Koda is my friend J's dog. She's a very sweet Norwegian Elkhound (I had to go look it up for spelling!) By the way, Lilly and Koda have never met as Lilly is quite freaked out by dogs larger than her. Must be from her days in obedience class with being drooled on by that Bernese Mountain Dog.
Well as Lilly approaches her 12 week post-op appointment next Tuesday... our friend Koda is going in for ACL surgery Tomorrow. Poor puppy. From her "mom's" description she may have messed up her knee a lot worse than Lilly did. They have Koda on two pain killers and she is still in pain. Where Lilly was too fine on just one painkiller. She ended up messing up her knee some more before her surgery. But the surgery replaces the entire knee...she's all bionic in there. I know Koda's vet will take good care of her. I'm a bit concerned for Koda's recovery as J is also taking care of her daughter. I wish I could take care of Koda for at least two weeks for J, but I know that Lilly would flip out at having a larger dog in the house. And Koda needs to be an only dog for her recovery.
Lilly is doing super awesome on her recovery. I've had to reduce her pain killers again as the silly pup keeps wanting to jump over the retaining wall instead of going around it. I know she feels much better but she's not supposed to do such things until she is 6 months post-op.
I need to convince hubby that we should put my vegetable garden permanently against this retaining wall so that Lilly can't be a flying dog anymore. She's 10 and a half years old now but she insists that she's still a puppy...sounds a lot like a Seinfeld loving blogger friend I know.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Thursday, February 07, 2013
Lilly update
Lilly went in for her 10 week post-op check up Tuesday. And she is doing great. She is using her leg more and more and now I have to watch her even more.
The other day she ran for the retaining wall. I hollered "Don't You DARE!!!" and she looked at me as if to say "then how?" I said "Go Around." and she did. (don't tell me my dog doesn't understand!)
She's been running in the house. But still slipping on the kitchen floor. Oh well, can't have it all.
The other day she ran for the retaining wall. I hollered "Don't You DARE!!!" and she looked at me as if to say "then how?" I said "Go Around." and she did. (don't tell me my dog doesn't understand!)
She's been running in the house. But still slipping on the kitchen floor. Oh well, can't have it all.
Wednesday, February 06, 2013
Not sure who's worse!
My mom is quite the nag. I've mentioned her several times here before. She makes me quite glad that I live so far away from Florida. When we go to visit, I make sure to book us at a hotel...a really nice hotel. The last time that I stayed with my mom I regretted it...that was the time I went for my grandmother's birthday and I only stayed there two nights!
Well now we get to the title of my post here... My aunt! My mom hasn't talked to her sister in at least 20 years, probably closer to 30 years now. It has always been an issue. I wish that I could say that my mom is much happier not having her sister in her life, but she isn't. Another story!
So when I go to Florida to visit, I try to schedule a visit to wee my aunt and grandmother, but sometimes that doesn't happen.
Recently my aunt signed up for Facebook. She friended me and went through all my pictures and "caught up" on my entire life. And for the most part she doesn't bug me too much...except for if it has been a month since she's been on and she goes and "LIKEs" everything that I did while she was gone. o.O
Well she saw that I was sick and decided to write on my wall that she thinks I should go see a doctor. Hummm I'm over the cold/flu (except for that cough that lingers) but she thinks I should go and get a blood test to see if I really had the flu or not. I don't think so. I don't really need to know if I REALLY had the flu, it's over...let it die! And here's where it gets like she's trying to be my mom or something...she was insisting that I go to the doctor.
Whatever! I just started ignoring her.
Well now we get to the title of my post here... My aunt! My mom hasn't talked to her sister in at least 20 years, probably closer to 30 years now. It has always been an issue. I wish that I could say that my mom is much happier not having her sister in her life, but she isn't. Another story!
So when I go to Florida to visit, I try to schedule a visit to wee my aunt and grandmother, but sometimes that doesn't happen.
Recently my aunt signed up for Facebook. She friended me and went through all my pictures and "caught up" on my entire life. And for the most part she doesn't bug me too much...except for if it has been a month since she's been on and she goes and "LIKEs" everything that I did while she was gone. o.O
Well she saw that I was sick and decided to write on my wall that she thinks I should go see a doctor. Hummm I'm over the cold/flu (except for that cough that lingers) but she thinks I should go and get a blood test to see if I really had the flu or not. I don't think so. I don't really need to know if I REALLY had the flu, it's over...let it die! And here's where it gets like she's trying to be my mom or something...she was insisting that I go to the doctor.
Whatever! I just started ignoring her.
Monday, February 04, 2013
So tired!
This past week was another wonderful CYT show. Darly & I worked our tails off for it...even though we both caught the flu (we stayed home while sick) but as soon as we were well we went to work.
I'm assuming that I'm so tired from being sick. I don't know what all is going on though. I keep waking up around 7am (that's normal) but then about an hour later I feel as if I need another 4 hours of sleep. ugh!
Well until Sunday we have nothing going on, so hopefully I can catch up again soon.
But next week we start work on another show. Yes, we're gluttons for punishment. ;o)
I'm assuming that I'm so tired from being sick. I don't know what all is going on though. I keep waking up around 7am (that's normal) but then about an hour later I feel as if I need another 4 hours of sleep. ugh!
Well until Sunday we have nothing going on, so hopefully I can catch up again soon.
But next week we start work on another show. Yes, we're gluttons for punishment. ;o)
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Deadlines mean nothing
to some people that is. o.O
Recently we had this person who signed up for her free trial on the homeschooling board that I help run. When her trial ended, I sent her an email ("pay up or we delete your account" but much nicer of course!) and didn't hear from her so I deleted the account. SEVERAL months later she emails asking why she can't get in on the board. ???
So she renews and then wants to know why she can't get into co-op. Um because the deadline was yesterday, another one will be coming up in April. :p
Then I sent out financial statements for my church yesterday. I would have done it sooner but I was having connection issues with my computer. The deadline for getting them out was today. Today I get an email that someone forgot to turn in their receipts that they want counted. :p I could be wrong but I don't think that you have to turn in the receipts to where you give something to be able to claim them. I know the IRS doesn't allow the receiver to put any value on the items. Oh well.
I would love to adopt the policy "Lack of planning on your part does not create an emergency on my part." But alas I have to be sweet and some folks consider that snarky.
Recently we had this person who signed up for her free trial on the homeschooling board that I help run. When her trial ended, I sent her an email ("pay up or we delete your account" but much nicer of course!) and didn't hear from her so I deleted the account. SEVERAL months later she emails asking why she can't get in on the board. ???
So she renews and then wants to know why she can't get into co-op. Um because the deadline was yesterday, another one will be coming up in April. :p
Then I sent out financial statements for my church yesterday. I would have done it sooner but I was having connection issues with my computer. The deadline for getting them out was today. Today I get an email that someone forgot to turn in their receipts that they want counted. :p I could be wrong but I don't think that you have to turn in the receipts to where you give something to be able to claim them. I know the IRS doesn't allow the receiver to put any value on the items. Oh well.
I would love to adopt the policy "Lack of planning on your part does not create an emergency on my part." But alas I have to be sweet and some folks consider that snarky.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
It's the little things in life...
Day 3 of my cold/flu thing. I don't know what this thing is anymore.
But today I took a shower! w00t! LOL! Course I nearly hacked up my lungs in the shower, but I felt good for a little bit afterward.
Actually except for sounding bad, I feel pretty good...I'm getting tired now though. But for most of today I felt really good. Going a long time between coughing fits... my back and abs are thankful for that.
I didn't get to use the internet much today because my provider shut me down. I ordered a new modem and wasn't allowed to use it until 5pm. :p jwerks! But that's all up and running. or walking. I don't know why but this seems slower than what we had even though it kept konking out.
Some lady showed up at the front door. I looked through the peep hole. She resembled a politician, a petition gatherer or a social worker. Needless to say I did NOT open the door to her. I have a policy... If I don't know you're coming and you don't have cookies, then I don't open my door. I'm sick and tired of everyone and their brother coming here trying to get their hands on my money. So now I avoid them. I don't answer the phone for numbers I don't recognize either. Sucks for my friends with cell phones, but if they talk to my machine I'll answer them.
We had a cold snap today, so I cooked up a batch of turkey broth. It is cooling on the back porch before I move it to the frig. I'll finish it up tomorrow...maybe. ;o)
Oh I found the set of bedroom furniture that I want on craigslist! Since I can't pick it up until next week I have to wait and see if it is still available then. sigh and tapity tapity.
But today I took a shower! w00t! LOL! Course I nearly hacked up my lungs in the shower, but I felt good for a little bit afterward.
Actually except for sounding bad, I feel pretty good...I'm getting tired now though. But for most of today I felt really good. Going a long time between coughing fits... my back and abs are thankful for that.
I didn't get to use the internet much today because my provider shut me down. I ordered a new modem and wasn't allowed to use it until 5pm. :p jwerks! But that's all up and running. or walking. I don't know why but this seems slower than what we had even though it kept konking out.
Some lady showed up at the front door. I looked through the peep hole. She resembled a politician, a petition gatherer or a social worker. Needless to say I did NOT open the door to her. I have a policy... If I don't know you're coming and you don't have cookies, then I don't open my door. I'm sick and tired of everyone and their brother coming here trying to get their hands on my money. So now I avoid them. I don't answer the phone for numbers I don't recognize either. Sucks for my friends with cell phones, but if they talk to my machine I'll answer them.
We had a cold snap today, so I cooked up a batch of turkey broth. It is cooling on the back porch before I move it to the frig. I'll finish it up tomorrow...maybe. ;o)
Oh I found the set of bedroom furniture that I want on craigslist! Since I can't pick it up until next week I have to wait and see if it is still available then. sigh and tapity tapity.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Sick, sick, sickedy sick!
Remember how I was sick for New Year's...and for my birthday?
Well I had that super nice lingering cough that hangs around after a cold since then and then Saturday... WHAMMO! I picked up the flu bug.
I woke up Sunday morning feeling pretty good, took my shower, got dressed for church, fixed my hair and then started feeling woozie. Ut oh!
Houston, we have a problem!
I started running scenarios of how to get to church without infecting everyone there (especially not the poor lady going through chemo) because I had to DO stuff at church. I'm the financial secretary and I'm also doing a fund raiser for the Mission Trips.
But as the minutes passed and I started feeling worse and worse I finally realized that church would go on without me...I was too sick to go.
So I trugged back upstairs and changed into my pajama sweats combo. I gave my husband and daughter instructions for how to take care of my jobs and plopped on the couch.
Oh and my internet decided to go down too...God's way of making me rest? Yeah, I think so.
After a while I realized that I had been shunning fluids and I was hungry. So I made myself some soup. There went the last of my chicken/turkey stock. Ah well...it was for a good cause.
Now I need a cold snap and to be bug free to make some more.
That was yesterday. Today I feel better...my entire body doesn't hurt. But that could be from the pain killers. I'm still coughing up a lung and all the fun that comes with coughing up a lung.
YAY :p
Well I had that super nice lingering cough that hangs around after a cold since then and then Saturday... WHAMMO! I picked up the flu bug.
I woke up Sunday morning feeling pretty good, took my shower, got dressed for church, fixed my hair and then started feeling woozie. Ut oh!
Houston, we have a problem!
I started running scenarios of how to get to church without infecting everyone there (especially not the poor lady going through chemo) because I had to DO stuff at church. I'm the financial secretary and I'm also doing a fund raiser for the Mission Trips.
But as the minutes passed and I started feeling worse and worse I finally realized that church would go on without me...I was too sick to go.
So I trugged back upstairs and changed into my pajama sweats combo. I gave my husband and daughter instructions for how to take care of my jobs and plopped on the couch.
Oh and my internet decided to go down too...God's way of making me rest? Yeah, I think so.
After a while I realized that I had been shunning fluids and I was hungry. So I made myself some soup. There went the last of my chicken/turkey stock. Ah well...it was for a good cause.
Now I need a cold snap and to be bug free to make some more.
That was yesterday. Today I feel better...my entire body doesn't hurt. But that could be from the pain killers. I'm still coughing up a lung and all the fun that comes with coughing up a lung.
YAY :p
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
lotta nuthin but gratuitus links
Well since my last post I haven't really done all that much that seemed blog worthy. But I've noticed that I get a lot more traffic on my blog if I link to other stuff...so I'm going to see how this post does. lol
On Jan 5th I went with Darly to go and see our friends from Colorado Improv do their show. Had a great time laughing which hurt my back, but it was so worth it.
On Jan 7th I had a board meeting for Common Ground Homeschoolers of which I've been a member of for over 10 years now and been on the board forever. We discussed all sorts of interesting and not so interesting things, but ended up seeing some folks from CYT while meeting at Panera. We actually got "thrown out" because we didn't realize what time they closed (we do that a lot though!)
On Jan 9th, Darly and our church's youth group met up at Village Inn for Prayer & Pie night. It's a fun social event that they do and don't let me go to. :( That's okay though as I don't really need the pie. But on this occasion I ran into an old friend that I haven't seen in a long time and while chatting I invited her to our church...so that was cool.
On the 10th Darly had her CYT class and since I didn't want to cook dinner that night I hung out and chatted with the Bye Bye Birdie costume team about the upcoming costume parade. So since I had no dinner ready I zipped over to Little Caesars.
On the 11th & 12th we did more CYT stuff (but I've linked to them numerous times above). oh but I did get lunch from King Soopers. They have a great ready made sandwich department.
On the 13th I was asked to attend a meeting before church so I had to get up early and pretty much forgo my coffee. bummer.
and then last night was my homeschool group's Teacher's Night Out that I went to at Whole Foods. While there and using the wifi I was able to freak Darly out by posting on her Facebook status. LOL that was funny when I got home. Oh and Whole Foods had to toss us out again.
If you happened to stop by because of one of the links above. Welcome! I hope that I didn't bore you too much and you swing by again sometime. And if you're one of my regulars, I'm glad you still stick with me. :D
On Jan 5th I went with Darly to go and see our friends from Colorado Improv do their show. Had a great time laughing which hurt my back, but it was so worth it.
On Jan 7th I had a board meeting for Common Ground Homeschoolers of which I've been a member of for over 10 years now and been on the board forever. We discussed all sorts of interesting and not so interesting things, but ended up seeing some folks from CYT while meeting at Panera. We actually got "thrown out" because we didn't realize what time they closed (we do that a lot though!)
On Jan 9th, Darly and our church's youth group met up at Village Inn for Prayer & Pie night. It's a fun social event that they do and don't let me go to. :( That's okay though as I don't really need the pie. But on this occasion I ran into an old friend that I haven't seen in a long time and while chatting I invited her to our church...so that was cool.
On the 10th Darly had her CYT class and since I didn't want to cook dinner that night I hung out and chatted with the Bye Bye Birdie costume team about the upcoming costume parade. So since I had no dinner ready I zipped over to Little Caesars.
On the 11th & 12th we did more CYT stuff (but I've linked to them numerous times above). oh but I did get lunch from King Soopers. They have a great ready made sandwich department.
On the 13th I was asked to attend a meeting before church so I had to get up early and pretty much forgo my coffee. bummer.
and then last night was my homeschool group's Teacher's Night Out that I went to at Whole Foods. While there and using the wifi I was able to freak Darly out by posting on her Facebook status. LOL that was funny when I got home. Oh and Whole Foods had to toss us out again.
If you happened to stop by because of one of the links above. Welcome! I hope that I didn't bore you too much and you swing by again sometime. And if you're one of my regulars, I'm glad you still stick with me. :D
Monday, January 07, 2013
What a birthday
I've had some bummer birthdays before, but this one really took the cake (btw: the cake was amazing though!)
First I was still sick...still am. bummer
Second I threw out my back while trying to pick up the dog to take her to the vet. oye! I ended up taking a muscle relaxer that night which helped a tiny bit.
Since my birthday was on a Friday night, and I was sick, and my back hurt, I decided that instead of trying to figure out where to go for dinner that we would just stay in and DH & Darly could make dinner. Darly like the idea and planned the menu.
But then Darly got the nosebleed that refused to quit so DH ended up making more of the dinner than either Darly or I thought possible. Mostly because when you try to give DH direction he QUESTIONS everything you tell him. Like he knows more about cooking than even I do? o.O
However, dinner turned out pretty good. My cake was good also but I made that myself the night before. My gifts were great...gotta try out my new comfy jammy pants!
Next year I hope to not be sick and never pull my back out again. Oh and I still have a birthday dinner out to look forward to! Now to figure out where in the world I want to go for that. :-/
First I was still sick...still am. bummer
Second I threw out my back while trying to pick up the dog to take her to the vet. oye! I ended up taking a muscle relaxer that night which helped a tiny bit.
Since my birthday was on a Friday night, and I was sick, and my back hurt, I decided that instead of trying to figure out where to go for dinner that we would just stay in and DH & Darly could make dinner. Darly like the idea and planned the menu.
But then Darly got the nosebleed that refused to quit so DH ended up making more of the dinner than either Darly or I thought possible. Mostly because when you try to give DH direction he QUESTIONS everything you tell him. Like he knows more about cooking than even I do? o.O
However, dinner turned out pretty good. My cake was good also but I made that myself the night before. My gifts were great...gotta try out my new comfy jammy pants!
Next year I hope to not be sick and never pull my back out again. Oh and I still have a birthday dinner out to look forward to! Now to figure out where in the world I want to go for that. :-/
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
"Ringing in the new year"
...sick as a dog. :p
a few days ago I started feeling this bug coming and yesterday it started making me KNOW it was coming. So I got to ring in the new year while being sick. Unfortunately that made things a bit less for the rest of my family as well.
Luckily I had a freezer full of chicken stock so I made us a nice chicken & rice soup. Since I really can't taste any difference anyway, I decided to add red pepper flakes to my soup. I think that it helped to clear up my sinuses a bit...sorta!
I spent the majority of New Year's Eve on the sofa either reading, watching a bit of TV and sleeping. (Yeah, I know how to party!) I found the two New Year's Eve celebrations on TV to be rather lacking in anything I wanted to watch...so I watched other shows while I was alert enough to care. This seemed to bother my hubby a bit, but he didn't fuss too much as he doesn't care for that garbage they were showing either.
At 11:55 I switched over to NBC and then ABC to see what they were up to. Both were still very lame, so I just kept switching back and forth. We saw the ball drop (I don't know which channel we had it on for that) and Lilly decided that something was going on (she had no idea what) but that it must require running around all excited with numerous stops at mom for reassurance. LOL! What a nut dog!
We toasted in the new year with a glass of bubbly... sparkling apple cider (yup, we live large!) and then switched the channel to some movie or something before I zonked back out again.
We are expecting more snow here soon, which will be good as the old snow is mostly a mess of black slush. :p
I'll be spending the day dosing myself with every cold remedy that we have...vitamin C, salt water gargle, etc and will probably zonk out on the couch again here soon. w00t!
Oh and I have a new nephew, born on Dec 29th and today is my "little" brother's birthday. (I used quotes because all of my brothers, while younger than me are all taller than me. That's a good thing though because really being a short man in our society isn't so good, but folks don't care if you're a short woman.)
a few days ago I started feeling this bug coming and yesterday it started making me KNOW it was coming. So I got to ring in the new year while being sick. Unfortunately that made things a bit less for the rest of my family as well.
Luckily I had a freezer full of chicken stock so I made us a nice chicken & rice soup. Since I really can't taste any difference anyway, I decided to add red pepper flakes to my soup. I think that it helped to clear up my sinuses a bit...sorta!
I spent the majority of New Year's Eve on the sofa either reading, watching a bit of TV and sleeping. (Yeah, I know how to party!) I found the two New Year's Eve celebrations on TV to be rather lacking in anything I wanted to watch...so I watched other shows while I was alert enough to care. This seemed to bother my hubby a bit, but he didn't fuss too much as he doesn't care for that garbage they were showing either.
At 11:55 I switched over to NBC and then ABC to see what they were up to. Both were still very lame, so I just kept switching back and forth. We saw the ball drop (I don't know which channel we had it on for that) and Lilly decided that something was going on (she had no idea what) but that it must require running around all excited with numerous stops at mom for reassurance. LOL! What a nut dog!
We toasted in the new year with a glass of bubbly... sparkling apple cider (yup, we live large!) and then switched the channel to some movie or something before I zonked back out again.
We are expecting more snow here soon, which will be good as the old snow is mostly a mess of black slush. :p
I'll be spending the day dosing myself with every cold remedy that we have...vitamin C, salt water gargle, etc and will probably zonk out on the couch again here soon. w00t!
Oh and I have a new nephew, born on Dec 29th and today is my "little" brother's birthday. (I used quotes because all of my brothers, while younger than me are all taller than me. That's a good thing though because really being a short man in our society isn't so good, but folks don't care if you're a short woman.)
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Social Media strikes back...with a vengeance!
Yesterday while on Facebook I learned the following...
http://www.epbot.com/2012/12/shame-on-you-redbook-magazine.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+epbot%2FfOpU+%28EPBOT%29
As you can imagine I was pretty upset...as were pretty much every follower of Jen Yates of Cake Wrecks fame and Epbot (her other blog). Jen is pretty socially connected out there and this isn't the first time that Jen fans have stepped up and used social media forces for good.
http://www.epbot.com/2010/11/geek-girls-activate.html
Soon Redbook's Facebook page was covered in comments on every status update demanding that Jen get credit for her ideas. It didn't take very long for Redbook to realize they had made a mistake and they posted that they were "looking into" the error.
finally Jen received an email from Redbook with an apology. http://www.epbot.com/2012/12/redbook-makes-it-right.html
What I love is that Jen was also fighting for the other Pintrest folks who had their ideas published in the article.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Lilly update 5 weeks post-op
At Lilly's 4 week post-op checkup the vet was really pleased with the progress that Lilly has been making. So much so that she bumped up our post-op exercises by a week even though her healing is probably closer to being 2 weeks advanced, she didn't want to over stress.
The vet did this check where she uses a plastic tool to measure how far Lilly is able to move her new joint and on the lifting her leg up Lilly scored a 25/25 meaning that's the best she could ever get as that is a regular joint movement. On extending her leg Lilly scored a 150/160 which pleased the vet.
The vet recommended weaning Lilly off her pain meds, which I had already done because we had run out. At the time I didn't really see any difference between her being on the meds or off, but now I'm beginning to wonder if I should get her some. Of course seeing as the vet charged me 3 times what I can get them for online, you can see my resistance.
Lilly has been going in for Adequan injections and has one more of those left. They are Glucosamine and some other stuff. While a bit pricey I wanted to make the investment of the surgery have the best possible chance for Lilly having normal function when we're all done. Yesterday the receptionist let me know that I can get a rebate on the shots once she has taken all of them. It's only $20 but that's better than before.
The vet also recommended that Lilly start taking glucosamine supplements. I went ahead and purchased those before Lilly had her surgery. However, I got her the supplements at the grocery store. When I told the vet this, she got a bit bent out of shape because ...well she told me that the supplements in the stores aren't regulated. However, I know that the so called made for animals medications and supplements have even less stringent regulations and figured for a supplement saving money for store bought over the 3 times mark up at the vet's office wouldn't matter. My SIL used to work for a vet and told us stories.
Thanks to my blog friend Leigh, I discovered that adding gelatin to Lilly's diet would also be helpful for her joints. So I started researching how to get that into Lilly's diet. At first I was just giving Lilly gelatin capsules, but those are pricey. I looked at buying gelatin powder, but wanted to check out all my options. I also looked into making gelatin from bones. I found this one blog where the woman just keeps her crock-pot going all the time cooking down her bones. I don't know if she just mixes all the bones she has or what, but that seemed a bit much if I were to have separate crocks going for each kind of bone. I thought about just making and storing the gelatin...but I would actually have stock and that takes up space that I don't currently have since I have a small freezer and don't have a pressure canner to can and put in the pantry. (maybe one day!)
In my research I found that Osteo Bi-Flex makes a combined glucosamine and gelatine powdered supplement. That seemed like the perfect answer as Lilly really didn't like eating the glucosamine pills (although coating them with peanut butter worked very well!). And my store had the powder on sale, buy one get one free. So we started Lilly on that, last night.
Exercise has been pretty difficult to do. We've been having a lot of snow and I'm allergic to the stuff. So that on top of my annoying neighbors who let their dogs run off leash has made taking Lilly for walks very difficult. The vet suggested taking Lilly someplace quiet for walks...I don't know where that place might be. Even our own back yard is surrounded by other dogs and Lilly is a spaz around them. So instead we've been walking around the house. I know, not ideal, but it puts less stress on the both of us.
The vet did this check where she uses a plastic tool to measure how far Lilly is able to move her new joint and on the lifting her leg up Lilly scored a 25/25 meaning that's the best she could ever get as that is a regular joint movement. On extending her leg Lilly scored a 150/160 which pleased the vet.
The vet recommended weaning Lilly off her pain meds, which I had already done because we had run out. At the time I didn't really see any difference between her being on the meds or off, but now I'm beginning to wonder if I should get her some. Of course seeing as the vet charged me 3 times what I can get them for online, you can see my resistance.
Lilly has been going in for Adequan injections and has one more of those left. They are Glucosamine and some other stuff. While a bit pricey I wanted to make the investment of the surgery have the best possible chance for Lilly having normal function when we're all done. Yesterday the receptionist let me know that I can get a rebate on the shots once she has taken all of them. It's only $20 but that's better than before.
The vet also recommended that Lilly start taking glucosamine supplements. I went ahead and purchased those before Lilly had her surgery. However, I got her the supplements at the grocery store. When I told the vet this, she got a bit bent out of shape because ...well she told me that the supplements in the stores aren't regulated. However, I know that the so called made for animals medications and supplements have even less stringent regulations and figured for a supplement saving money for store bought over the 3 times mark up at the vet's office wouldn't matter. My SIL used to work for a vet and told us stories.
Thanks to my blog friend Leigh, I discovered that adding gelatin to Lilly's diet would also be helpful for her joints. So I started researching how to get that into Lilly's diet. At first I was just giving Lilly gelatin capsules, but those are pricey. I looked at buying gelatin powder, but wanted to check out all my options. I also looked into making gelatin from bones. I found this one blog where the woman just keeps her crock-pot going all the time cooking down her bones. I don't know if she just mixes all the bones she has or what, but that seemed a bit much if I were to have separate crocks going for each kind of bone. I thought about just making and storing the gelatin...but I would actually have stock and that takes up space that I don't currently have since I have a small freezer and don't have a pressure canner to can and put in the pantry. (maybe one day!)
In my research I found that Osteo Bi-Flex makes a combined glucosamine and gelatine powdered supplement. That seemed like the perfect answer as Lilly really didn't like eating the glucosamine pills (although coating them with peanut butter worked very well!). And my store had the powder on sale, buy one get one free. So we started Lilly on that, last night.
Exercise has been pretty difficult to do. We've been having a lot of snow and I'm allergic to the stuff. So that on top of my annoying neighbors who let their dogs run off leash has made taking Lilly for walks very difficult. The vet suggested taking Lilly someplace quiet for walks...I don't know where that place might be. Even our own back yard is surrounded by other dogs and Lilly is a spaz around them. So instead we've been walking around the house. I know, not ideal, but it puts less stress on the both of us.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Oh SNOW!
Tonight is supposed to be our Advent Service with a cookie exchange. I say supposed because we are getting hit today with quite a bit of snow and while the weather radar shows that this should pass soon, it doesn't appear to be following the plan.
Now as you know I am highly allergic to snow. So I'm staying hunkered down inside right now and medicating with hot chocolate.
Hopefully this cloud moves on and I'll be able to shovel or sweep off the snow (that the wind is doing a really good job of taking care of at the moment) so that we can get out and not be snow bound... especially since my teenage daughter claims that there is "nothing to eat" in the house.
Oh, I should get my "nothing to eat" roast in the crock pot!
Now as you know I am highly allergic to snow. So I'm staying hunkered down inside right now and medicating with hot chocolate.
Hopefully this cloud moves on and I'll be able to shovel or sweep off the snow (that the wind is doing a really good job of taking care of at the moment) so that we can get out and not be snow bound... especially since my teenage daughter claims that there is "nothing to eat" in the house.
Christmas Ornament tutorial - Round ornament
Here is how to make the round ornament [picture of finished ornament]
Supplies you'll need:
round flat ornaments - from craft store
school glue
glitter
transparency sheets - from office supply store
permanent markers
ribbon
paint brush, scissors, pattern, funnel
Skills needed:
Actually this ornament is very easy and looks complicated. You'll amaze your friends with it.
First step- Glitterizing the back of the ornament.
Water down the glue so that it is more runny. I think ours was not quite one part water to one part glue. Using a paint brush, transfer some glue to only the back of the ornament's inside [picture of glue & putting it in] drain out excess glue - make sure to not get any glue on the front side of the ornament.
Now using a funnel pour in your glitter into the ornament and after covering the back, shake out the excess glitter. Allow to dry completely.
While your glitter is drying you can make the design sheets. Trace your design or pattern onto the transparency sheets with your permanent markers, making sure your design is just a tiny bit smaller than the diameter of your ornament. (I used 3 inch diameter ornaments, they do come bigger) {note: I tried to just print off my design using my computer's printer but I couldn't get the toner to dry on the sheets... I suppose that I could have put the design on with the printer and then just gone over it with the markers, but my way was cleaner.}
Cut out your transparency film in a circle to fit inside the ornament.
Now roll your transparency film into a tube so you can fit it into the neck of the ornament. We found that rolling so that the design was on the outside of the roll worked better for the next step.
shove your rolled up transparency into the ornament. If it doesn't pop open all the way, you can use your paint brush handle to help it and then your fingers to adjust the design so that it sits in the right direction.
almost done!
Now put the cap/wire thingy back on and add a ribbon bow to the neck of your ornament to hide that wire that holds the thing together!
Merry Christmas!
Supplies you'll need:
round flat ornaments - from craft store
school glue
glitter
transparency sheets - from office supply store
permanent markers
ribbon
paint brush, scissors, pattern, funnel
Skills needed:
Actually this ornament is very easy and looks complicated. You'll amaze your friends with it.
First step- Glitterizing the back of the ornament.
Water down the glue so that it is more runny. I think ours was not quite one part water to one part glue. Using a paint brush, transfer some glue to only the back of the ornament's inside [picture of glue & putting it in] drain out excess glue - make sure to not get any glue on the front side of the ornament.
Now using a funnel pour in your glitter into the ornament and after covering the back, shake out the excess glitter. Allow to dry completely.
Cut out your transparency film in a circle to fit inside the ornament.
Now roll your transparency film into a tube so you can fit it into the neck of the ornament. We found that rolling so that the design was on the outside of the roll worked better for the next step.
Merry Christmas!
Christmas Ornament tutorial - felt dove
Here is how to make the felt dove ornament. [picture of finished ornament]
Supplies that you'll need:
Felt - I got these 9X11 sheets of felt at my local craft store for about 30 cents each and got about 5 ornaments per sheet. You can also buy felt by the yard at fabric stores.
Pattern - I got this one from the internet.
Freezer Paper - from my grocery store
Embroidery Floss - from my craft store (I had some at home so I don't know how much it costs, but it's pretty cheap and a little goes a long way)
Polyfill stuffing - from your craft store. I already had some, but I think they're only around $2.50 for a bag that will last you a very long time. You could also use cotton balls, but they're pretty pricey.
Pen, Scissors, Iron
Skills you'll need:
Ironing
back stitching
blanket stitching
French knot for the dove's eye
First find your pattern and transfer it to the freezer paper's mat side.
Next iron the freezer paper (the glossy side) to your felt.
Now cut out your shapes. don't worry, the directions for how to do this are on the freezer paper if you get the name brand.
Note: Embroidery Floss comes in skeins that the floss is 6 threads thick. Cut off about 18 inches of floss (or shorter - too long and you get a knotted mess!) now separate your floss into individual threads. I used two threads in my design, but you can use 3 if your colors are close and you want to see your design better.
Next we'll put our design on one of the dove's sides (you'll use two dove cut outs for each ornament). I used a French Knot to make the dove's eye. Then I started back stitching the words I wanted on my dove.
Don't make your stitches too tight so that if you make a mistake you can pull out the stitches and try again.
Once your dove has the design you want you'll next want to sew the two halves together with a blanket stitch. Make sure to cut a length of Embroidery Floss to make a hanger with. Don't separate these threads, just knot it and stitch that in while you're blanket stitching.
Leave about an inch open and stuff with polyfill until your dove is as full as you want it. You don't need to make your dove too fat and you still have to close him up.
Now close up your dove and you're done!
Merry Christmas!
Supplies that you'll need:
Felt - I got these 9X11 sheets of felt at my local craft store for about 30 cents each and got about 5 ornaments per sheet. You can also buy felt by the yard at fabric stores.
Pattern - I got this one from the internet.
Freezer Paper - from my grocery store
Embroidery Floss - from my craft store (I had some at home so I don't know how much it costs, but it's pretty cheap and a little goes a long way)
Polyfill stuffing - from your craft store. I already had some, but I think they're only around $2.50 for a bag that will last you a very long time. You could also use cotton balls, but they're pretty pricey.
Pen, Scissors, Iron
Skills you'll need:
Ironing
back stitching
blanket stitching
French knot for the dove's eye
First find your pattern and transfer it to the freezer paper's mat side.
Next iron the freezer paper (the glossy side) to your felt.
Note: Embroidery Floss comes in skeins that the floss is 6 threads thick. Cut off about 18 inches of floss (or shorter - too long and you get a knotted mess!) now separate your floss into individual threads. I used two threads in my design, but you can use 3 if your colors are close and you want to see your design better.
Don't make your stitches too tight so that if you make a mistake you can pull out the stitches and try again.
Once your dove has the design you want you'll next want to sew the two halves together with a blanket stitch. Make sure to cut a length of Embroidery Floss to make a hanger with. Don't separate these threads, just knot it and stitch that in while you're blanket stitching.
Leave about an inch open and stuff with polyfill until your dove is as full as you want it. You don't need to make your dove too fat and you still have to close him up.
Merry Christmas!
Thursday, December 13, 2012
What we're up to now...
well aside for taking care of Lilly and getting ready for Christmas things here are pretty calm.
Darly isn't doing a play right now, but she and I are helping some with the current show. I'm supposed to have this weekend off though. I hope that still stands and that the chairperson let her co-chair know that. ;)
Darly is singing in our church choir instead. She's having a great time and loves singing. I don't think that she'll try a solo again (she did last year for Christmas) but one can never tell. So our Thursday nights are pretty busy as she has a class from 4:30 to 6:30 and then choir practice is at 7. We have fun trying to figure out how to get some food into her.
Hubby decided to wait until last weekend to finally show us his Christmas wish list. How funny that I had totally forgotten him mentioning (very casually of course) the things on the list. The one year I paid attention to those casual mentions I got in trouble for getting him everything he asked for. So since I didn't pay attention I bought him things I thought he needed...like pants to replace the ones he insists still fit him from his High School wardrobe that don't. I'm sure I'll have to take the new pants in though because unlike Jerry changing his 34's into 31's, I know that these pants will be at least 4 inches too big in the waist. *roll eyes!*
Darly asked for sensible things this year however finding her sweaters has been quite a challenge. I don't know what is up with the buyers for stores... it is winter, in Colorado... we NEED sweaters that actually keep you warm. Not that you have to put another shirt on under...because while we will put another shirt on it is because we're heading out into sub zero temps...not to look cute!
sigh
and our latest project
One of the ladies at church requested that our Youth group look into getting Christmas Ornaments with our church logo on them for a fundraiser. But when I looked into doing that the prices were CRAZY expensive. One gal had suggested that I look into those places that will put your logo on the round glass ball ornaments... but they want set up charges and a minimum order... looking at at least $350 just to get going. OYE
I also looked into those places where you can DIY your logo on their stuff. But their ornaments were around $12 each plus shipping. And then when I set up our account, they put our logo on everything BUT the ornaments. I needed the "Premium" account to choose the products.
So instead I looked into just making ornaments our selves. And I came up with two really cute ideas that aren't too hard to do. Sorry I don't have pictures of them here yet, I forgot to take the pictures and then left the ornament samples at church... so I have to make some more and then get your pictures.
Pictures coming soon... I promise.
As promised...
After I get some more photos, I'll do a post on how I made them with a cool trick for how to cut out the doves!
Darly isn't doing a play right now, but she and I are helping some with the current show. I'm supposed to have this weekend off though. I hope that still stands and that the chairperson let her co-chair know that. ;)
Darly is singing in our church choir instead. She's having a great time and loves singing. I don't think that she'll try a solo again (she did last year for Christmas) but one can never tell. So our Thursday nights are pretty busy as she has a class from 4:30 to 6:30 and then choir practice is at 7. We have fun trying to figure out how to get some food into her.
Hubby decided to wait until last weekend to finally show us his Christmas wish list. How funny that I had totally forgotten him mentioning (very casually of course) the things on the list. The one year I paid attention to those casual mentions I got in trouble for getting him everything he asked for. So since I didn't pay attention I bought him things I thought he needed...like pants to replace the ones he insists still fit him from his High School wardrobe that don't. I'm sure I'll have to take the new pants in though because unlike Jerry changing his 34's into 31's, I know that these pants will be at least 4 inches too big in the waist. *roll eyes!*
Darly asked for sensible things this year however finding her sweaters has been quite a challenge. I don't know what is up with the buyers for stores... it is winter, in Colorado... we NEED sweaters that actually keep you warm. Not that you have to put another shirt on under...because while we will put another shirt on it is because we're heading out into sub zero temps...not to look cute!
sigh
and our latest project
One of the ladies at church requested that our Youth group look into getting Christmas Ornaments with our church logo on them for a fundraiser. But when I looked into doing that the prices were CRAZY expensive. One gal had suggested that I look into those places that will put your logo on the round glass ball ornaments... but they want set up charges and a minimum order... looking at at least $350 just to get going. OYE
I also looked into those places where you can DIY your logo on their stuff. But their ornaments were around $12 each plus shipping. And then when I set up our account, they put our logo on everything BUT the ornaments. I needed the "Premium" account to choose the products.
So instead I looked into just making ornaments our selves. And I came up with two really cute ideas that aren't too hard to do. Sorry I don't have pictures of them here yet, I forgot to take the pictures and then left the ornament samples at church... so I have to make some more and then get your pictures.
Pictures coming soon... I promise.
As promised...
Friday, December 07, 2012
Lilly update
So today is 2 weeks post-op for Lilly. She got to go in and have her staples removed. She wasn't all that happy to go. A bundle of nerves was more like it. Even more nervous than when she goes in for her shots.
So the doc is happy with her progress. She said that Lilly is doing better than she expected her to be at this point. I had to rat Lilly out for jumping the retaining wall again. I don't know how we are going to keep her from doing that other than actually walking her on the leash each time she goes out. sigh...it is cold out there!
The doc said that her Mother in law had staples once and said that it was very painful to get them removed, but that the dogs don't even flinch. Course I'm sure her MIL didn't have someone holding 3 of her limbs and holding down her head with their forearm. ;)
Now Lilly keeps following me around the house. It is very annoying. I sure hope I don't actually trip over her. Perhaps Lilly is upset with me for leaving her after we got back to go Christmas shopping.
So the doc is happy with her progress. She said that Lilly is doing better than she expected her to be at this point. I had to rat Lilly out for jumping the retaining wall again. I don't know how we are going to keep her from doing that other than actually walking her on the leash each time she goes out. sigh...it is cold out there!
The doc said that her Mother in law had staples once and said that it was very painful to get them removed, but that the dogs don't even flinch. Course I'm sure her MIL didn't have someone holding 3 of her limbs and holding down her head with their forearm. ;)
Now Lilly keeps following me around the house. It is very annoying. I sure hope I don't actually trip over her. Perhaps Lilly is upset with me for leaving her after we got back to go Christmas shopping.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Lilly
It was either on Nov 12 or 13th that Lilly came in the house limping after rushing out to chase after a squirrel. I tried to figure out what she might have done to herself but couldn't come up with anything on my own or with the help I got from numerous internet searches. So since she didn't show any improvement I made an appointment to have our vet look at her.
Unfortunately the vet was able to diagnose Lilly in a flash. When he showed me I knew exactly what was up without him having to say a word. Lilly had torn her ACL in her back left leg. That meant surgery. Okay well it doesn't necessarily mean surgery... well here are the options.
1) do nothing and the dog limps for the rest of her life and probably gets arthritis which makes the rest of her life painful.
2) surgery done at my vet's office. This is the cheapest of the surgery options.
3) surgery done at a vet in Colorado Springs.
4) surgery done at another vet - he didn't say where this vet was.
Options 3 & 4 were both more expensive and after looking online I realized that both options were really for larger dogs than Lilly.
See a torn ACL is usually suffered by larger breed dogs (like Labs, etc.) and usually happens when the dog is younger (around age 2). When an older dogs suffers this injury it is usually because they're overweight.
Well Lilly is 10 and not overweight. I'm not sure why hers went out. at any rate, it is pretty likely that she'll tear out the other one. bummer.
We decided to have the surgery done at my vet's office as it seemed that type of surgery was best for a dog of Lilly's size and age.
Lilly went in on Nov 23rd and came home on the 24th.
The 24th was pretty awful for us. I don't know for sure but I think it might have been that Lilly accidentally got too much of her morphine medicine. She showed signs of morphine psychosis and was driving us all nuts with her constant whining. DH and Darly refused to allow me to give Lilly any more of her morphine as they were worried that she would keep them up all night whining.
DH & Darly got to sleep just fine...it was me who was up all night with Lilly and at about 2:45 I gave Lilly more morphine...I cut her pill though as I was worried about her medicine schedule. Unfortunately I wasn't able to cut the pill in half so she got about 1/3rd of it. But that took the edge off of her pain and allowed both of us some sleep.
Things were going well until I asked the vet about just wrapping Lilly's wound instead of making her wear the cone of shame at night. The vet was pretty insistent that Lilly wear the cone as she didn't think that I could wrap the wound in a way that would keep Lilly out of it...I didn't tell the vet that I had already been just wrapping it and not forcing Lilly to wear the cone.
Lilly's leg is healing up really nicely and she is using it as much as the vet wants her to at this point. Lilly still wants to lick at her wound but knows she isn't allowed. So she'll either lay down on that leg so she can't get at it OR she'll sneak off to somewhere I am not at when I'm not looking. bugger!
Tomorrow is one week since her surgery...we've got 11 more to go.
Unfortunately the vet was able to diagnose Lilly in a flash. When he showed me I knew exactly what was up without him having to say a word. Lilly had torn her ACL in her back left leg. That meant surgery. Okay well it doesn't necessarily mean surgery... well here are the options.
1) do nothing and the dog limps for the rest of her life and probably gets arthritis which makes the rest of her life painful.
2) surgery done at my vet's office. This is the cheapest of the surgery options.
3) surgery done at a vet in Colorado Springs.
4) surgery done at another vet - he didn't say where this vet was.
Options 3 & 4 were both more expensive and after looking online I realized that both options were really for larger dogs than Lilly.
See a torn ACL is usually suffered by larger breed dogs (like Labs, etc.) and usually happens when the dog is younger (around age 2). When an older dogs suffers this injury it is usually because they're overweight.
Well Lilly is 10 and not overweight. I'm not sure why hers went out. at any rate, it is pretty likely that she'll tear out the other one. bummer.
We decided to have the surgery done at my vet's office as it seemed that type of surgery was best for a dog of Lilly's size and age.
Lilly went in on Nov 23rd and came home on the 24th.
The 24th was pretty awful for us. I don't know for sure but I think it might have been that Lilly accidentally got too much of her morphine medicine. She showed signs of morphine psychosis and was driving us all nuts with her constant whining. DH and Darly refused to allow me to give Lilly any more of her morphine as they were worried that she would keep them up all night whining.
DH & Darly got to sleep just fine...it was me who was up all night with Lilly and at about 2:45 I gave Lilly more morphine...I cut her pill though as I was worried about her medicine schedule. Unfortunately I wasn't able to cut the pill in half so she got about 1/3rd of it. But that took the edge off of her pain and allowed both of us some sleep.
Things were going well until I asked the vet about just wrapping Lilly's wound instead of making her wear the cone of shame at night. The vet was pretty insistent that Lilly wear the cone as she didn't think that I could wrap the wound in a way that would keep Lilly out of it...I didn't tell the vet that I had already been just wrapping it and not forcing Lilly to wear the cone.
Lilly's leg is healing up really nicely and she is using it as much as the vet wants her to at this point. Lilly still wants to lick at her wound but knows she isn't allowed. So she'll either lay down on that leg so she can't get at it OR she'll sneak off to somewhere I am not at when I'm not looking. bugger!
Tomorrow is one week since her surgery...we've got 11 more to go.
Friday, November 23, 2012
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving was just the three of us this year. Which I'm sure was just fine for my two introverts, spending the holiday with my brother and his extended family can drive them both into "shut down" mode.
Since we were just three I decided that our meal's leftovers shouldn't last until next year, so I did a lot of scaling back of the production.
The Menu:
Turkey (11 lbs, the smallest I could find!) Brined & Butterflied* ala Alton Brown!
Gravy (pan drippings, flour, Kitchen Bouquet and water saved from the potatoes)
Mashed Potatoes
Candied Yams (can of yams, 3 TBSP Brown Sugar, 3 TBSP butter - bake @ 350 for at least 30 min)
Corn
Green Beans
Mushrooms (chopped up with salt, pepper & butter. Microwaved 4 minutes)
Bread
Cranberry Sauce (we like that can shaped jelly)
Pumpkin Dessert**
Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Darly made everything I've highlighted and did an awesome job!
I didn't make any stuffing this year because I'm the only one who likes it and therefore I'm the only who eats it and I don't need any more stuffing. ;)
I realized that I didn't make anything orange for me to eat this year. I don't like candied yams :p I was going to make rutabagas, but my store had only small rubbery roots...just good for soup.
No, I'm not drunk there. We're drinking Grape Juice. Hubby just manages to take the best pictures and I blinked.
I hope that you and your family all had a very Blessed Thanksgiving!
*Place turkey on a plastic cutting board breast-side down. Using kitchen shears, cut ribs down one side of back bone and then the other and remove. Open chicken like a book and remove the keel bone separating the breast halves by slicing through the thin membrane covering it, then by placing two fingers underneath the bone and levering it out. Turn turkey breast-side up and spread out like a butterfly by pressing down on the breast and pulling the legs towards you.
Since we were just three I decided that our meal's leftovers shouldn't last until next year, so I did a lot of scaling back of the production.
The Menu:
Turkey (11 lbs, the smallest I could find!) Brined & Butterflied* ala Alton Brown!
Gravy (pan drippings, flour, Kitchen Bouquet and water saved from the potatoes)
Mashed Potatoes
Candied Yams (can of yams, 3 TBSP Brown Sugar, 3 TBSP butter - bake @ 350 for at least 30 min)
Corn
Green Beans
Mushrooms (chopped up with salt, pepper & butter. Microwaved 4 minutes)
Bread
Cranberry Sauce (we like that can shaped jelly)
Pumpkin Dessert**
Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Darly made everything I've highlighted and did an awesome job!
I didn't make any stuffing this year because I'm the only one who likes it and therefore I'm the only who eats it and I don't need any more stuffing. ;)
I realized that I didn't make anything orange for me to eat this year. I don't like candied yams :p I was going to make rutabagas, but my store had only small rubbery roots...just good for soup.
No, I'm not drunk there. We're drinking Grape Juice. Hubby just manages to take the best pictures and I blinked.
I hope that you and your family all had a very Blessed Thanksgiving!
*Place turkey on a plastic cutting board breast-side down. Using kitchen shears, cut ribs down one side of back bone and then the other and remove. Open chicken like a book and remove the keel bone separating the breast halves by slicing through the thin membrane covering it, then by placing two fingers underneath the bone and levering it out. Turn turkey breast-side up and spread out like a butterfly by pressing down on the breast and pulling the legs towards you.
**Pumpkin Dessert recipe
My mother in law first heard this recipe on the radio back in California...sometime back in the 80's.
Ingredients
29oz can pumpkin (not pie filling)
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp cloves (opt)
1 1/4 cup sugar
12 oz can evaporated milk
3 eggs (slightly beaten)
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup melted butter
Instructions
Mix spices with sugar and then into pumpkin. Add evaporated milk & eggs and mix thoroughly. Pour into a greased 9X13 pan. Sprinkle cake mix over pumpkin mixture lightly so as to not make big dents in the pumpkin (note: the cake mix is to stay "dry" not be mixed with the pumpkin!) Sprinkle walnuts over cake mix and then drizzle butter over the top. Bake at 350 for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the top is golden brown. Check after 50 min.
Ingredients
29oz can pumpkin (not pie filling)
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp cloves (opt)
1 1/4 cup sugar
12 oz can evaporated milk
3 eggs (slightly beaten)
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup melted butter
Instructions
Mix spices with sugar and then into pumpkin. Add evaporated milk & eggs and mix thoroughly. Pour into a greased 9X13 pan. Sprinkle cake mix over pumpkin mixture lightly so as to not make big dents in the pumpkin (note: the cake mix is to stay "dry" not be mixed with the pumpkin!) Sprinkle walnuts over cake mix and then drizzle butter over the top. Bake at 350 for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the top is golden brown. Check after 50 min.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Priorities?
So last week after my dog Lilly had been outside chasing a squirrel we noticed that she was limping on her back leg. I looked at her foot and leg and couldn't find anything wrong. So I did a bit of research on the net and found this full exam that you can do. I did that and still couldn't figure out why my dog was limping.
So since she was still limping the following day, I took her to the vet. $450 later I find out that she has torn her ACL (that's the ligament in the knee joint)...to get it fixed will cost between $1800 and $3200. Depending on which type of surgery I choose. So like any good doggy parent I did my research.
What I was trying to figure out was what would be the best surgery for Lilly that won't cause her problems later in life. I mean if I get her the cheap surgery...will I just pay for it later with more medical bills for arthritis or something else?
My research showed that this type of injury typically happens in large breed dogs within the first two years of their lives...and if they "blow" one they'll typically blow the other back knee as well. The other set of dogs that get this are smaller breeds who are overweight. They don't blow the second knee though. Lilly is neither type of dog though.
There are 4 types of surgery for dogs. My vet only offered me 3 choices though...and the two more expensive versions aren't offered at my vet's office. If I chose those I would be referred to other vets for them. However, the two more expensive options are also for the larger breed dogs and are kind of dependent on the weight of the dog for the fix to work. So I chose the cheaper option.
Lilly's surgery is scheduled for Nov 23rd.
Then yesterday I get an IM from my brother that my grandmother is in the hospital after taking a nasty fall. Grandma is almost 91. She lives with my Aunt & Uncle and they had left her at home. When they returned she greeted them at the door with a huge bruise on her head, and her face & arms were all scratched up. A quick check of the house found bloody spots in the sun room...it appeared that she had fallen twice. Grandma couldn't remember it or anything that happened last week.
So Grandma got to spend Thanksgiving in the hospital while they run tests to try to figure out why she fell.
I tried to call my mom today but got no answer.
She called me back later AFTER she talked to my brother. Who of course asked if I had called and she said no, because she didn't have her phone turned on and missed my two calls!
My mom was more concerned with my dog's surgery, her dog's food and other things than about her mom being in the hospital. At least that is what she said.
So since she was still limping the following day, I took her to the vet. $450 later I find out that she has torn her ACL (that's the ligament in the knee joint)...to get it fixed will cost between $1800 and $3200. Depending on which type of surgery I choose. So like any good doggy parent I did my research.
What I was trying to figure out was what would be the best surgery for Lilly that won't cause her problems later in life. I mean if I get her the cheap surgery...will I just pay for it later with more medical bills for arthritis or something else?
My research showed that this type of injury typically happens in large breed dogs within the first two years of their lives...and if they "blow" one they'll typically blow the other back knee as well. The other set of dogs that get this are smaller breeds who are overweight. They don't blow the second knee though. Lilly is neither type of dog though.
There are 4 types of surgery for dogs. My vet only offered me 3 choices though...and the two more expensive versions aren't offered at my vet's office. If I chose those I would be referred to other vets for them. However, the two more expensive options are also for the larger breed dogs and are kind of dependent on the weight of the dog for the fix to work. So I chose the cheaper option.
Lilly's surgery is scheduled for Nov 23rd.
Then yesterday I get an IM from my brother that my grandmother is in the hospital after taking a nasty fall. Grandma is almost 91. She lives with my Aunt & Uncle and they had left her at home. When they returned she greeted them at the door with a huge bruise on her head, and her face & arms were all scratched up. A quick check of the house found bloody spots in the sun room...it appeared that she had fallen twice. Grandma couldn't remember it or anything that happened last week.
So Grandma got to spend Thanksgiving in the hospital while they run tests to try to figure out why she fell.
I tried to call my mom today but got no answer.
She called me back later AFTER she talked to my brother. Who of course asked if I had called and she said no, because she didn't have her phone turned on and missed my two calls!
My mom was more concerned with my dog's surgery, her dog's food and other things than about her mom being in the hospital. At least that is what she said.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)