Week 35

Thank you to everyone who sent us cards, emails and phone calls on the loss of our Murray. It's hard to believe it's already been a week that he died. At that time we were also dog-sitting for our neighbors 2 dogs, Fanny & Truman. So, we had 8 dogs in the house for 2 weeks (my 6 and our neighbors' 2). So, with Murray dying and then our neighbors coming home this past weekend and picking up their dogs, we are back down to only 5 dogs. It really seems like nothing now, which is actually very nice for me right now. I am feeling exhausted and quite large in these last few weeks of pregnancy. The extra burden of doing anything physically extra would have been very difficult on me. I think Murray must have known that and felt it was his time to go. I do miss him though.

This past week, I have just felt so weak and tired. This is my 35th week of pregnancy. I feel like the baby has grown a lot and is always kicking, moving, contracting. I still have 4-5 weeks until due date, and I know these last weeks will feel like an eternity at times. Sleeping is proving difficult, since it's often hard to breathe when I lie down, although sitting up can be painful on my back too. I miss my exercising and treadmill workouts...that too have gone by the wayside at this point because of too many contractions kicking in when I did that. So, I have been tired, cranky, sore and probably complaining way too much lately. I have to remind myself to be more cheerful and happy...the baby is almost here!

Easter Sunday was busy for us. The kids had their usual "Easter Bunny Egg Hunt" in the AM, in our front yard, then we went to mass at St. Augustine's. It was nice and not too crowded there. Afterwards, we split the day between Ken's parents for lunch and my parents for dinner. It was a loooong day and between church and family visiting, we were gone all day, and did not get home until about 11-12midnight. Luckily for me and the kids, we were able to sleep in on Monday, but poor Ken had to head into work...his usual time of getting up at 4am! I don't know how he does that every day!

Isaiah has turned into quite the movie director. He has gotten into filming lately and has been using my camcorder all week to record "movies" that he wrote and directed, with his siblings as the stars. He just finished making 2 short films today. The girls are soooo cute in these films! I will check with our friend, who is good at hooking up videos to YouTube, to see if he can hook these up for you all to see. For a first time director, they are not too bad and they are quite entertaining. Isaiah named his film company, "Traben Kids Productions".

Our Tribute to Murray

Blessed is the person who has earned the love of an old dog.
-- Sidney Jeanne Seward

Yesterday, Tuesday, March 18, 2008, our beloved Murray died. I feel very blessed to have known this special soul. So, I have a lot to say about him.

He almost made it to his 14th anniversary of being with us. I found him April 14, 1994 on the streets of Cleveland...a wild, street dog, as he was known by. He was definitely wild and untrained, not housebroken at all, and even quite vicious at the time. I did not have kids at the time, so Ken and I took our time to train and love him. He always kept some of his fun, wild spirit alive though, but with enough love and hope, he was transformed into a very loving, family dog. He was estimated to be about 1-2 yrs old at the time I found him, so he lived a good, long life for a dog...at least 15-16 years.

(Our family 2007 Xmas photo...I am holding Murray in the back)

He died about 9am yesterday in our backyard. We knew he was on his last leg here, so it was expected, but also sudden, since we did not expect it to happen as we were literally on our way out the door to go to Homeschool Co-op. When I got up around 7am, I went and checked on him, and petted him. He looked up at me and acknowledged me. Then we got ready to go to co-op and I let all the dogs out. I went up to get him a little before 9am and he seemed out of it. I carried him downstairs and he was very limp. I have been having to carry him up and down the stairs and outside for the past month. He's been too weak. But, luckily, he was not a heavy dog (only about 20-25 lbs), so we managed. We did whatever it took to keep an old friend comfortable and happy with us.

Once I got him outside, I put him down to pee, and he collapsed....and then seemed to have a seizure, like a heart attack. It was sad to watch. He did gasp for air at one point. I figured he was dead pretty quickly after that and called the kids out to come see him. As they came around him, crying and touching him, he seemed to almost come back to life for another 5 minutes or so, even though I had checked his heart and it seemingly had stopped. His heart picked up beating again and he was trying to move, but could not. He was struggling to stay with us. I know he did not want to go. I told him it was OK for him to go, and we all petted him...and soon it was over. Then it started raining.

I attached a photo of him below from this past Christmas...which was his favorite day of the year. He would lay among the dog stockings (yes, each dog gets their own stocking) and guard all the treats and rawhides, and pig out on them all day. Food and treats were his favorite things in life.

From the beginning he had been a fighter. A very tenacious, strong willed and "never give up" kind of being. He was one tough dog, and also a crazy, cartoon character of a lover. Up until a few weeks ago, we have had to always duct tape our refrigerator door closed, as well as all the cupboards, because he would pull them open and get to the food.

It's sad and also funny to look now and see the duct taped refrigerator still, remembering how feisty he was. He was a funny dog full of antics...a real troublemaker in his younger days. He's had a couple tough years here at the end though and we are glad he is finally at peace. He was a good friend, was loved and will be missed.

"You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us."
--Robert Louis Stevenson

What is with these dogs (who are all really angels)? They just all get to you, dig into your heart and then rip it out when they die. I just love them...love them...love them!! And I will go through this again and again and again...because I will always have dogs, since I truly love them all. My home will always be open for more.
In his old age, Murray would sometimes get very feisty like a ticked-off old man and would growl and snap, but he would never do it with me or the kids...mainly to Ken, other men and maybe strangers (this was an old habit of his that he had reverted to in his old age). Anyways, I found it very funny that every time I would pick him up to go outside, he would almost smile and cuddle as I'd carry him out. But, when Ken would carry him out in these last days, almost every time he'd pick him up, he would growl and snap at Ken...and really scare Ken. Ken had started wearing these thick, thick gloves to pick him up, because Murray would seriously bite and snap at Ken's hands and face. I had to laugh, since Ken would be all embaressed because he was scared of a 20 lb, old, frail, blind, practically toothless dog. Sometimes, Ken would call me to PLEASE help him because he was scared Murray would bite him. Well, once blind Murray knew it was me, he would calm down and not bite, and then I'd try to trick Murray and hand him off to Ken to take him out, and usually we'd hear the growling start to happen and Ken would run him quickly outside..for fear he'd get bitten fast. Oh My...it was the comic relief of my day! I miss it already. I just loved that feisty, old guy! Well, on the night of March 17th, the night before he died, he let Ken pick him up just fine. Ken knew it must be a sign of sorts...since he has not let Ken peacefully pick him up in awhile. It was so odd, that I took a photo of that night. This is Ken and Murray, after he brought him inside that night. Murray was so comforted in Ken's arms, that he fell asleep there with Ken holding him on the couch. This was the sweet Murray we had grown to love over the years.



"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then I want to go where they went."
-- Unknown


"Man walked up and said, "What is Wild Dog doing here?" And Woman said, "His name is not Wild Dog anymore, but The First Friend because he will be our Friend for always and always and always!"
-Rudyard Kipling

Murray, you were a good friend like no other! You are dearly missed and always loved.
Love, your Forever Family

P.S. To end this long post, I had to add one of my favorite dog poems, titled "Rainbow Bridge"

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

--Author unknown...

Oliver's 7th Birthday

Oliver celebrated his 7th Birthday on March 11th. We also happened to have Homeschool Co-op that day, so he enjoyed it even more. I put together a slide show for Oliver as well. Enjoy!

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

Sledding Fun

Today, the 3 boys were invited to their friend, Bryn's, 10th bday party. It was at a sledding hill in Chardon. Basically, they did sledding all afternoon...from 11am-3pm. They had a blast! It was great weather today. Even though we had a ton of snow still, the weather was not too cold. In fact, the kids got so hot and sweaty from climbing up the hill, many of them ended up taking their coats off eventually. The party was full of many of the homeschool kids from our co-op, just enjoying the nice day on the sledding hill. Isaiah did fine with his cast. I had wrapped up his cast with a plastic bag and rubber bands, to make sure it did not get wet, and he was careful and did great on the hill sledding...no pain and and no wet cast.

The 2 girls had also gotten invited to their friend, Emerysn's, 5th bday party...from 12-2pm today. So, with 2 bday parties in one day....I was shuttling between the 2 parties, dropping off the boys first, then going to take the girls...then coming back to get the boys later. The girls went to a party at Playground World, which is an indoor playground, full of the Rainbow Play Systems. The girls had a blast as well, and it was just a day full of birthday parties for all 5 kids! What a tough life they lead.

We were just realizing today that many, many of the kids we know have birthdays in March. This past Sunday, the boys had also been to another bday party...Ethan's 11th bday which was at a Skating Rink. They also played Laser Tag there. And, tomorrow is Oliver's 7th Birthday! We have Homeschool Co-op tomorrow, so I made a ton of chocolate chip cookies for Oliver to pass out to his friends. I hear that it is also Jahliyah's 9th bday and Adam's 12th bday tomorrow (they are also homeschool friends of ours at the co-op). Looks like tomorrow will be a triple birthday celebration at the Homeschool Co-op. Oliver is very excited!

Isaiah, Jeremy & Oliver ready to go sledding!


The kids head back up the hill for more.


The boys sledding and Bryn snowboarding.


Bryn, the Birthday Girl!


Kateri having fun on the rings at Playground World.


Luanna loved riding the Train.

33 weeks

Here we are...at 33 weeks pregnant! Things are going great. I just had another check up today. Baby is healthy and kicking a lot. I am getting huge and am looking forward to meeting Baby in about 6-7 weeks.

Isaiah is feeling better and only has 2 weeks to go with wearing his cast. His arm is not hurting him as much anymore, and he has gotten used to wearing the cast. Of course, he just got invited to a Skating Birthday party this Sunday and then to a Sledding Birthday party next week. Ugh! He'll go to both parties, but will play video games at the Skating party instead. I think I will let him sled a bit at the other party, but be very careful in doing so.


Isaiah, Jeremy and Oliver had a triple birthday party last weekend. Since all 3 boys have birthdays about a month apart (Feb 17-March 31), I figured it was easiest this way. So, we celebrated Isaiah's 11th, Jeremy's 9th and Oliver's 7th. We had the party at the gym, where we have our Homeschool Gym classes (where Isaiah broke his arm). They each invited a few friends, as well as their cousins and some neighbors. We played dodgeball, relay races, basketball shots, hula hoops and a beanbag toss. The kids also skated around and brought scooters to play on. It was a fun time. As the boys get older, I am really enjoying them more and more. This is really my favorite age that they are entering into, and they are growing into such great kids. I find myself having wonderful conversations with them.

Isaiah's Broken Wrist

The Adventures never end at the Traben household!
Yesterday, during our Homeschool Gym class, which involves lots of kids skating around in roller skates, roller blades and scooters, Isaiah had a collision with a few other kids. I guess someone in front of him had fallen, and in order to not run over her, Isaiah braced himself and flipped over her on to the ground, bracing himself with his left hand, which he landed hard on. He was in immediate pain and we left the gym soon after. We took him to the Pediatrician last night, who seemed hopeful that his left arm/wrist was not broken...mainly because there was no bruising, no swelling and he seemed to be moving it fine. She sent us home and told us to wait a few days, see how things are or we could choose to do x-rays in the morning. With all the pain he was having, I decided to do the x-rays this morning.

Last night, poor Isaiah was in a lot of pain. He even took an Ibuprofin pill to get to sleep. If anyone knows my kids....they never take drugs of any kind...pretty much ever. So, the fact that he actually let me give him something made me think something was definitely wrong. When we went in for x-rays today, even the x-ray tech did not think anything was broken. Again...no swelling, no bruising, and he could move it pretty good. I was starting to wonder why I was the only one who thought it could be broken...but Moms can sense things about their kids...better than others. The dr was shocked to see that he had a buckle break...a very minor, but definite break. The good thing is that he only has to wear the cast for 3 weeks, versus the normal 6 weeks. We actually got into see a Pediatric Specialist this afternoon and they put a nice, blue cast on him. He will be able to get it off on March 21st...the first day of spring, and just in time for Baseball season. So, he is happy about that.

Little Artists

Kateri and Luanna have been having a lot of fun lately creating all sorts of works of art. We do a lot of arts, crafts, painting and drawing here at home, but they do love to go the the weekly Homeschool Co-op, where they create masterpieces. Here are the 2 cuties, with some of their latest projects. I am very impressed with Luanna's capabilities lately. Kateri has always been an artist...all my kids naturally are. But, when we adopted Luanna, she initially showed little interest in drawing, painting or art in general. Her attention span seemed to be very limited to much of anything, and I often wondered if she'd ever sit still and develop some interests. But, lately, she has picked up the interest in art as well. I am so proud of her! She sat at the art table at co-op last Tuesday for a whole HOUR and painted her glass vase (and glued jewels on it). She was the last child at the art table on Tuesday, silently painting her vase...which was just great. I was so happy to see that her attention span lasted the whole class...a full hour....just driven by doing her art project. She was very into the whole painting thing. Her vase (and Kateri's) now grace my China cabinet at home.