A few days before we planned to leave for Christmas in Chicago, Murphy started acting a little weird. I took him to the vet, and they did some blood work, but none of us were too concerned...he just seemed a little off. I had an appointment to get x-rays done on the morning of the 18th, but on the evening of the 17th he unexpectedly took a turn for the worst and died on the way to the vet :( They think he potentially suffered a severe trauma and died of internal bleeding. We buried him that night, talked about memories and tried to process the whole sequence of events. Murphy was a great kitty, and he lived a very full, adventurous life. We loved him so much and memories of Murphy will be in our hearts forever. I wouldn't be surprised if he's up in heaven pouncing on Jesus' robe and causing trouble right this second.
Murphy being a trouble maker
The morning after we lost Murph, we jumped on a plane and headed to Chicago. Although I was very disappointed with the timing, it ended up being a blessing to be out of the house for a while. This might have been the most fun Bret and I have ever had in Chicago. Bret, Harper, Mitch, Addie and I loved playing in the snow and enjoying the real winter weather! We went ice skating, sledding, shopping, exploring, took pictures with Santa, ate tons of Chicago style food and celebrated Christmas Eve together! It was a trip jam packed with fun. On Christmas day, we made it home just in time to celebrate with Bret's family. It was all such a blast, I still feel in shock at the lack of action at home! I'll post pictures of our trip soon!
