Do you see this face? This face of utter innocence and precious perfection?
Ha. Not so much.
Belle got herself into a whole heap of trouble last Monday, and I told her, as part of the consequences for her action, I was going to tell the Smithellaneous family what she did. She wasn’t thrilled with it, but she wasn’t in a position to argue.
Monday night, I noticed that on the far right side of the lid of my laptop, about half an inch of it was wet, as if something had spilled. I looked a little closer and saw that the color was yellow-ish and the smell was . . . urine-ish?
I knew Tinker wasn’t the culprit because he very rarely has accidents in the house. But Belle had just drunk a huge amount of water, and she must have needed to rid herself of it quickly.
Long story short, Miss Belle (and her Yorkie output) managed to fry the motherboard of our (very nice) laptop. If she had directed said output just 1/2 inch to the right, we would have been fine. But no. Her aim was precise.
I do want you to know that she is exceedingly apologetic for what she did and has not eaten or slept in days, consumed as she is with guilt and remorse for her untoward actions.
Or not.
I wanted to share these sweetest photos from Nathan and Madi’s outing on Friday night.
Meagan is so good with hair and makeup; she made Madi look even more lovely than usual.
I love that Nathan went outside and then came to the front door to pick Madi up, presenting her with flowers. The look on their faces–be still my heart.
Ready to go make some memories!
The following piece appeared in my Facebook memories a couple of days ago, and I wanted to share it here as a celebration of the past five years that Sarah and Gage have shared. Sarah wrote and posted this shortly after Gage proposed.
On March 19, 2022, Gage gave me one of the two rings that I will wear for the rest of my life. Through tears, kisses, and more tears, I said a resounding yes. We got married 64 days later.
(This photo was reenacted since there was no one present at the time.)
Photo by Nicholas Long, Gage’s brother.
Our public engagement, from March 19 to May 22, 2021, was very short to the outside observer. However, we broached the topic of marriage aloud for the first time all the way back on December 5, 2020, as it had been very much on our minds. Then, on February 28, 2021, we agreed that we were ready to begin planning our wedding; I could easily wait a few weeks for a ring.
We first considered a September wedding, since we both love autumn, but for some reason, our hearts slowly started to conjure a spring wedding: spring of that very year. Perhaps June, before the weather got too terribly hot. We knew we wanted a community-made wedding at our church, and a short engagement just made sense for us.
On March 22, three days after Gage officially proposed, I had a CT scan because of some unusual symptoms. Later that week, Gage was with me in the doctor’s office when my doctor, with tears in her eyes, told me that there was a huge mass in my abdomen. It felt like a death sentence; we thought my childhood cancer had come back with a vengeance, or that it had brought a friend. Our future that we were busy dreaming of and praying over was suddenly shattered.
Soon, I started having fevers and became very weak. Weeks later, we finally got answers from Duke University Hospital: there was a noncancerous desmoid tumor in my abdomen that was crowding my organs, and at the same time, I had a severe case of mono. It was a perfect storm of illness that made it very difficult for me to eat for weeks, which only made me weaker.
We rejoiced that it wasn’t cancer, but the treatment for desmoid tumors seemed bleak: surgeries to remove them are complicated and often unsuccessful long-term. Chemotherapy was a tentative option in the future if the tumor didn’t shrink over time. We wondered if I would come down the aisle in a wheelchair and were prepared to spend our first year of marriage in and out of the hospital.
Rather than run and hide, as a man of lesser character would have done, Gage wanted to start our life together even sooner; his commitment to me only grew and grew. The future was uncertain, but that uncertainty only made us more determined because of our faith in God and our love for each other. We accommodated families’ schedules as best we could and arrived on May 22 for our wedding date, which happened to be the anniversary of our friendship. We knew it would be a rush to get everything ready, but we knew it would be worth it. I recovered from the mono about two weeks before the wedding, and we had a truly joyous celebration.
Now, my health is much, much better, and the desmoid tumor has shrunk by 70% without any medical treatment, which was certainly not the outcome we were expecting last March. We are incredibly grateful for God’s healing and faithfulness.
Engagement rings represent a promise for the future. Exactly a year ago today, Gage promised to love me “in sickness and in health” months before he said those words, standing on a stage before our friends and family.
And love me, he has, with his whole heart. I love you, and I like you, Gage Christopher.
Photos by Nicholas Long
In a world so full of disturbing news, I hope it’s encouraging for you to hear two about stories of love . . . and one very cute, raspscallion Yorkie.
Have a wonderful week!
If you ever had a pet do something “memorable?”
How long was your engagement?
What are you looking forward to this week?
Oh Belle!! Now she is suffering the wrath of the entire Smithellaneous family! Poor girl!
The Sage story is one I remember well. So glad Sarah has such a wonderful husband!
Madi and Nathan looked so sweet together. She will never forget this!!
LeeAnne,
Yes, Belle is definitely in the doghouse. 🙂
I love that Sage story and the declaration of love and commitment it contains. So inspiring.
My dog peed on the comforter this week… again. Has she been texting with Belle and making plans? 😅 I sure hate struggling to get the comforter into the washer and dryer and I’m not sure why she does this now and then!
Ellen,
I believe Belle did get a text from a strange number this week! 🙂 The doggos must have been plotting.
I know. Washing bedding is definitely a challenge. Hopefully, this won’t happen again for a long time!
My “oldest” grandpuppy, Ranger (now an 8-year-old German Shepherd) liked to chew laptop power cords as a puppy. He chewed through 2-3 of my daughter’s and one of mine. Rex (my other daughter’s now 20-month-old German Shepherd) prefers chewing on our sectional. He’s chewed big areas of two recliner footrests, and one armrest. We’ll eventually have to replace it, but my stance is while it looks awful, it’s still very comfortable and I don’t want to replace it until I’m sure he’s outgrown his furniture chewing stage.
Our engagement wasn’t very long, only a few months. We eloped to Chattanooga from the Atlanta area (Georgia still required blood tests at the time, but Tennessee didn’t) and were married by the Sheriff’s Chaplin.
My husband has his two-week post op appointment Wednesday and I’m looking forward to a good report, and healing on schedule for him.
Meagan is SO talented with Madi’s hair – it looks professionally done. Madi was absolutely stunning and their photos together are wonderful. It’s a good thing Miss Belle is so adorable, and I’m sure she regrets the error of her ways. And how nice to revisit Sage’s early days. It’s such a special love story.
Have a wonderful week!!
SueEllen.
Oh my. Power cables are not cheap. And now you have footrest chew-er. Oh the joy of having doggies!
I had to Google why blood tests used to be done before marriage; I’d heard about them but never knew their purpose. I don’t know if I’ve “met” anyone who had eloped before. An exciting wedding story!
Yes, Meagan is definitely talented with hair and she has a great model to work on. Like you, I enjoyed revisiting Sage’s early days; hard to believe it’s been five years!
Looking forward to a good report on your husband right along with you.
Oh, that doggie! She had no idea of how that particular pee produced such a preponderance of poverty in her poor parents’ purses!
How precious were the daddy-daughter photos! Maddie looked so lovely (she favors her beautiful mama) and Nathan so handsome. It makes my heart happy to know that Maddie has a daddy who brings her flowers and treats her like the treasure she is every day. 💕
I loved the Sage account and Sarah’s writing of it.
Time tends to dull the edges of a traumatic event and the details begin to blur together. Reading that made the memory of those days sharp again. The intensity of that trial was breathtaking–for them and for all of you who lived it with them. But equally breathtaking was their love and commitment for each other, especially that of Gage for Sarah. As she wrote, many men would have turned tail and run in the face of such a daunting reality. The vows they exchanged on their wedding day carried an extra note of victorious authority as they proclaimed the words that had already been tested by fire. So proud of them and of all of you!
Love, Deb
Deb,
Loved your Paragraph of Ps. Very clever! 🙂 (I was going to find a word besides clever that started with p but those seem to be rare.)
Yes, I loved all the daddy/daughter pictures, too. I can only imagine what a lovely bride Madi will be coming down the aisle with her dad. (A long time from now, naturally.)
Your words about Sarah and Gage were touching, insightful and triumphant. “Breathtaking” was an interesting word choice but, as I think about it, so very true. During that time, I felt like I could hardly breathe, the stress and heartache were so heavy. And all of that in the middle of joyful wedding planning.
They lived out the faithfulness of their vows before they even spoke them.
Thanks for your beautiful sentiments.
Oh, be still my heart. The pictures of Nathan and Maddy – priceless. Sarah and Gage, you have come through so much and it has, I am sure, made your marriage stronger. The Lord bless you both.
Then we have Belle. I am sure you are very repentant and promise to never do this again? At least not on a computer. Such an innocent look. You are still loved though.
We got engaged in September and married in December. It will be 60 years this year. So many things to be thankful for!
Sharyn,
I know, right? Pictures of love melt the heart.
Yes, Belle definitely was not on the Favorite Dog list that particular day. But as you said, she is loved.
Wow! A short engagement for you, too! And sixty years of marriage to celebrate. That is wonderful!
Such I heart warming post, minus the dog dilemma. I actually shed a few tears feeling the love. And yes, even for the pup, made me chuckle.
Kacy,
Tears, love, and chuckles. That’s a good way to sum it all up!
Thanks for your comment.
I would not of been so calm if a pet had fried my computer. I guess I am not a pet person.
My husband has a parrot. We usually shut the cage door when we leave, but it was left open a few times. Once he came home and she wasn’t in the cage. He looked around and finally found her perched in on one of the fake plants, happily pulling off each leaf and the leaves were scattered all over the floor.
Our engagement was 4 months. My parents met on a blind date and were married in 3 months and lasted over 60 years!
I am looking forward to a couple of warmish days so I can get out and clear a flower bed so the Spring plants will have a chance to bloom.
Patti,
How cool to have a parrot! Except for when she was dismantling a plant. I think it’s funny how that she attracted to that plant.
I’m so glad that the length of an engagement doesn’t have anything to do with the length of a marriage! I love that your parents met on a blind date and married 3 months later. Four months before their wedding, they probably could never have dreamed their whole lives were about to change.
Enjoy the spring and your flower bed!