Julia - I just know that she is going to LOVE it! I can't wait to relax with family. I can't wait to see my beautiful step-sister get married. I can't wait to spend one-on-one time with Julia. I can't wait to be "on vacation." And? I can't wait to come home... because I know that I will miss my husby and my Beccs like CrAzY while we're gone!!
Much love!
Maggie




Dear Cancer,
You still suck. I still hate you. I still pray that we will find a cure in this lifetime. I still want you erradicated. And I still want you to leave my best friend alone. That is all.
Maggie

All the small things

This little ditty has been circulating around in e-mail for who knows how long. I am very flattered that my uncle, who sent it to me, said that it sounds like something I would write. He's not a man of many words - everything he says is either funny or very meaningful.  Anyway, I did not write this but appreciate what it says... I've been at a place in my journey this past week where I find myself in prayer thanking God for life.  Whoever said, "It's the little things that count" might not have had any idea how huge that message is.



I AM THANKFUL:

FOR THE WIFE
WHO SAYS IT'S HOT DOGS TONIGHT,
BECAUSE SHE IS HOME WITH ME,
AND NOT OUT WITH SOMEONE ELSE.

FOR THE HUSBAND
WHO IS ON THE SOFA
BEING A COUCH POTATO,
BECAUSE HE IS HOME WITH ME
AND NOT OUT AT THE BARS.

FOR THE TEENAGER
WHO IS COMPLAINING ABOUT DOING DISHES
BECAUSE IT MEANS SHE IS AT HOME, NOT ON THE STREETS.

FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS.

FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT.

FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM OUT IN THE SUNSHINE

FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING, WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING, AND GUTTERS THAT NEED FIXING

BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME.

FOR THE PARKING SPOT
I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING
AND I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH TRANSPORTATION .

FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM WARM.

FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH WHO SINGS OFF KEY

BECAUSE IT MEANS I CAN HEAR.

FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE CLOTHES TO WEAR.

FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES AT THE END OF THE DAY
BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.

FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF
IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS
BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM ALIVE..

AND FINALLY, FOR TOO MUCH E-MAIL
BECAUSE  IT MEANS I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE THINKING OF ME.

Haiku

Missing co-worker
He passed away on Thursday
Waiting to hear more

Not a real close friend
but knew a lot about him
now wish we knew more

Emotions confused;
attending the services
is far from the end

The worst day

Yesterday was a very bad day.

I had been anticipating the day for a while because it was the first day of enrollment for the "new kid." The business is doing very well - all the kiddos are about the same age, ranging from 22 months old to 26 months old - with Julia as my assistant at her tender age of 4. But yesterday was going to be my first day with a FULL HOUSE - five 2 year olds and Julia. I was both nervous about it, and super excited about it - finally, we'd have enough kiddos to do some really fun things... like playing with the new parachute that I purchased a few weeks ago... like playing duck-duck-goose... like having a real full-on classroom. But still - who in their right minds looks forward to a day with five two year olds without a little bit of apprehension, right? :)

On Sunday night, while running, we ran into one of my newer charges who told me that she would not be bringing her son in on Monday because he'd been running a fever all weekend. I listened to her story, apologized for her son's illness, and went about my way praying for M's health while silently grumbling about how my first full day was going to have to be a first full day, minus one.

Little did I know this was the beginning.

You see, this boy who wasn't going to be here on Monday due to his weekend fever - well, his family is friends with ours and we spend quite a bit of time with them on a weekly basis. And, I come to find out late Monday morning that, whatever the boy had that induced a high fever over the weekend? Was now something that we've inadvertently shared with the rest of the kids who visit my house.

Ugh, my Monday was filled with irritated children, fevers, advil, tylenol, motrin, on and off napping, children refusing to eat, children not drinking anything, calls to parents, email conversations, worry, worry, prayer, worry, prayer and more prayer and worry.

I ended up sending two of the three kiddos home. All four of the toddlers that come here have the same virus. This plain ole S U C K S. I feel horrible that they're all sick. I feel terrible that they're miserable and suffering fevers. I feel worse that they all probably got sick from each other while in my care. Yesterday was by far the worst day I have ever had as a childcare provider. Sending children home one-by-one and communicating about the illness with all the parents is something I hope to never relive.

I'm so happy that it was just a fever virus, that there were no other symptoms to relate to it. Hopefully everybody will be able to snap out of this within the next day or two. I just keep praying for health and wellness. I'm taking every precaution I can think of to make sure this doesn't happen again any time soon... but no matter how well established our hand-washing routines are, no matter how much I sanitize toys, no matter how careful I am about spreading germs... when you get 2 or more kiddos together, sharing the same toys, the same furniture, the same space and air... a total wipeout virus like this one is still possible. Kids learn to share everything ...icky sicky germs included, like it or not.

Yesterday might have been my worst day so far, but that doesn't mean that today can't be our best. We'll take what we're given and make the most of it!