Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Poor Puppy

Our poor puppy has not been feeling great lately.  One month ago today, Cyrus started having trouble walking and sitting up from a lying position.  He couldn't walk straight and seemed dizzy.  I frantically called the vet's office only to find they were closed early that day and immediately rushed him to another vet. Of course, when the vet examined him, his episodes of dizziness disappeared and the results from his blood work came back normal.  Later that night, he had another few episodes of almost tipping over while trying to walk and I really freaked out when he had a couple episodes of nystagmus (where the eyes roll continuously back and forth...like they can't focus).  It was horrible.  I immediately thought he had a brain tumor and freaked out again while Matt calmly looked up his symptoms online.  He thought Cyrus either had an inner ear infection or could have a geriatric condition (Cyrus is 13 years old now).  I still thought he could have a brain tumor.  So, we did what any crazy dog people would do and moved our mattress onto the living room floor so he could sleep between us. Needless to say, I didn't sleep all night because I was terrified of bad news...and Cyrus kept squirming all night.  We took him to our vet first thing the next morning and she confirmed what Matt had found online:  he could have an inner ear infection, he could have Geriatric Vestibular Disease, or he could have a brain tumor (although she thought it was very unlikely...whew).  So, we decided to start him on a course of antibiotics and Dramamine to see if his symptoms would improve...and thankfully they have.  We weaned him off the Dramamine and he continues to improve...whew again.  He still has little bouts of unsteadiness when he shakes his head/body, but he's not definitely not almost tipping over like he was.  And we finally were able to move our mattress back into the bedroom. We're hoping that a couple more weeks on antibiotics will get him back to normal...well, normal for him because he doesn't think he's a dog.


Monday, February 9, 2015

Sisters

I'm eternally grateful that my sisters share my twisted sense of humor.  We had the sad task of saying a final farewell to our dad almost two weeks ago.  I was assigned the difficult task of writing his obituary and eulogy.  I told my dad I didn't want to write them, but he insisted...even after I kept telling him that I'm a smart-ass.  He said that's why he wanted me to write them.  So, I kept my promise and I hope I made him proud...and laugh a few times.

My sisters and I not only share the same sense of humor, but we approach life with the same attitude. We'd much rather laugh than cry.  My dad told us there wasn't any crying when we'd tear up while visiting him in his final weeks.  He told us we were stronger than that.  (Did I mention he was an ex-Marine?)  So, we wiped away the tears and made him laugh instead...just like he did with us.  My dad had a great sense of humor and maintained it even while his body was shutting down.  While we were visiting, the hospice nurse came to the house to check on him.  When I went to answer the door, he thought he'd be funny and yelled out, "Help, help!" while my sisters were left alone with him.  They kept shushing him and he just laughed and thought he was hilarious.  So, we know who we get our sense of humor from...because we had to agree that was pretty hilarious.

My sisters and I chose to wear matching dresses for his visitation.  We've always been referred to as "the girls" and "Butch's girls".  After the service, we also changed into matching shirts.  They made everyone smile and laugh.  That was our goal.  As I wrote on my facebook wall when I posted his obituary, "Uncontrollable criers will be escorted to the nearest open bar."   He would have liked that.  He didn't want people to be sad. Neither did we.  So, we hope we made my dad proud...and laugh a few times.  





Sunday, February 8, 2015

Welcome to Our Garage

I think my sign collection is going to spill onto Matt's side of the garage with any more sign purchases.

Friday, February 6, 2015

Small Town Saturday

Matt and I try to have a "Small Town Saturday" once a month where we go to a small town (hence the name), do some shopping in the little shops (my favorite part of the day), and eat at one of the local restaurants (Matt's tapeworm's favorite part of the day).  A few weeks ago, we visited South Haven.  I get many of the signs I've been collecting at a cute little shop there and they're usually on sale during the winter to help draw the tourists in.  I love a bargain and we love helping out the local economy, so it's definitely a win-win situation.  We also enjoyed the best onion rings ever at a great landmark restaurant - Clementine's. They're probably the best onion rings I've ever had!  I'm always sure to take a picture of the stack and send it to Keaton so he'll be jealous.  (He loves Clementine's too.)  After eating and shopping, we headed over to the lighthouse and actually walked onto frozen Lake Michigan for a quick selfie before we started shivering. I love Lake Michigan...but not what it does to my hair.