A Little Sunshine Today
I pulled up to work today feeling exhausted because of a less than superb night of sleep. Pat, my mom, pulled up just moments after I did. As we walked in the office together she told me that my 13 year old dog (who really is her dog as I have moved out of the house and he did not come with me and he has been a great companion to her all these years) is going to be put to sleep today.
A few months ago we found out that he has a growth in his throat and his health has been steadily going down for awhile now. This morning he definitely took a turn for the worse so we made the decision that today needs to be the day.
My friend and her kids stopped by to bring me a smile today (and coffee!) and it made me feel better watching them run around our showroom playing make believe. Willow pretends she is a puppy and adorably crawls all over her big sister Guin, rubbing her head on everything while going “ruff ruff ruff”. Cutest thing ever.
But as I watched them run around and check out all sorts of stuff in here, I was remembering what it was like growing up with a mom that has worked and owned her own business and spending quite a bit of time with her at her business. I remember the old showroom when we were off of 6th and Federal area and how much fun I would have running around and dancing with this stuffed cowboy thing that had these long gangly legs and arms and a big ole mustache and a cowboy hat. I remember going through the wallpaper books and eating fishy crackers in the breakroom while watching the old black and white TV on days that I was sick and couldn’t go to school. I remember being horribly bored but glad that I got to spend time with my mom and so happy I got to see my grandpa and grandma. I remember thinking the building was huge and that there were endless places to run and hide.
It made me smile watching these little girls run around being kids in a pretty adult environment and still being able to have fun. It makes me smile knowing that everyone in this office is so open to people bringing their kids here. We all know that parents have a responsibility to their kids, but still need to get things done. It is what our family owned business really has been built on and I’m proud to be a part of it. From childhood memories to learning the business and growing within it, even on days when I’d like to pull a cover over my head and not deal with the grown up things in life, I am glad to be here with my family and friends.
I’m glad to have friends who are willing to drive from Broomfield to Lakewood to bring me a coffee and a hug and glad to have awesome kids in my life to make me remember that all the bad things in the world feel just a little bit easier to handle when you have a little one give you a sweet snuggle.
