Always Remembered RIP Raj

I haven't really been in the right frame of mind to craft anything. My crafting partner died on 9/30/2014. Raj was my German Shepherd mix. She was diagnosed with mass cell tumors 7 months ago. I made this scrub top to honor her memory. To me, this shirt is Art. 

Many people don't understand what it feels like to lose such a huge part of your life, but those people usually aren't "animal" people. For those of us that have the unmistakable bond with a furry friend it is devastating to lose them. 

Raj was the only constant part of my life for 15 years. We were homeless together, slept in abandoned cars, the park. She made everything okay in the world. She was my rock. 

Every day that goes by makes me miss her more, not less, because it is yet another day that we aren't together. 

I am a veterinary technician because of Raj. I wanted to provide the best possible care for her and was successful for 15 years but I couldn't save her. All of my schooling and knowledge......we tried everything to beat the cancer. She was such a brave, fearless fighter until the very end and I couldn't have asked for anything more. She was happy and playful until the last surgery, she had 6 surgeries total and chemo. 

Not many people will read this blog post but to those that happen upon this and have lost a beloved pet-just know that you are not alone and my heart hurts for you. Only you will know what you are feeling, no other person can tell you when things will get better but when that day comes that you are able to talk about your lost loved one, know that I am there with you in understanding that feeling.

I miss my baby girl so very much and I am thankful that nobody is telling me to move on, or get over it, because I would probably go a bit PG-13 on them. Thank you for reading this and hugs to all the furry critters out there. 

RIP-Raj 12/25/1998-9/30/2014. 

Dark Paradise

Raj is my 15 year old Shepherd mix. She is my paradise. We have been through so much together, good and bad. She has been healthy for most of her life but now she has cancer. We have done 2 surgeries to take the cancer out but it came back. As a veterinary technician I know what surgery entails and what to expect after surgery but another surgery isn't an option anymore because she has 3 more tumors. I started chemo on her last week. Bless her heart! Hopefully the chemo works. We will know in a month. 

I sprayed the entire canvas and some of the flowers with Maya Road Dragon Fruit Pink and added a harlequin stamp to some. Raj has been fearless throughout this disease so the metal words are more than appropriate.

I added some lace and an old belt at the top and bottom, then added lots of wood embellishments. The 15 stands for the age of my precious girl. The time glass is my way of thinking about the time she has been with me. I did emboss the flourishes (first time doing embossing) with black glitter embossing powder. 

TIP: when working with black, white and red make sure everything is DRY before layering or doing anything. I don't know how many times I got red on my white elements. Lol!

This design is entered into the following challenges:

Pixel and Papers June- This picture from the Pixel and Paper June challenge inspired me because of the person sitting alone on the bench. This reminds me of when I would take Raj to the park in the summer and throw her tennis ball for hours.  And the dark blacks and grays make me think about how I will one day have to go to the park without her. Check out the challenge HERE.

Craft Girls Challenge-Anything Goes (HERE)

Pinque Peacock-Anything Goes Challenge #6 (HERE)

Frilly and Funkie-Case It challenge. I chose the week #1 tag to "summerize". Check out the tag post HERE. The colors of this tag are what I wanted to change to summer. My dog Raj loves to play in the park when it is warm=summer!(HERE)

Thanks for reading and leaving your lovely comments. It brightens my day! Carpe Diem! ~€