If I had one suggestion...

If someone asked me what got me through losing the 24 Paws of Love, I would have never thought it would be a pillow.   

The summer after Zappa died, a friend of ours gave Mark the above pillow of Zappa and him.  You would not believe the relief this pillow brought us.  We could hold it, talk to it, squeeze it, kiss it and cry into it and it was if Zappa was right there.  It was something tangible to hold on to and it made it difference in our grieving process.  

The following Christmas I got pillows of all the 24 Paws.  It was hard to believe that a pillow of the dogs could make such a transformation as we muddle through the loss, but it did.  There was something almost real about it.  

I know for some a pillow might not be your first thought, it wasn't mine either, but that gift from our friends, changed the way we thought and grieved.  I still hold them every night as I tell them good night.   

Maybe it could work for you. too.

Just a boy and his dog

One of the joys of having Chevy is watching Mark and Chevy's relationship develop.  They are like two peas in a pod.  They sleep together, they sit on the couch together,  they take their morning walk every day and they have snacks together at night.  Chevy follows Mark everywhere waiting for the next adventure or treat.  The happiness between the two of them is heartwarming.  Mark took the death of Zappa and the 24 Paws pretty hard.  Zappa was his dog and the last to die.  And while Mark loves all dogs, I wasn't sure how he would feel getting another dog.  I still can't believe he said, "Let's go get him tomorrow," when I showed him the picture of Chevy.  It has been miracle after miracle with these two boys.  Chevy is the kind of dog boys dream of having.