goodbye Hedgie

We had a great Sunday dinner with Angie and her kids. Linc and Oliver just love getting to spend time with them. We don't actually know how it happened, but somehow, Hedgie ended up out of his ball and not alive on the floor next to it. We have some theories, one of which includes Jen the the standard poodle perhaps thinking a hamster in his ball was a pretty fun toy, but we don't really know for sure. All I do know is that Lincoln found him and cried harder than I've ever heard him. It was a bit traumatic for us all, and took a few days to digest. There are times when people ask me why I let my kids have animals, but truthfully after this experience, I think I know better why. Life can be hard sometimes, and unfortunately death is a part of our journey here, so I guess it's a good opportunity for us as a family to deal with these minor loses, like Hedgie, so that they will somehow be better prepared for the gut wrenching losses that sadly, sometimes happen. It provided our whole family with some important lessons on how to be a better care takers of our treasured friends and dealing with the loss, which wasn't easy for Lincoln especially.

This picture is so cute of these two, but it makes me sad to look and see Lincoln's eyes all swollen from crying so hard. All of his cousins were very concerned all week long, and checked to make sure that Linc was doing O.K. Sweet boys!

The boys working on a little rock we're using as his grave marker. It might seem a little silly to do all of this for a hamster, but if you know Lincoln at all, you'll know why all of this pomp and ceremony was needed. He has such a tender heart, and really did love this little guy.

They worked so hard and carefully on it, and I think it turned out beautifully!

We'll miss you Hedgie!