Tribute to Tillman
Before Natalie was born, Tillman was our baby. He was born on July 16, 2001—one week after we got engaged—so we named him after Tillman’s Ravine, where Chris proposed. “Our boy” was such a baby to us that we included pictures of him on our Christmas cards. Tillman always slept in our bed, mostly curled up next to my stomach, even when I was pregnant and there wasn’t much room. His favorite things were coins, peppermint candies, and paper clips, all of which he would fetch.
Tillman died on December 19, 2008. Here is a chronicle of his too-short life. Notice that after Natalie was born, there aren’t too many pictures of our boy. I had heard about people who felt less attached to their animals after having a child, but I never thought that would happen to us. Even though he was demoted from baby to pet status, he was part of our family and we will miss him.
Born to Jodi’s cat Rocky:
As a young boy when we lived in New Brunswick:
Getting older as we moved a couple more times:
Finding a hiding place after Natalie became mobile:
Tolerating Natalie learning to be gentle:
We’ll miss you, Tillman-boy.