Burial worthy of a princess. :)

[Allee Toler]

Princess Giovanna Marie Toler-Cepeda to be exact. The burial site chosen was Hill Top Park in Rancho Penasquitos. "The best view in PQ" the park is called. Has a perfect view of all of San Diego, and even the beach in the distance.
The ground is a nice hard clay (thankfully, chose the clay area so we can pack her in so no scavengers can dig her up) that took me nearly an hour to dig a 1' deep 1' wide hole. We buried her in a 'coffin' decorated by Nick and I. She's laid on top of cotton in the coffin because everyone who knew her knew she loved to sleep on Cotton. Under the cotton is two letters Nick and I each wrote just for her eyes only.
We buried her 4/5 of the way, then sprinkled wild flower seeds on top. They're a mix of flowers that can survive in desert climates, with little water and lots of sun. Hill Top Park is very dry, the ground is hard clay, and these flowers will flourish there on top of Gi's grave. Then we finished burying her, stuck some fake flowers on the side of her, and laid some real flowers, a rose, on top of the grave. We said a prayer for her safe travels, and said goodbye.

She will be greatly missed, but I feel incredibly better about where she's located. I had a huge sigh of relief when I got to pick her out of the tank they left her in and put her in her coffin. Just seeing her there, lifeless, made it all too real, but I knew she was coming home. I can always drive 5 minutes if I ever need to see her, and we're always at that park (trails I like to hike). It's such a gorgeous place with an amazing view that I know she would love to remain there forever. I can't wait to see those flowers grow.

May 18th 2008 - April 7th 2010​

 

[crestedtimm]

Allee,

Thats such an amazing thing that you have done for your baby. I hope everyone will draw some inspiration from the care you had given to Gigi through her life. Thats a great site to bury her, and if I am ever in Cali, I will have to stop and pay my respects.

Timm

 

[Allee Toler]

Thanks for the kind words. She was more than a gecko to me.

If you ever go there, there's a bush to the left with 6 mounds under it. I bury all my geckos under that bush. Most have been rescues that just didn't make it. It's my favorite park to go to, and is the reason why I moved to California. I fell in love with that area of San Diego.

GiGi's buried in red clay, so she's going no where any time soon. That stuff bakes hard as a rock! And she'll be easy for me to find in the future. In the distance is 2 big trees side by side, and half way up the mound is 1 small tree but bigger than the surrounding brush. She's directly in line with the trees. I go hiking there bi-weekly, so I wanted to make sure I could easily find her years down the line.

I love her more than anything, still. And her memory will forever be with me as long as my tattoo (getting one in a few weeks or so) of her foot prints remains behind my ear.

 

[lindsaydo]

She will be happy, Allee. No doubt in that.