Worst Day Ever and How Much We Love Our Family

 On Wednesday morning, Emerson had an accident on his way to work.  I was already on my way to meet him since he had forgotten his ID badge for work and I got a phone call along the way telling me that he was being taken to the hospital.  He was turning left at an intersection and when the light turned yellow, he started easing forward after the last car went through.  What he didn't anticipate was that another car would accelerate and try to beat the red light.  As he saw the collision coming, he tried to turn even more left so it wouldn't be a head on or t-bone type crash.  The car hit Emerson's truck on the passenger side, with most of the impact going into the front wheel and breaking it.  Emerson got some cuts on his forehead and some bruises, but was otherwise okay.  As a precaution, they took him to the hospital. 
That's where I first saw him, a little nervous because he was covered with blood since head wounds just seem to bleed the worst. They stitched him up and sent him home and he's been dealing with been stiff and sore since.  Gene helped bring him home from the hospital and Dexter was nice enough to help me clear everything out of the truck. 
Because Emerson was the one turning left, he got the ticket. We found out from different people, including the police officer and the insurance company, that the person turning left will always get the blame, even if the other person was speeding (and this one was) or runs the red light.  It sucks, but that's how the law works.

Scout and Slash with Kathy

Having Emerson get hurt and the truck totaled was bad enough, but then things got worse.  While I was home taking care of Emerson, I let the dogs out in the backyard for a few minutes.  I got distracted with other things and forgot to bring them back in until 30 minutes later.  Gambit came in, but Scout was nowhere to be seen.  She had jumped the shorter fence in the backyard.  I wasn't too worried since she isn't comfortable with strangers and doesn't wander.  I headed out front to go look for her expecting her to have either found her way home or be sniffing through someone's yard.  As I got to the corner, my visiting teacher came out of her house and asked me about my dog.  She pointed to Scout's body lying on the snow covered grass.  Scout had been hit by a car.  The driver had stopped and talked to my visiting teacher to see whose dog she was and then left.  I can only assume Scout died instantly.  Needless to say, I freaked out.  She had been our loyal dog for nearly four years and had helped potty train all our other puppies. She was incredibly loyal and attached to Emerson and there was never a closer bond between dog and master.  For all of us, it was a cruel addition to an already horrible day.

Emerson had every right to feel down.  The last two years have been very difficult and it's easy to start feeling like the universe is picking on him.  Fortunately, Emerson's family showed just how much they care.  The phone calls came in all day Wednesday and by Thursday night his mom, brothers, sister, and their families were all here.  His closest cousin and her two kids visited yesterday and he got phone calls from his uncle and his grandma (who turned 100 years old on Wednesday). It was really nice to be surrounded by family.  Emerson's youngest brother, Emery, even bought him a new puppy to help ease the pain. 

Here is the newest member of our family - Storm.  She is an 8 week old beagle with an amazing personality.  She looks a lot like Scout did as a puppy and has already learned to sit.  Gambit is happy to have someone to play with again even though Storm is already bossing him around.  Losing Scout still hurts, but having Storm is helping ease the pain. 

 We really want to thank everyone for their well wishes and offers of help.  The friends and neighbors who brought over dinners helped us to worry about one less thing.  Emerson's mom really helped us out this weekend with all those little things around the house and playing games with the brothers, sisters, and kids took our minds off of things for a bit.  We don't know what the future will bring, but we're happy to have so much support.