Finley

Monty

Moby

But then Koko happened. My sister’s friend Judi volunteers for an awesome animal rescue and placement service Barks of Love. Most of their animals are rescued from shelters before they are euthanized or rescued from people no longer able to care for them. It is a great organization staffed by caring and committed volunteers. Judi and Barks of Love will do whatever it takes to rescue an animal and place it into a good home. Fortunately for me, she thinks we have one, because when she posted a picture of a foster pup needing a good home, I was done. In my heart she was already mine.

Koko

My health was definitely a consideration for all of us when deciding if Koko was a good fit for us. It would not be reasonable or fair for me to adopt a high energy dog that needs excessive exercise. My husband is already the designated dog-walker, so adding one more leash was not an issue for him, but if she needed more walking than he has time for it would be a problem. Dogs are great to help encourage us to walk and be active, but as we all know there are days when it is just not possible. I know I am fortunate to have a husband to compensate for my unpredictable health. And it turns out that Koko is the perfect fit for us after all.

She is smart beyond belief! Mostly house trained when we got her thanks to the great fosters with Barks of Love. Her name was Justice, but we changed it to Koko and she answered to it by the end of her first day here. She is playful but not crazy. In fact she gets most of her energy out on her walks with Rob and in playing with Finley. They have become great friends. I was fortunate with Casey and Finley. They had the knack of matching their energy to mine. If I needed to sleep in, they let me. If I needed quite time and space, they respected it, and somehow, Koko is already doing the same. She really is amazing!

Give her a toy to play with or a bone to chew on and she is in heaven. She puts herself into her crate when she is ready for a nap. She seldom whines, she respects authority, and has already learned several tricks. Did I mention she is amazing?

Rob and I were not blessed to have children of our own. Koko, Finley, Monty and Moby are as close as we will get to raising a family. Casey filled my heart with love for 15 years, and when she was gone I had no place to direct it. Lucky little Koko is the new beneficiary of all that love. She is not replacing Casey. She is honoring Casey. I had a dream the night before we were to meet Koko. I was standing at my front door and Koko was on the other side. As I reached to open the door I looked down and Casey was standing there wagging her tail, excited to meet the newest member of our family. It was all the reassurance I needed that Casey is fine, and that Koko belongs with us.

Casey

Welcome to the family little Koko!

Note: No the turkeys do not have Fibromyalgia, I DO! (and bad grammar too).

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I am hosting for 16 members of my family.  This is my fourth consecutive year doing so. I love hosting, and I love spending time with my family, and I would not willingly give up the honor of having them all here tomorrow, but there is always the Fibromyalgia to consider.  It is always there, like a big-old-ugly party pooper just waiting to smash me with its mallet of pain.  I have to consider it in everything I do, otherwise there is nothing left to consider, I am just down for the count, period.

So here are some of the things I have learned to do to help make sure that the day is a success for everyone, including myself.

Start early.

I start preparing for everything a couple of weeks ahead of time. Doing whatever I can ahead of time makes my life so much easier – wash the linens and serving platters, wipe down the folding chairs, etc. Not only does it help reduce my stress as Thanksgiving Day approaches because I have less to do, but it forces me to be organized.

Make lists.

I have grocery lists, and cleaning lists, and lists for my husband – lists, lists, lists! It may sound like overkill, but when my brain shuts down, as it tends to do with Fibrolmyalgia, where would I be without my lists? They give me direction and purpose when I get confused and overwhelmed. And they are constantly changing and evolving. If I hadn’t left my camera at a friend’s I would take a photo of my shopping list for you to see. It is a color-coded thing of beauty!

Ask for help and accept unsolicited help.

Granny makes the homemade noodles and dressing, my Aunt makes the pies. My sister and mother-in-law also contribute. And my Dad, well he contributes where it hurts the most, the pocket book! Really everyone pitches in. Even my newly married cousin asked what she could bring this year. It made me proud and a little sad that she is so grown up.

For the last few days I have had the best little helper, my niece. She is 13 going on 30 and is wonderful to have around. Poor little thing, she has no idea she is going to be pulling weeds today.

Don’t sweat the small stuff

This has been the hardest thing for me to overcome. I am a control freak. I like every little thing in its place. I could have been Martha Stewart’s maid in a former life. Seriously, I used to fret if one of my books was a centimeter out of line on my bookshelf. Fibromyalgia has forced me to get over this. I do not have the strength, the energy, or the brainpower to live like that anymore.

So when the family gets here tomorrow and there is a dust bunny that crawls out from under the sofa, I am not going to panic or apologize like I once did. Heck, I might not even pick it up. What do you expect? I have four pets. Get over it!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Note 2: No turkeys were harmed in the production of this post.  But tomorrow, that’s another story.