Pappy

I have been slightly missing in action. I had a good reason though. As I slightly mentioned in my last post I was having some tough family issues going on and I'd like to elaborate a bit. I'm not sure you guys remember but around a year ago my grandfather (mainly known as Pappy) was in the hospital for quite some time battling brain cancer. After months of treatment and therapy he was deemed to be in remission and eventually went on to lead his life fairly normally for the next year. It wasn't until about a month ago that we found out that the cancer came back. We knew there was nothing to be done but we (especially my mom and aunt) our best to keep him comfortable and happy. He passed away peacefully.

I really wish you all could have met my grandfather. He loved everyone and everyone loved him. He worked hard his whole life and even up to his last days he never stopped working. He lived a full life, I can't think of one thing he hasn't done. He was a great grandfather, friend, and such a wonderful father figure. He supported my family and I in so many ways and he never thought twice about it. Before he got sick he and I would frequently play golf and I was always amazed at how good he was even though he never thought he was good enough. I will miss our weekend coffee meetings and family dinners we used to have, it just won't be the same. Nothing will be the same. My heart, everyone's heart is left with an enormous hole. He was an amazing man and will never be forgotten. This post doesn't even come close to how great he really was. 

Pappy and me when I was little

Still Alive

Don't worry I am still alive, just eaten up with tons of school and some tough family stuff.

Ava has been good. I don't see her much at the moment but get down there when I can. The arena is finally melting and we will finally be able to start working again!

I also received (after almost 3-4 weeks of waiting) my leopard gecko, Beju! He is amazing and I already love him. They are also super easy to care for, it is amazing!

Ava nipping Poco

Our first day back to work

Beju was finally starting to explore his vivarium

What's in my Grooming Bag?

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I hope everyone has a Happy Valentine's Day and make sure to give lots of hugs and kisses to those you love (especially your horses!)

Sickness Brews and Beju Bear

For almost the past week I had been pretty sick. My head was throbbing, I had a fever (which I hadn't got in forever!), a cough that killed my throat, my eyes for some reason were in immense pain and looked like the eyes of the devil, I was almost too weak to stand, dizzy too, and nausea was always keeping me from eating. I literally spent days in bed barely getting up. But now I can finally get around again despite a foggy mind.

I haven't seen my pony girl for a while now and it is driving me crazy. We've been getting a lot of snow too... I hope I feel well enough to see her tomorrow.

In other news I have something to share with you all. I don't share many other aspects of my life besides horses and possibly some stuff about school but I am so excited about this and really wanted to share. For the past few months I have been obsessed with reptiles. Ever since I held an eight year old Ball/Royal python named Borris at my local Master Naturalist class I fell in love. I watched millions of videos and intently read all about their species. They were fascinating and I really wanted one but owning a snake wouldn't happen for a while due to having other animals in the house that could be eaten (chances of it even happening are slim but shouldn't take the chance)... But I still researched and learned a lot about them until I came across Leopard Geckos. My obsession grew into something more as I learned all about these little creatures. They sounded amazing and after realizing how cheap and easy they are to care for I decided to adopt one. I browsed through many breeders until I found this little guy at a great price. He is almost six months old (they can live from 15-28 years!) and is called a Jungle Morph. I named him Beju and am so excited to get him!

Beju! not my photo, geckoboa.com