A Few Pics From Sunday

The boys were in full clown mode yesterday!! Got a few cute pictures of them. Enjoy!

National Finals Rodeo

So - last Monday - I got to go to the NFR in Vegas!! What an amazing experience that was!! I wish I could have taken my good camera.... all I got was some crappy iPhone pictures.... but pictures are proof I was there!

The pre-show was awesome! Pyrotechnics and a laser/light show, a young lady 3who had won a contest to sing the anthem and she nailed it.... and the crowd was insane!! The theme this year was breast cancer so there was a lot of pink out there.... including the cowboys!

 

It was an honor to see the very best in the world compete.... Sherry Cervi, Fallon Taylor, Cody Ohl, Lisa Lockheart, Bobby Mote, Trevor Brazile, Luke Branquino, Curtis Cassidy and Jake Vold - the Alberta boys just to name a few! Even got to see Curtis Cassidy win the steer wrestling round that night! It was humbling to be in that building with such great talent!!

 

Cowboy Christmas was also pretty incredible.... 90,000 square feet of horse and western stuff! The Calgary Stampede had a set up and I saw some neat "artifacts" there...

I also was excited to see Rocketbuster Boots booth... their boots are amazing works of art!

If you EVER get a chance to go - TAKE IT! Even though I only got to go to the rodeo for one night it was still great!! 





 

 

A Little Pick Me Up...

So - in the midst of all the sadness... I had had a friend text me Sunday evening telling me she had found a GREAT deal on flights to Vegas... for the following Saturday. Kind of short notice.... Yes. But that's how I like to take trips. I texted my boss. He wasn't sure if any of my coworkers had the Monday and Tuesday booked already, so texted all of them and they didn't. So he told me to go ahead.

Then I started to think about it.... OMG! NFR WEEK! So my friend searched and was able to find us a pair of tickets to Monday night's performance! It has been a dream of mine to go to the NFR forever! So this spur of the moment bucket list trip has been the one thing to keep me from being an emotional disaster this week. Every time I wanna cry in public, I think about the NFR. I feel really guilty for being so happy, but fate seemed to want me to go. Kitty angel maybe wanted me to stop being sad and start being awesome? Maybe between my kitty and my mommy angel they made this happen for me. And of course my very thoughtful friend who decided I needed something big and exciting to get me through this difficult time.

Saying Goodbye To My Best Friend

I am beyond heartbroken. Sathurday, I had to say goodbye to my bestest little friend in the world.
The clinic called me yesterday morning and told me that the vomiting was only getting worse.... and in her opinion - letting him go was the best thing I could do for him at this point. What was going on inside his little body was worse than we had thought. I had woken up with the feeling in the pit of my stomach that it was going to come to that.





Billy was one of those once in a lifetime critters. He has been through so much with me. It was a bit funny to be sitting with him having one last visit, bawling my eyes out and having him comforting me. He was more concerned with making me feel better than he was with the fact that he was in a strange place, with an IV in his leg and sick. He was there for me right until the end. He loved and loved with all he had and the only way I could repay him was to let him go before the suffering really started. He's been there so many times for me through broken hearts and I will always be grateful for the short 5.5 years I had with him. This is when I need him the most.... to fix the biggest heartbreak I have ever had. Oh the irony. I just about died while I was sitting there on the floor talking to the vet and he hopped up and put his paws on my shoulder. I just lost it. He did it again when he climbed up on me - put his paws on my and just looked me in the eyes... purring the whole time. Sometimes you just know when you have to let go. He was happy and purring and Billy on the outside.... but there was too much going on on the inside. I think seeing him happy - while comforting - also made it extra hard since he didn't look sick on the outside.

To some - a cat is just a cat. To me - and to anyone who has ever loved and experienced the unconditional love of a kitty - or any animal for that fact, you know that letting them go is so incredibly devastating. He was my best friend, my little sidekick... he gave me a reason to come home everyday. I look at his favorite spots expecting to see him. I know I will never find a kitty quite like him. Anyone who met him loved him - and I know a lot of people got to love him even without meeting him - having only met him by seeing posts on Facebook. Friends like him are hard to come by and even harder to let go of. Who is going to lick my armpits, try to lick vaporub off of me when I am sick, beg me to share my Snack Packs - or anything that I am eating with a spoon? I will miss when I have a piece of cheese - he would "smile" - the tips of his fangs would poke out of the edge of his mouth and he'd do the funniest little head bob. The list goes on. As far as cats go - this guy had a personality second to none. I am going to miss his little face when I wake up and when I get home from work... and his purrs and snuggles. I already do so much. Rest in peace my little friend.