So, the past few days have been pretty crazy around here.  I think I’ve gone through every emotion possible.

Stacey (my big sis who’s pregnant) was put in the hospital Sunday to be
induced.  She had her first child through c-section and was going
to try having this one natural.  Because of this, they wanted to
induce her so that they can keep her monitored at all times.  She
was in the hospital all day Monday and never progressed.  Mom
called me Tuesday morning and told me that the doctor just decided to
take it through c-section again.  So, Cory and I headed to
Sullivan.  We weren’t able to make it there for the delivery, but
Tyler Ryan Smith was born at 10:04 Tuesday morning.  He weighed 7
lbs. 2 oz. and was 20.5 in. long…and absolutely adorable, of course.

Here he is!!

Proud big sister, Madi!

Very proud Auntie Kim and Uncle Cory!

So, the afternoon was awesome.  I love babies and Tyler is
awesome!!!  We also got to go out to dinner with the whole family,
which is always awesome.  I used awesome a lot in those few
sentences…

Then, in a crazy turn of events, the night ended horribly.  Cory
and I lost Hurley.  Lost as in he passed away.  We let him play out in my parents’ back yard
with their two dogs while we were running errands Tuesday
afternoon.  We came back and he was doing really well and having
TONS of fun with Roper.  So, we decided to just let him stay out
back while we went back up to Terre Haute to have dinner.  We were
a little nervous because my parents have an in-ground pool and the
cover broke over the winter so it was only half covered.  We
watched Hurley for a while and made sure he knew that pool = bad. 
He really didn’t seem to interested in it, so we didn’t think it’d be a
problem.  Well, we got home that night and found him in the
pool.  It was a crazy night to say the least…  Cory and I
decided to stay the night and then he and my two little brothers got up
Wednesday morning and took him to my Uncle Bob’s house in the country
and burried him.  The past two days have just been surreal. 
I know people always just talk about how they’re “just pets,” but Hurley
really was more than that.  He was my baby.  I took care of
him since the day I brought him home.  For the past three months,
my life has revolved around taking care of him.  And now he’s
gone…my apartment is quiet…I don’t have this big brown puppy
jumping on me all the time…it’s just crazy.  Today has been
really hard because it’s been the first full day I’ve been home without
him.  I woke up to my alarm this morning, not his crying.  I
got in the shower as soon as I woke up, and didn’t have to take a puppy
outside.  I was able to just get myself a bowl of cereal and not
have to make sure he had food first.  It’s all the little things
that make it weird.  For example, one of the biggest things that
Hurley did to annoy me was lick my feet as I was putting lotion on
them.  He did that every day.  But not today…and I
cried.  As I was getting ready, I was expecting him to peek his
head out from under my bed like he used to.  When it’s quiet, I
expect him to be sleeping in his usual spot underneath the futon…but
he’s not.

Ok, enough with the depressing stuff.  Yes, Hurley is gone and I am going to miss him terribly. 
But, God did this for a reason.  I don’t know why he blessed me
and Cory with him for such a short time, but He does.  On the
drive home yesterday, Cory and I were talking about things we learned
in the 3 months with Hurley.  I said I learned dog poop isn’t that
gross.  I had to pick it up 3-5 times a day…it really isn’t that
big of a deal.  (Yes, brothers and Dad, you can mark my words ) 
Cory said he learned that he was more of a dog person than he’d ever
realized.  I tell you what, that boy was an amazing dad to
Hurley.  Especially considering Hurley was his first pet ever. 
He was awesome.  I’ve grown up with at least 3 pets in the house
at all times, and I think Cory’s better at it than me!  We also
both said we learned a lot
about responsibility.  That’s a big one.  We learned that we
had to put his wants/needs above our own.  He also taught us how
to work together and brought us closer together.  It  was a
good experience for us.  Hurley was the first big thing Cory and I
did together…our first big purchase and step of responsibility. 
And we don’t regret a single minute of it.  We loved Hurley more
than I think a puppy could be loved.  And we’re going to miss
him…a lot.