Spayed and Sleeping

Our dog Tessie was spayed on Friday. I dropped her off about 8:30 in the morning, and they called me about 11:30 to say the surgery had gone well, she was awake and had eaten some food. I called again late afternoon and they said she was doing fine and had gone outside. Knowing that, I’m not sure why they needed to keep her overnight. On the other hand, not having her for a night meant I didn’t have to get up at 3:30 in the morning to take her out to poop, and was able to sleep in a bit Saturday morning. We all missed her, but the break was nice too.

When we picked her up Saturday morning I wasn’t expecting her to be “herself”, but she was. She was so excited to see us, and showed absolutely no sign of having had major surgery the day before. She pulled on her leash the minute we got outside, and jumped up into the car when I opened the door. Once home she was back to her regular routine with barely a blip.

Saturday night she slept in the soft crate next to my bed as always, and as always, she scratched on it in the midde of the night to go out. I stepped into my slippers and trudged downstairs with her, letting her out into the inch of snow that was falling (it would be 10 inches before it stopped mid-morning), and she immediately peed and pooped. Good lord, when will this ever stop?

She’s been licking at her stitches quite a bit – when the vet tech called to check on her yesterday she suggested putting a child’s T-shirt or shorts on her, but that lasted all of ohhhh, about 2 minutes. So I’ve been trying to be diligent in catching her and redirecting her. I’m very concerned about infection, or her pulling them out. And since I can’t watch her in her sleep, I made a big decision at bedtime last night.

I let her sleep on my bed.

And she slept till morning. No middle of the night potty breaks.

A fluke? Or a new beginning? Let’s see how tonight goes.

In the meantime, I may need to pick up one of those no-bite collars, as the stitch-licking is not letting up.

What’s Missing?

Isn’t it funny how if you’ve never tasted chocolate, you don’t miss it? Or once you click with someone at work, it just doesn’t feel the same on the days he or she is out?

I had a dog for many years – I’ve referred to him often as my first child. He passed away just three weeks before I became a mom to a human child, which kept me pretty busy, and I didn’t have time to miss him once that happened. In fact, there have been many times when I’ve been thankful not to have a dog: when the weather is bad, when we have such a busy day we’re just not home, when we can get up and go at the drop of a hat.

Regular readers of this blog know we added a dog, Tessie, to our family in September. I’ve had to readjust lots of things in our routine, both large and small. The biggest thing is that I have not put in a full day in the office since she came to us, but smaller things are getting up in the middle of the night (most nights) to take her out, working on training items, reminding children to be gentle and planning our weekends so we’re home enough to let her out, as well as providing human contact for her. Some of it has been easy and some of it hard, but it’s all part of owning a dog.

This morning we dropped Tessie off at the vet to get spayed. She will spend the night there, and we’ll pick her up by noon tomorrow. I then dropped both kids off at their respective schools, and came home to work. It is eerily quiet in this house. I’m looking forward to getting a full night’s sleep tonight, but I already miss something I didn’t even have a few months ago.

Just Say No to Goody Bags

OK, so Krystal’s birthday is in less than two weeks, and Belle’s is a scant month away. This year I am throwing them a joint birthday party at one of the party centers nearby – I can justify the cost since it’s for both of them, otherwise I would never spend that kind of money on a birthday party. Last year I thought I was having a budget party for Krystal at our local movie theater that doubles as a restaurant, but once it was all said and done it ended up costing me a pretty penny. Belle’s was at McDonald’s last year, which is the best deal in town, but that is way too young for Krystal and her friends.

We’re distributing invitations this week, and I’m making my list of what I need to still buy for the party: cake or cupcakes, maybe little hoodsies (individual ice cream cups, in case that is a New England term), juice or water (for the parents too)….and goody bags? I am opposed to goody bags on principle. When my kids get them at parties they attend I end up throwing them away – they’re junk. Sure, it’s fun to get, but after the thrill of getting, there’s nothing left. And I’m even more opposed to giving them, because that means I have to spend money on someone else’s kid whose mom will probably end up tossing it. Did this tradition start so the guests wouldn’t feel bad about not getting a gift (even though they’ll get a turn on their own birthday)?

So I’m seriously considering not doing goody bags at all.

Will I be hailed as a pioneer or villified for my cheapness?

21 Months May be Too Long….or I May Have Had Too Much

I have never felt comfortable being the “host”. I enjoy spending time with friends, but I enjoy it much more at their house. I have always been this way, and I’m not entirely sure why. I thought about this a lot during our seven hour car trip back from visiting with friends at their house for a week. We had a great time, and I knew we were missed before we even left the driveway, but it occurred to me that if we had hosted them for a week, I’d have been heaving a sigh of relief when they left. Not because I didn’t want to be with them, but because I would feel such pleasure at having my house back. And I think that’s the crux for me – my home is my hideaway.

Which is so not what I set out to write about!

But here’s how it sort of relates: For Easter in 2006 I decided to host dinner at our house for a group of friends. One friend had to bring a folding table to plunk in the middle of the kitchen for the kids to sit at, and the weather was too snowy to have an outdoor egg hunt, but it was a rousing success. I cooked up most of the meal myself, and even made split pea soup with the leftover ham. It was fabulous!! I ate quite a bit of it, and froze some for later.

Tonight I pulled out the remainder of that soup from the freezer and ate it for dinner. I wasn’t sure how nearly two year old soup would be, but I’m here to report that it was as tasty as I remember. I polished off all that was left (about two mugs full).

And now, three hours later, I still feel full. I’m trying to convince myself I just ate too much of it, and that the soup itself was fine.

Mostly I am enjoying the peace and quiet of my house, with children asleep and just me (and the dog of course).

End of Year Meme

I lifted this from Marcia over at Are We There Yet? and since I’ve been away over the New Year, this is the cusp of my year, and I’m doing it now. So there.

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before? Adopted a puppy, and dealing with all that goes along with that.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I have not made any resolutions in years, and don’t plan on any this year. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m not always striving to do things better, but I don’t specifically make changes at the new year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? No

4. Did anyone close to you die? No

5. What countries did you visit? Didn’t travel outside the country this year, although I do plan on visiting Mexico and the Bahamas in 2009. Check back next year.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? A sense of security. Also, to be a better parent.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? I can’t think of anything particularly meaningful that I will remember for years.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? I can’t think of a bloody thing! Isn’t that awful?

9. What was your biggest failure? Cutting way back on my exercise schedule when the puppy joined our family.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? No, I am pretty healthy, as a rule.

11. What was the best thing you bought? An iPod Touch – so in love.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Tessie, our puppy, learning to use bells to go outside within a day and a half.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Belle. She is driving me to drink.

14. Where did most of your money go? Mortgage and day care. Ouch.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Making plans for a mom’s only vacation with my friend Suzy (which will be taken in 2009)

16. What song will always remind you of 2008? The older I get, the less a song reminds me of a particular time or place. Maybe “What Time is It?” from High School Musical 2, which I heard a lot this year.

17. Compared to this time last year are you a) happier or sadder b) thinner or fatter c) richer or poorer Sadder, about the same, and about the same, but with the potential to be much poorer soon, if the current economic conditions continue and I am laid off.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Enjoying the little things.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Worrying. Flying off the handle at little things.

20. How did you spend Christmas? Home with the kids and my mom.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008? No

22. What was your favorite TV program? Too many to count! But I’ll just give a nod to a few that are current: How I Met Your Mother, Lost, Heroes, Dirty Sexy Money, Pushing Daisies, The Office. Of course two of those have already had their cancellations announced. Figures.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? No

24. What was the best book you read? As an avid reader, I have read shamefully few books of late. I might have to go with “The Art of Raising a Puppy“, followed closely by “Frindle“, which is a childrens book, but I loved it so much.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Ingrid Michaelson, who played at a charity concert I attended on my brief foray into dating. She was charming, funny and oh-so-talented.

26. What did you want and get? A new hairstyle (which I am having trouble maintaining on my own)

27.  What did you want and not get? A trimmer body (but this is my own lazy fault)

28. What was your favorite film of this year? I don’t see a lot of movies, but I really enjoyed Love, Actually. And Slumdog Millionaire is sticking with me, but is not for the faint of heart.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 45, and I had the girls take me out to dinner….but I can’t remember where. I guess it was really memorable (ahem).

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Getting an adult social life

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? You’ve got to be kidding….a “fashion concept?” My fashion style can best be described as “jeans and a sweatshirt” or “shorts and a T-shirt”, depending on the season.

32. What kept you sane? Being able to talk to Suzy, who is the only person I can trust to know I’m not going crazy.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Peter Krause

34. What political issue stirred you the most? The presidential election.

35. Who did you miss? Suzy

36. Who was the best new person you met? Probably Gary, who I met at speed dating, and went on two real dates with. Though I ultimately decided not to pursue a relationship with him, he was a very nice man, and I learned a lot about myself as a result of meeting him.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008. Administer oxygen to yourself before assisting others.

38.  Quote a song lyric that sums up the year.  Oh boy, I used to be really into song lyrics and relating them to various relationships. I’m really grasping here, but I’ll go with the Dropkick Murphy’s Tessie, since we named our dog after this song:

You know we couldn’t live without you
Tessie, you are the only only only