Let me tell you, they were ecstatic about the purchase - we walked out the door from the attorney's office singing "Zipedee Doo Dah" together, seriously.

Ben and I were also thrilled to have sold the home, even though it had been a great rental for us. The reason we chose to sell the home to our tenants is that we have decided to move away from North Carolina where we have lived for the last several years and relocate all the way across the country in Seattle, Washington which is where I grew up. I have TONS of relatives in that area and hopefully that will mean free puppy-sitting when the time comes!

We hadn't been planning to move to Seattle so soon. In fact, back in July when we were married we were thinking about buying a house in North Carolina and settling here for the foreseeable future.

But, life happens...

Ben's job at a big Fortune 500 company - Sara Lee - seemed increasingly unstable so we didn't want to be dependent on them for employment indefinitely. Since Ben works in computers and technology and Seattle is something of an IT hub, being home to Microsoft and Amazon.com, we thought it we might have greener pastures searching for other jobs there.

Plus, Kera had just moved back to guide dog school, and it sounds like she's doing well enough that she'll be placed with a friendly blind master, rather than coming back to us as a pet.

So, Ben and I have been packing up, going through boxes of memories and deciding what to keep and what to let go of. One of the hardest things to let go of will be the memories of Kera that we have attached so strongly to this area.

As the autumn leaves fall I feel very poetic as I imagine that this is the "autumn of our lives" in North Carolina. As we say goodbye to the red and yellow leaves on the trees, we'll also be saying goodbye to the park where we taught Kera to fetch sticks in the pond, the place where she met her first horse in the woods, or smelled wild deer grazing nearby.

It's interesting how a place like a simple park near our home can be so full of memories and such an anchor for reminding us of wonderful times in our lives.

Do you have a place like that, too, a special place you and your dog like to go to just be together and wonder at the world? Tanglewood Park was like that for Kera, Ben and me.

Now that she's gone, I feel really fortunate to have documented so much of our life together. From taking puppy pictures when she was little, to making the Kera Farewell Video, and even putting together this website, I have lots of fun pictures and memories of Kera, in addition to those brought back by visits to our romping grounds.

If you've been thinking about how to memorialize your pet in a way that will help you remember him at his peak forever, consider a pet portrait. Portraits, whether painted masterpieces or simple snapshots in a scrapbook, capture your pet as his best - healthy, happy and loving life. They also make a great pet lovers gift, but you'll have to shop early if you want a portrait painted for your loved ones in time for Christmas!

All my best,

Emily Cressey

P.S. If you would love to surprise someone you love with a striking pet portrait, read this article and choose the artist that's best for you! If you're ready to see sample paintings and order one now, check out My DaVinci Studios. You can choose whether you want the painting in oil, pastels, pencil, etc. They can even create a composition with multiple pets, people, or whatever you decide! Check it out.

Copyright 2005, Emily Cressey.

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