...my ability to drive by nurseries (just say no.) As for tangible things, lost an expensive gold earring stepping out of the shuttle van at my mom's place in TX in the middle of the night. It fell into her front flower bed but I didn't know it at the time. Searched and searched the next day IN the house and no results. In the mean time, I was asked during my visit(for the umpteenth year in a row) and agreed to plant pink petunias in her front bed (in 90 degree and like humidity). I dug up the bed, amended, raked it clean, and planted petunias, arguing with Mom all the time that the bed was too shady, but she said down there they have what locals call "bounce light" and it would be sufficient. I left for home the next week, still with just one earring. She called me a month later to tell me it had been a mistake (mine!!!) to plant petunias in that bed, and while she was moving them she found my earring. How it was that I missed it digging in that bed, and that they survived the amending,etc. is beyond me. But, I refuse to plant any more pink petunias. Never cared for the annual, anyway.

My mother passed away April 13th 2022. she raised me and my sister, as a single mother. she worked 2 jobs to ptovide for us, but we took her for granted as children. When the mother of my 2 children passed away in 2016, my mother moved in with us. My mother helped raise my daughter(16 now) and my son(15 now) for almost a decade. My mother was more than just my best friend, she was my only friend. i have complex PTSD, and she was the only one that i trusted enough to talk about the war with… she went with me to the VA, when i had to. she gave me strength, she always seemed to understand things that other people either couldnt or didnt want to understand… my dog died about a month before my mother did… 2022 has taken a lot from me and my 2 children… they saw her as a mother, as much as me… i go from feeling numb to feeling deep sadness and loss… i don‘t want to give up, but i always needed her support. she died from cancer, after being on immunotherapy for 2 years… she suffered from many side effects, for most of her treatment. she became so thin near the end that it was painful to see her like that… i was with her until the end, and it may sound strange but i held her for some time after she died and just sobbed onto her… i talk to her still thst she is dead for months, but i still wake up thinking that she is alive… i beli my mother is in heaven, but selfishly i just want my mom back… i miss my only friend… i miss the only selfless person that i ever met… i feel so empty, and i did not think that id feel so lost… she gave me direction when i didnt know what to do… i hope this posts, it does give comfort to know that i am not a

I don't think there's a 'one size fits all' on what will make your parents feel better. We lost our precious 10 year old poodle almost 3 months ago and it was the hardest thing I've ever gone through and I'm 66. He had not been well for 4 years but I'm an optimist and chose to believe he had more time left. DH is a pessimist and thought he was going long before he did. We both thought it best to make arrangements before hand and I'm glad we did. I ordered him a beautiful casket, almost like a human one, and we had our SIL prepare his burial spot and put a plastic container large enough for the casket to go in. Once that was done I felt no need to discuss it but DH would talk about it when any of our kids were here. I think it made them uncomfortable and I would ask him not to bring it up. Jett suddenly got worse @ 4:00 on a Friday. After getting his usual treats and meds he shortly got behind a chair where he had never gotten before and we knew something was wrong. We rushed him to the vet, he checked him and told us what had happened was actually a blessing. I secretly questioned his sanity but he meant that Jett was going quickly instead of long and drawn out. His lungs had filled with fluid and he had a tumor in his abdomen that DH had just discovered that day and he knew every bump on him since he held him pretty much the entire time he was home. The vet said we needed to let him go and I first told him I simply couldn't. He was concerned that Jett would get in trouble afterhours and he wasn't on call. I held Jett while he went to check who would be on call and to get him an injection for pain. When I realized it was better to let him go I made the decision right then to make it easier for him. I stayed with him to the end but DH couldn't. I'm saying all this to tell you that each person has to do things their own way. There's no way I would have left him though it was hard to see him take his last breath. I had always said I didn't think I would survive losing either of my 'babies' but somehow you go on. It was a horrible week, then the tears got farther apart. Now I tear up thinking about him but I know he's at peace and waiting for us. As for your parents not wanting to go anywhere, I totally understand. We didn't both leave ours for anything. Jett has a 'sister' 6 months younger and we don't leave her even though she isn't sick. While she hasn't verbally grieved (like our neighbor's dog still does after losing her partner 3 months ago) she just doesn't seem happy now. I don't know how to help her. I expected her to totally freak out when Jett left and had the vet give her a sedation injection. He also gave us meds to give her but she didn't visually get upset so I haven't given them. She has a cat to play with and doesn't seem to look for Jett but just seems sad. We also have her arrangements made, hopefully way in advance. I hope your parents have a lot of time left with him and that they can cope when the time comes. I would just suggest you listen if they want to talk about it and try to comfort them when it's his time. I have never let myself question if I did the right thing. We have to make decisions based on what we think is best and it doesn't help to torture ourselves with the 'what if's'. My thoughts are with you and your sister too.

No, babies are still the best thing about any house:) (I never did extensive childproofing I must say. That's more of a here-concept. Oh of course I watched them all the time and nothing breakable was in their way. And I did teach them to pick up toys at a very young age..(a bit of a lost battle with my DD lol) And they've ruined things sometimes of course..but I was very ..umm..lets say very much not like my SIL who was all about letting my nephews to express themselves freely -thus all the walls in their place are covered with monsters and the likes, elaborately drawn with black sharpener At some point when they were already eight or do she got fed up with it and told them no more drawing on the walls. They were deeply surprised because why they could before, and now they suddenly can't? lol Btw their light upholstered furniture also has reminders of how they learned to write..also in black sharpener. The couch has "Our couch" proudly written on it, and the armchair has "Our armchair"..:) They are very bright and creative and one of them is actually very artistic and draws very well now, so maybe all this drawing wherever played a role, I don't know:)