Category Archives: Family

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Good-bye to Nelson

Yesterday, the Hyatt’s had to say “good-bye” to Nelson, our velvety-soft, floppy-lipped, forlorn-looking, co-dependent, devoted companion.

I’m still in shock. My eyes well up with tears at the mention of his name.

Four days ago, he got into some trash and did what English Setters are notorious for doing—he ate it. Quite a bit apparently. It was the second time he’d gotten deathly ill from eating trash.

I took him to the vet’s on Tuesday evening—even missed our weekly campus gathering to do it—and the vet greeted us with, “Nelson, buddy. So you’re back again, are you?” They loved Nelson at the vets. They loved Nelson at Paw Pals, the doggie daycare. They loved Nelson at the bank and at the dry-cleaners. Everybody loved Nelson.

Tuesday evening, the doctor took x-rays, ran a few tests, gave me some meds and told me to go home and watch him through the night, and if he got worse to bring him back Wednesday morning. He did get worse. He was in pain and couldn’t get comfortable. He moaned and whined and sometimes cried out very loudly.

I stayed up with him all night, making up a bed for myself on the couch in the den. At one point during the night, when he was particularly whiney and pitiful, I laid down on the floor next to him, curled up around his back, stroked his head and told him everything was going to be ok. I lay there for at least an hour.

The next morning, Mike woke up bright and early. We had a flight to catch to San Antonio where he would be speaking on Thursday. He walked into the den and saw me dozing on the couch. Then his eyes caught a very uncomfortably positioned Nelson laying on the floor beside me. Mike crouched down on the hard wooden floor and began comforting Nelson—stroking his silky head, talking gently to him, praying for him and just quietly letting him know that his he wasn’t alone.

Once 7:00 a.m. hit, Nelson obediently got up at my command and slowly walked to the car with me. He LOVED to ride in the car. He didn’t have enough power to jump up into the seat, so I carefully picked him up, put him inside, shut the door and off we went.

When I took Nelson up to the desk at the vet’s office, I explained that he was not better at all. I’d like to leave him there and our daughter Marissa would pick him up after class that afternoon. Meanwhile they could do more examinations, more tests and try to figure out what was going on and what they could do for him. Mike and I left for Texas.

When Marissa called later that afternoon, they told her that they wanted to keep him overnight. He was still in a lot of pain and they wanted to observe him longer and perform a few more tests.

On Thursday, Mike and I drove to Oak Hills Church where Mike would be leading an all day seminar on Creating Your Personal Life Plan. The meeting began at 8:30. At 9:00 I got a text from Marissa telling me to call her right away. It was urgent. It was about Nelson.

I slipped out of the room and expected her to tell me that they had to do emergency surgery on him or something along that line. No. She told me that she had just gotten a call from the vet telling her that Nelson didn’t make it through the night.

I was in complete shock. I thought for sure that we had caught this incident in time and that he would be fine. He might have to have his stomach pumped or something, but he would be fine. But no. Now he was gone and I couldn’t even tell Mike, who was in the middle of speaking. I had to wait all day before I could tell him.

The veterinary staff were completely stunned. None of the tests and blood-work had shown anything so life-threatening. Everyone was baffled.

And shocked.

And sad.

The doctor asked if they could do some further tests to see if they could find out what really happened. I said yes. The two likely culprits seemed to be poison or an obstruction. After talking with the office today it seems as if Nelson had apparently eaten something sharp and it had perforated his intestines, causing a severe infection that overtook his already weakened body way too fast. Needless to say, we’re heartbroken.

In lieu of more words, I’ll let the pictures show what a special dog he was. We’ll miss you, Nelson.

A very handsome boy!

THE BEST KID’S DOG!!

Under the umbrella fort with Ellie.

Dress up time.

Every dog needs socks, right?

One must wear a bib when going to the doctor.

Budding buddies—Ben and Nelson.

Your buddy, Uncle Loren will surely miss you!

Silly sleeping poses.

Summertime relaxing on the back porch. It’s what you do in the South. Where’s my Sweet Tea?

Stalking a bird—once a bird dog, always a bird dog.

Frolicking in the snow!

We’ll always love you, Nelson!

And now this, from my friend David Teem’s book And Thereby Hangs A Tale:

… It has been said that dogs have no souls. Maybe it does or doesn’t matter. It’s not an argument I care to make. But my question would be how could any creature love so purely without one? It is difficult to imagine a heaven without their kind.

I have often thought what it might be like when my own time comes, when my footfalls are heard at the gates of heaven. What might my welcome be? Will I be greeted with a blast of trumpets? Or the song of angels? Either one would be nice.

But I had another thought.

No, give me bustle. Give me the comic riot. Greet me with pant and clamor. Greet me with the wild exultant joy of dog love: perfect, complete, and above all true, love that seems at home wherever it is, but especially here. Give me three wet black noses pressing eager and impatiently through the gates. Give me the old music, the whine and the howl, the high lonesome cry of jubilee. Sweetness and homecoming overflowing all our cups, as if I am given complete absolution for my crime against them, a full and undoubted pardon. Truth is, I don’t think they held anything against me at all. They never could. And thereby hangs a tale.

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Circus Weekend Part 2: The Circus

Last November PBS began airing a documentary series called Circus. (Check it out!) I fell in love with it as soon as I watched the trailer.  After I finished the six hours, I immediately looked to see if the Big Apple Circus would be coming ANYwhere in the Southeast. I would love nothing more than to take the grandkids to see it. But no such luck. Apparently The Big Apple Circus doesn’t venture this far south.

So I began to search for another circus that would be coming our area and realized that I would have to settle for the next best thing, The Greatest Show on Earth.

Fortunately for Michael and me, Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey have several different shows traveling around the country simultaneously. This would allow us to go to the circus on two different weekends and see two different shows. First we took Ellie and Libby to the “Fundrum” circus in Nashville, and the following Saturday we took Fionn and Felicity to the “Fully Charged” show in Birmingham. Both were fabulous.

I’m going to share a few pictures with you and hopefully inspire you to take the time to do something really special with your kids, your grandkids, nieces or nephews, neighbor or any child you can think of. Childhood passes much too quickly and fun memories need to be a part it.

That’s Libby. She’s dancing with one of the performers during the pre-show. Make sure to go to the pre-show if you’re going to a Ringling Bros. circus.

The pre-show was so much fun. They brought out this big beautiful elephant …

… who painted a picture with it’s trunk. They had a drawing for the picture.

The show began with a grand parade led by the Ringmaster who, by the way, had an incredible singing voice.

I wasn’t expecting so many clowns, but the show had hot-and-cold-running clowns. They were hilarious.

There’s something about seeing these massive animals, all lined up, sitting on their behinds. You just gotta smile.

And the fact that they can all stand up on their hind legs and lean on each other like dominos was incredible.
How can something so huge look so graceful? I think the elephants are my favorite.

Notice this woman is in red heels!

The strength and control of the performers is absolutely mind-boggling.

Intermission was all about the hotdogs. (That’s Fionn)
I hadn’t had a hotdog in probably five years. I have to say, it was worth the wait. Delish! I’m good for another five years, though!

And, when you go to the circus you MUST get cotton candy.

It doesn’t matter how you feel about candy and sugar, or how much it costs ($12.00!), a circus is not complete without cotton candy.

Intermission’s over. Back to the circus and more laughs.

The tight-rope performers were captivating. I think Ellie held her breath through the entire act.

There are a lot of animals in a circus, but I think the Tigers are the most beautiful.

The trainer was wonderful with them. It was obvious that he had a special bond and love for these magnificent cats.

We were sad to see the circus come to a close. The final parade was a fitting end to it all.

So there you have it. I’m so grateful to add another childhood memory to my collection. I’ve decided that I’m not ready to grow up yet. Not quite yet.

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Circus Weekend Part 1: Pre-Circus

Well, Michael and I have joined the circus. Well, almost. For the past two weekends, we’ve been at the circus. The Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus to be exact. Here’s the story:

And yes, that’s me.

Ever since I bought a copy of Toby Tyler and showed it to the grandkids, I knew I wanted to take them to a Circus.

Each year when the Circus came to town, I toyed with buying the tickets. But I waited. I waited until they got to THE perfect age.

I wanted them to be old enough to appreciate the talent and skill demonstrated by the performers. And I wanted their experience of the Circus to be one that they would never forget and hold forever dear in their treasure box of memories. This was the year.

Our four oldest grandchildren are now ages 5-9. Perfect! Here they are: Fionn 9, Libby 5, Felicity 7, and Ellie 7.

It helps that they’re so cute because you’d better not
take your eyes off of them for a second.

So I began planning. After some discussion, Mike and I decided that it would be best to go to two separate circuses and take two children at a time.

We really wanted to give them special, undivided attention. Plus, let’s be honest, WE wanted special, undivided attention from THEM—no competition!

Scheduling issues also came into play so we settled on Nashville and Birmingham on the last two Satrudays of January.

(Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey have several different shows that play simultaneously around the country.)

Once we settled on the “when” we had to work out the “how.” We decided that we would give the kids the gift of the Circus for their Christmas presents.

I found a circus-related toy for each of them, and hid a handmade card inside each of the toys. On the outside of the card it said, “Guess What?”

When the card  was opened it said, in big red letters, “WE’RE GOING TO THE CIRCUS!”

And inside there was a big, yellow ticket which read, “ADMIT ONE!”

Christmas morning. The kids were thrilled!

This moment alone was worth the whole idea!

Fast forward …

Now, let’s fast forward to January and the start of the Circus Weekends. For the purpose of this post, I’m going to combine the weekends into one. The second weekend was pretty much a repeat performance of the first.

Like I said above, I wanted the kid’s Circus Weekend to be memorable. So I began planning. Here are some of the things I decided to do:

1. We would have the kids come over Friday night to spend the night. But this would be no ordinary spend-the-night.

2. I would greet them at the door, on Friday—Circus theme playing over the speakers. (Listen here.)—in a full clown costume complete w/ giant shoes, balloons and a classic classic clown horn, all the while jumping up and down and chanting:

“We’re going to the Circus! We’re going to the Circus!”

They had NO idea what to say!! Never in all my born days …. Grandmommy?????

(By the way, part of determining the “perfect age” is knowing that they won’t completely roll their eyes and walk off because they’re “too cool.” Fionn, age 9, was on the borderline.)

3. We would read Circus books before bed.

Our very favorite is If I Ran the Circus, by Dr. Seuss. We’ve about got it memorized.

4. We would wake up Saturday morning and make famous Circus Waffles for breakfast!

I bought this waffle maker, years ago, from Williams Sonoma.
It’s made me a legend!! Find one.

5. And they would have to be the chefs.

Clown Iron Chefs!

A lot of concentration is needed. Priceless.

Taa Daa!

One final step and we’re ready!!

6. And we’d eat …

… every …

… last …

… bite …

… until there was nothing left to do but lick our fingers clean.

Needless to say, a fun time was had by all.

Next post, Circus Weekend, Part 2, At the Circus! Stay Tuned.

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Making Memories

Uncle Loren has come to visit. And one thing we can count on when he comes are fun times. He’s the best about taking time to see his nieces and nephews, and not just seeing them, but making memories with them. I try very hard to capture these memories with photos because they are too precious to forget.

Here are some of the things that Loren does to make sure that his simple visits will last for a lifetime.

1. Capture them in pictures.
(Sometimes you have to let your ego go. Loren won’t think this is a very flattering picture of himself. He’s a very good looking guy. But it does show the lengths he’ll go to to capture a moment.):

Come on Nelson, say "Cheese!"

2. Be on the lookout for opportunities:

"You know what that will mean if you throw that snowball? WAR!"

3. Be fully present. Play full out. Tap into the “kid” inside:

"Four, three, two, one ... BLAST OFF!!

4. Take advantage of the little things. Trips to Disney World are not necessary:

"Perfect. Now, you have to make sure to pack the snow real hard ..."

QUESTION: What are some of your fondest memories with your aunts, uncles, grandparents or even special family friends?

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Why I’m Hiking a 10K on Lookout Mountain

On December the 18th, 2010, I am going to be hiking a 10K (6.2 miles) on Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The last time I went hiking was in the summer of 2009 in Colorado. That’s me in this photo. I have to say, it was a pretty easy hike. And it’s a good thing, because it had been a long time since I had been hiking.

This one will be much more grueling and it will be in December. YIKES! But I’m up for it and so is Michael (my husband) as well as my daughter, Megan. Her husband, Joel, was going to join us but … conveniently … broke his foot. :-)

(Anyone else want to come along? Click here to register.)

Why did I sign up for this 10K in the mountains? Because I want to help bring my newest grandbaby home … from Uganda.

I’m going to be a Grandma again!! And I’m thrilled. If you are a grandparent, or if you have one, then you know how excited I am. And … I’m still relishing in the arrival of our 5th grandchild, Benjamin Caleb Spradlin (son of our daughter Mindy and her husband, Nathan Spradlin), who was just born on October the 1st. Here’s his smiling one-month-old picture!

Our daughter Megan, and her husband Joel, are in the process of adding to their family as well, only this time by adopting a precious baby from Uganda.

God has called each of us to care for the orphans. For some, like Megan and Joel, that means adopting. For others, like you and me, that means enabling another family to adopt. Together, we are answering God’s call to place the fatherless in families.

Until Megan and Joel began this process, I didn’t realize how expensive it is to adopt. In order to bring their baby home they need to raise a total of $25,000. They have about $20,000 left to go.

We’re so proud of Megan and Joel and we want to help them in any way we can. So …  Mike and I have decided to hike a 10K, in Chattanooga, TN,  to help them raise the remaining funds for their adoption. (They are hoping to adopt this spring. They are awaiting their referral now.) There were no half-marathons that we could run before then so we found this 10K hike. Oh, my! We’re going to need to do some serious training right away! But we’re going for it!!

Will you sponsor me in the 10K hike to make sure there is one less orphan in the world, one less child who will not know the love of a forever family? I’d like to personally raise $2500. Please click here to contribute.

All donations will be received on the Miller’s behalf through LifeSong for Orphans, Inc., a 501(c)3 ministry. This enables you to make a 100% tax-deductible donation. Please keep this in mind as you consider year-end contributions to reduce your tax liability.

For me to meet my $2500 goal, it will take only 100 people at $25/each. Will you be one? Click here.

For more information about the Miller’s adoption journey, expenses and timeline, please visit: http://www.meghmiller.com/help-bring-our-baby-home/

Many thanks for your support — and don’t forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

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A Mother’s Modus Operandi: “Bloom Where You Are Planted.”

Potted flowers Bloom where you are planted“Bloom Where You Are Planted.” This one phrase encapsulates the philosophy by which my mother lived. She and my dad moved 28 times during their 61 years of marriage—and I’m talking different cities, different states, different countries. My oldest brother, bore the brunt of it. I remember him telling me that he went to four different high schools.

Somewhere, early on, she adopted this modus operandi. As soon—and I mean THE VERY DAY the truck unloaded—as soon as the doors to the new house opened, boxes were unpacked, beds were made, pictures quickly hung in their spots and a roast would be in the oven. I kid you not. Next up, her mission was to meet the neighbors, find a church, a bridge club and a garden club to join. Goal: Get planted. Then bloom.

Somewhere, early on, I adopted this modus operandi. And I didn’t even realize it.

A mother’s words and a mother’s modus operandi are very powerful. I attribute my love for adventure, my ease in making new friends, and my flexibility to my mother. She passed this invaluable approach to life on to me, her only daughter. I miss her.

I’m a mother, too. And I am the mother of a daughter. To be exact I am the mother to FIVE daughters. You heard that right. FIVE. No boys in the bunch. And I had no sisters. Only four brothers. (I learned how to throw a mean football, but couldn’t lace together a bow for the life of me. God has a sense of humor to be sure.) My girls are all adults now. What have I passed on to them?

A mother’s words and a mother’s modus operandi are very powerful. They are passed down whether we acknowledge it or not. We’re doing it all the time. My mom passed on other lessons to me as as well—both in word and in deed. Here are a few more:

Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it. (Don’t worry)
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. (Don’t give up)
Don’t cry over spilt milk (Keep things in perspective)
If the shoe fits, wear it. (If it applies, accept the truth)
You made your bed, now sleep in it. (Take responsibility)
Make hay while the sun shines. (Do it now)
A watched pot never boils (Be patient)

You’ve, no doubt heard these yourself and seen someone model them. They date my mom, don’t they? I’m sure you have a list of your own, from your own parentals.

Now the question becomes, “What are the quippy little proverbs and phrases that my girls will quote after I’m gone?” Just asking that question causes a flood of phrases to enter my mind. I want to capture them. I want to write them down, wrap them up and give to my girls to “take home,”  to put in their treasure chests of memories. I want to be intentional about this. I want to replace the negative and destructive ones, they’ve no doubt picked up over the years, with ones that ring of real wisdom and are worthy to be passed on to their kids. … In the next several posts, I’m going to do exactly that.

QUESTION: What are the quippy little proverbs and phrases that your kids, or grandkids, nieces or nephews, students, or other children in your life, will quote after you’re gone?