Hi MOM!!!

I just wanted to take a second to say hi to my Mom! She has recently started reading my blog! I guess I have to watch what I say now (hee hee hee). Actually... where do you think I got my perverted mind from!!!

Going to the Chiropractor

So... I have had this pain in my back for a little while now. It is like there is a spot that needs to be popped/cracked but I can't get to it. It right between my shoulder blades. It is affecting how I sleep...or don't sleep! There is a constant dull ache in my neck and back. I have finally given in and called a chiropractor this morning. They just had a cancellation...so I will be going at 3:45 this afternoon. I have always been a little leary about going to the chiropractor...but I don't know what other options I have. The receptionist was so unbelievably chipper. She genuinely seemed very happy to have me come in this afternoon. It is husband and wife that are the chiropractors. They just moved into a brand new office space.

I am nervous, but really excited too... I am really really hoping that they can help me. This pain is really starting to effect my quality of life.

Keep your fingers crossed!

For Adult Eyes Only

Ok.. I have been a little hesitant to post pictures of our costumes...as they are a wee bit on the naughty side! but...since pictures have been requested, I will post them. Look at your own risk!

The first few pictures of Mike's costume is the "tamed down" version. I made a felt coving for his center dog! The covering was removed for the other pictures (we wanted to guage the crowd before unvailing the center hot dog!)

Halloween Costume

Ok... So I have been working feverishly to finish our halloween costumes for the party tomorrow (we are going with our neighbors to a costume party). It has been nice to have something else to think about when I am at home...

Mike is going to be a hot dog vendor. And... knowing me... you know it is slightly perverse. There will be a larger-than-life, life-like "hot dog" (yay Model Magic!) that comes out of mike's shirt and lays in a large bun... surrounded by much more normal sized hotdogs and buns (that I have sewn out of felt). I made mike a red and white striped vest to wear. and a little vendor hat. I have made lots of buttons for him with some clever slogans... So... You may be wondering what I am going to be?? a giant hot dog...NO!! I am going to be the Champion Hot Dog Eater!! The following is the design that I am going to put on a shirt using an iron-on transfer!



** I will make sure I sing "DownTown" a couple of times throughout the night!!

p.s. I apologize to anyone offended by the contents of this post! But... if you are reading this, you most likely know me and you know how my mind works!! (and I know how your minds work too!!)

Lexi is with Wheezie...

Lexi Lobe
6/15/02 - 10/24/07



I had an appointment for Lexi today... but when I got home yesterday at lunchtime, it was time. She looked so miserable. the sparkle had left her eyes. She purred for us...but what not really there. She didn't really acknowledge us other than the purring. she just looked spaced out. Luckily my husband decided to come home to be with us during his lunch break. We decided that we couldn't let her go on another night. Her condition went downhill so quickly (which I guess is a blessing in disguise, noone wants to see their kitties suffer with a lingering ailment). The vet and I both noticed yesterday that she had become jaundiced...which she wasn't on monday at her appointment. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do. But... I know that the disease would have taken her soon and it wasn't fair to her to let her go on any longer. She is with Wheezie now. The two of them had always been linked together. I had a very bad feeling for the last week that Lexi was going to be joining Wheezie soon. Lexi joined our home because of Wheezie... so it only makes sense that she joins Wheezie in her new home up in heaven. (as a side note... I found Wheezie's picture on petfinder 4 1/2 years ago. She spoke to me through that picture. My husband laughs at me when I say that...but she did. Lexi's picture was there too... she didn't really appeal to me. But, for some reason... it was linked in my head to Wheezie's picture. When we went to meet the girls. Wheezie came running up from outside and greeted us at the door. We barely even saw Lexi. When I asked if the two got along...she said that they were best friends. So, we gave Lexi a shot. She turned out to be the most beautiful and loving kitty ever. she loved giving kisses and snuggling with her mommy. she was a momma's girl. Wheezie was two months older than Lexi and was in her first home (the foster home) two months before lexi... I guess it is only fitting that Wheezie had to go try out her new home in heaven two months before Lexi...)

I will really miss my girls. The Wheeze and my Lexi Lugi Boogie Beara.

Tipsy is still finding solace in her cage. She is happy and content in there. She really wants nothing to do with coming out of her cage. I hope that she will one day rejoin the rest of us...but right now, her quality of life is 100 times better in the cage then out of it... I think she likes the security of having her own space. I am not going to force her to come out. I hate to think of her spending so long in there...but if that is where she is happiest and content. who am I to judge or make her change.

appointment

Lexi is not doing well. I have an appointment for tomorrow at 4:40. Please keep us in your prayers. This is going to be one of the hardest things I have ever had to do.

and it gets worse...

the vet says that the masses look like a mesentaric lymphoma. and, Lexi tested highly positive for the corona visus and is clinical for FIP. surgery is no longer and option. ... I wouldn't want to fo that route anyway. It is jut a matter of keeping her comfortable for as long as I can. for as long as her quality of life is ok....

some sort of mass...

So the xrays confirmed that there is some sort of mass in Lexi's abdomen. I wasn't thinking properly yesterday to ask more questions. The doctor took some more blood to check for diseases such as FIV, FeLV, FIP and the likes... Still waiting for word on the results. I need to ask the doctor some questions about the mass... was it in, or out of, the GI tract. If it was in there, does it look like a foreign body?? She is suggesting ultrasound or surgery. I want to avoid surgery at all costs. ... look what it did to Wheezie. But, they can't get her in at the specialist until the 2nd or 14th of November, depending on which Dr. I see. I have to ask if I can wait that long. Or... should I try to get in there in an emergency slot. I know that they keep some of those available. But, of course it will cost more. She is fighting hard against getting the medicine and is not really eating on her own. I have been trying to force feed her. She is fighting that too. I am still giving her fluids to keep her hydrated.

I'm having a hard time trying to figure out what to do....

It's been one heck of a morning...

Lexi had to go back to the vet this morning. I was a little nervous about taking her back...b/c I am worried about her. I just have a horrible feeling in my gut. This weekend, she has been really pissy. She hates her medicine...and now hates me for giving it to her!! She seems more lethargic/depressed since starting the medicine. Well, the vet office doesn't open until 8. I was taking my time getting ready since I had an extra 50 minutes! The phone rings at 7am. MIke's parent broke down (in our "new" truck). They are trying to get in touch with Mike. He is already downtown. So, I hurry up and finish getting dressed, brush my teeth and rush out the door. Drive 15 minutes to go pick them up and the 15 minutes back to their house. All the while, my stomach has been acting up...probably due to my female friend and nerves. I can barely make it to their house... I tell them that I will see them later and I will be in the bathroom for a while. I finally make it back to our house... I have to still finished getting ready, take my own medicine and give Lexi her medicine. Lexi really hasn't been eating, and she hates her liquid antibiotic, so I decide to mix it with some food. She wont eat it...so I decide to syringe it to her. As I am holding her trying to squirt food in her mouth I notice my leg getting nice and warm...and wet. Turns out Lexi had been holding her bladder all night... I must have squeezed too hard in trying to hold her to medicate/feed her. Yup... about 2 minutes worth of pee on my leg and the spare bed. I didn't want to pick her up and carry her to the litter box b/c that would mean pee all over the carpet that I just shampooed yesterday. I have never seen so much pee come out of a cat!! Once she finally stops peeing I sit her on the ground and gather up all the linens of off the bed. Luckily the egg crate/pad seemed to be the stopping point. I think I will be investing in a waterproof mattress pad today! Needless to say, I had to reshower and start some laundry. The other cats are going crazy trying to figure out what in the heck is going on. I finally get Lexi to the vet. I stop by the store on my way in to work...since I am already running late, I might as well buy some cookies to cheer me up. Anyway... In hte middle of my shopping trip, I have to drop my basket and run to the restroom b/c my stomach issues are returning. Luckily, my basket was wear I left it when I went back to look for it. I got my cookies (and a few other snacks) and headed into work. I barely made it to the first floor bathroom.

It has been a couple hours and lots of water and some rice later... I am slowly starting to feel a little better. Stress is not very friendly to my GI system.

I just got off the phone with the vet. Lexi's white blood cell count is back down to 15!! That is good. It is still considered high... but not nearly as high as 27,000!!! She is, however, still running a fever. The vet felt something in her abdomen that didn't feel right... so they are doing some x-rays. I am waiting for the results. Hopefully I am just being overly cautious given all that we have been through this summer...but I have a really bad feeling.

We have ourselves one sick Lexi Loogie Boogie!

Lexi is fighting off some deep seeded infection. Her WBC is through the roof... 27,000. The vet says she gets worried if it gets up to 30!! I guess around 16 is normal/high for a cat. She is going to be put on two different antibiotics. I have to keep a close eye on her b/c of her sensitivity to drugs. I guess Lexi and I will be staying in the princess recovery room for a few more nights. My poor Loogie Boogie Bear (that is her nickname). The scary thing is that the numbers are all to similar to Wheezie's. I don't think Lexi ate anything. So who knows what is causing this. Hopefully the antibiotics will help.

So tired....

I didn't sleep much last night. Lexi is sick. Not sure what. We are waiting on the bloodwork results. There is a good chance that her depression turned into not eating which turned into Fatty Liver Disease. She had a fever of 104 at the vets yesterday and was down to 10 lbs (for 12lb in February, when she was last weighed). She was dehydrated. The vet gave (well...sold) me some fluids to bring home. I gave her about 200 mls of saline last night and another 50 this morning. I dropped off a urine and fecal sample for the vet this morning. The "princess recovery room" was re-instated last night for Lexi. That is what we called the spare bedroom when Wheezie was sick. Lexi ate some for me last night, but pretty much just curled up with me and slept on and off throughout the night...as did I. More not sleeping than sleeping...especially between 1 and 2 am when Milo, Mr. Separation Anxiety, decided to scream for me outside the door. Yes...for the entire hour. All the while he was trying to get the door open or dig under it. I finally gave in and went out to the couch at 1:55am! He just curled up on the loveseat and settled in. I couldn't get comfy on the couch, so after about 20 mintues, I told Milo that Lexi was sick and mommy need to go sleep with her. He was fine for the rest of the night. I guess he just wanted to make sure I was ok. He is like my guard kitty. He likes to sleep on the floor next to the bed and as soon as I stir slightly, he is there to check on me. If I go to bed before Mike... Milo will sleep on Mike's side of the bed.

When I find out the results of Lexi's tests, I will post them.

Back to the vet...

Well, I have broken down and gotten Lexi an appointment at the new vet. Call it mommy intuition or just being overprotective...but I think that there is something going on more than just the grieving. or... the grieving has caused some physical issues. She seemed a little dehydrated last night and her coat isn't look as well kept as normal. I will update tomorrow on how things go this evening.

Bad Night...

So I had a small emotional breakdown last night. I have been really worried about Lexi, she has been very mopey since Wheezie died. She just wants to sleep all the time. (I know, that is very cat-like...but this is different). Anyway... For the last month and a half, I can't say that I was in denial...but more relieved. I was relieved for Wheezie, that she wasn't suffering any more. Relieved more me...because I could actually relax a little bit. It wasn't until she was gone that I realized that I had spent the last two months worrying constantly about her. i wasn't sleeping. And the stress of Tipsy didn't help. Until now, when I thought about Wheezie, I could only see the last two months of her life. Well...I am finally moving past that . I was actually kind of excited that I was remembering all the good things about her. But, those memories made me really sad. For the first time, I think it really hit me. and hard... I don't want to disrespect my other cats...because I love them all dearly and they bring much joy into my life... but Wheezie was truely one of a kind. She brought more joy and laughter into our lives, and the lives of those that met her, then probably all of our other cats put together. She just had a way with people. She made me smile just looking at her. There was just something so very special about her. Mike always laughs at me about this... but her picture on petfinder spoke to me. She was yelling out to me to that she was my cat! and, when Mike and I went out to meet her and Lexi... Wheezie was outside and she raced to greet us at the door as we pulled up. She is the reason we adopted Lexi. For some reason their two pictures seemed linked together. Lexi has always been Wheezie's right hand kitty. I think she feels lost without. I don't think she knows where her place is in the house. She hasn't really stepped up to be the alpha kitty. Lydia has taken over that role. I am doing my best to spend as much time with Lexi as possible and give her all the love she needs right now... I am trying to make sure that she is addressed and petted before all the other kitties. I want to make her feel special. She is now the oldest and will get all the perks that come with it.

I am doing much better today. While I am experiencing a new kind of sadness... my grieving process is moving forward and that has to be a good thing. Maybe it will help me get out of the rut I have been in.

5 Years Ago Today....

I was getting MARRIED!!! I can't believe it has been 5 years! (That almost makes me feel as old as thinking about what year we started and graduated from college!!)

Here is a fun picture from our special day!


I still have to point and scold him from time to time! Some of the other fond memories I have from that day include:

Heidi having an entire plate of glitter dumped in her hair!! (while the rest of the girls only got a light sprinkling of glitter!) I know that may not have been all that fun for Heidi, but... it helped calm my nerves.

My brother Chuck trying to introduce us as husband and wife as we walked out of the church...but not knowing our last name!

The limo driver kidnapping us after the ceremony!! The photographer wanted pictures of us getting in the limo and driving away. The limo driver kept driving!! We were afraid that the priest was going to be mad at us...he specifically told us to not waste any time and to get the pictures done asap!

Being so totally shocked when Mike's dad start dancing all freaky with me on the dance floor!

oh...there are so many great memories from that day! and Mike and I have made so many more great memories in the last 5 years!

A big heartfelt thank you goes out to all of you who helped make our wedding, and the last 5 years, so wonderful!

Coupons

Ok Ladies-- I know most of you are like me, and enjoy a good deal/clearance/coupon etc...

Here is a website that a coworker told me about:

CouponCabin

You can sign up to get weekly emails from them. I have the printable coupon section bookmarked on my computer (I prefer the printable ones, since I don't do much online shopping).

Hats for Rachel

Here are some pictures of the newest hats that I've crocheted for my cousin's baby, Rachel (she is 16 months old and has been diagnosed with AML...a type of leukemia). The hat models are: Evan Nix, Marlie Nix and James Bell. I was trying to have a controlled photo session, with Evan being the only model (he is only 2 months younger than Rachel)...but all the other kids had to join in! So... I will definitely be re-washing all the hats before sending them to Rachel.

My favorite so far are the animal hats. The bear hat was my first. Then the pig, puppy and bunny. I am definitely improving as I go! I've seen similar hats being sold online for $25 - $35!!! Mike wants me to make some to sell, it only takes a couple of hours over the course an evening or two to do an animal hat...but still, that is a lot of work! I will focus on making them for friends and family first! I am sure you can guess what the kids in the family are getting for christmas!!

Marlie in the teddy bear hat!

Marlie "ham"ing it up in the piggy hat!

Evan liked the piggy hat too!


The puppy hat was a hit with Evan and James!! I love this one too....it is just so dog-gone cute!! I may have to make one for myself!!
Evan in the puppy hat!
James cheesing it up for the camera!

Here is Evan in the bunny hat... I don't know if I am going to add a face to it or not. I kind of like it as is.
Little bunny Evan

Evan in the sparkly yellow hat
Say Cheese!

Daddy Cleve wasn't home to see Evan in the girly green hat!

My coworkers have joined in and have started making hats for Rachel too! There are about 4 or 5 of us that crochet at lunch.

Evan sporting Karen and Sallie's stripped hat with twirlies on top!
Marlie really liked Sallie's blue hat! She wouldn't let me fix it so we could see her eyes!

Jane Sitings!

ok... So, I am not 100% sure that this is a picture of Jane... as it is from behind. But, from my best recollection. The behind on the left looks like Jane.

Carolyn & Jesse's Azerbaijan Peace Corps Blog: Mingechevir, Baku and Elton


There is a picture of Jane on this site too. There are a bunch of pictures to the left of the blogs. The picture with Jane in it is the second one from the bottom.

another jane picture here!


If I find anymore... I will post the links!

NBC12

NBC12

ok...I am testing out the "blog this" option on my computer! keep your fingers crossed that it works. the link should take you to a local tv network here in Richmond!

Crap!

Finding a pair of Adidas sneakers on clearance at Kohl's.... Awesome!

Said shoes being my size and fitting perfectly....So Awesome!

Really liking the style of the said clearance shoes...Totally Awesome!

Paying only $15 for said shoes....Even More Totally Awesome!

Stepping in dog crap 5 minutes after putting on the shoes....So NOT Awesome!


Here's a picture of my new shoes! This is the clean one!!

Prayers Needed

My mom called last night to tell me that my Aunt Julie is in the ICU back home in Cincinnati. She was recently diagnosed with Graves Disease (this is what I will be researching today!). Anyway, she has been having a rough time dealing with everything lately and has just been feeling pretty crappy. My mom took her to the hospital on Wednesday for a scheduled test. As it turns out, it was a very good thing that this test was scheduled. My Aunt Julie's lungs were filled with fluid and there is a lot of fluid built up around her heart and her lymphnodes are enlarged. That put her straight into the ER and later took her up to ICU. They did some sort of extremely painful procedure which required a needle going in through her back to remove some of the fluid. My mom says that the whole family is in a state of shock right now. She says it is really serious.

So...as you can imagine. Prayers are definitely needed right now.



Pictured (left to right) Back Row: Uncle Duane and My Mom (Cindy) Front Row: Aunt Jeanne, Aunt Janis, Aunt Kathy, Aunt Julie, Grandma (Mary), and Aunt Mary Jo

I ROCK!!

ok... so I really don't think that highly of myself (all the time!)

anyway...another Shannon reference can be found at:

http://azeraloink.blogspot.com/

I'm almost famous!

Ok...so my "where's Jane" game is making me famous! (well... almost famous!) I was just looking at one of her site-mates blogs (ok, so I get really bored at work sometimes) and he had a shout out to me and Jane's mom in his latest post!! AWESOME! that just about made my day... it has been a really good day so far! I laughed soooooo freakin' hard at lunch. my boss is not the most up-to-date person...well, we were talking about Dancing With The Stars and she started talking about how bad Master P was a few seasons ago. But, instead of calling him Master P, she referred to him as "P Diddley"... that cracked me up. Karen, one of my other co-workers joined in my laughter and said "yeah, I think he is friends with 40 Cent" oh...what a fun lunch. I guess you had to be there. ok...I will stop rambling.

Yay! Shout Outs! I tried posting a link to Ash's (Jane's site mate) blog. Didn't work the way I wanted it to (for some reason I don't get the cool "link" icon that Heidi gets... probably some Mac thing). anyway... here is the address. you can cut and paste:

http://ashsazeradventure.blogspot.com/

The Spin-Off Blog & Tipsy Update

Ok... so I have been planning the spin-off blog in my head for a while now. I even wrote a really good post in my head. Of course, it was while I was drifting off into sleep. I don't remember all of it. But I do remember thinking... damn, this is good - I should write it down. I think it was about starting to post a summary of what I was researching on the internet for that day or the next. It always seems like I am researching something new/old/interesting...whatever. Anyway... I am not sure that I would be able to keep up with two blogs! so... I may just try modifying this one a little bit. we shall see. I am thinking of changing my address to something better (this one was made up at the spur of the moment and I have never really liked it). Would any of my avid followers (ok...Heidi and Amber) be opposed to a flashier web address??

Ok...back to my blog idea from my sleep...
The number one thing that I have been researching lately: crocheting kids hats, crocheted animal hats, etc. (I am making little chemo caps for my cousin's baby).

here are a list of some of the other topics I've been researching lately.

*how I should go about painting kitchen talbes and chairs
*whether I should use oil based paint or latex
*how to get rid of the grand canyon replica cracks in Mike's heels!
*what are the best places to stay in Las Vegas
*getting to the Grand Canyon (not the ones in Mike's feet) from Vegas
*round worms (see below)

hmmm.... it is a wonder I get any work done. Good thing I have a lot of hurry up and wait time here at work.




Tipsy Update:
As of Sept. 28th, Tipsy is officially 6 months seizure free!! She is still doing really well in her cage. She has had no accidents outside of her litter box. This week she has been spending the evenings on the couch with me (or my husband). Prior to this week, she would only sit with us for a max of around 15 minutes and she would never truly relax.Well, this week I started doing some relaxation breathing while she was laying on my chest. I would put myself in a very calm place and just let my whole body relax (something I don't do very often) and to my suprise... it worked on Tipsy!! She relaxes with me! For the last 3 nights she has laid on my chest or lap for at least an hour and a half!! And she isn't laying there because she is scared to move! She is actually comfy and content!!!!!! I feel bad when I am ready for bed and have to put her back in her cage! (We do still have to fight little Stachie off of her from time to time, as he is still viewing her as a mate instead of playmate every now and then). She has also been much more playful in her cage too! It makes me smile to see her playing again!

I took Tipsy in for a 6 month pheno check up with the new doctor yesterday (I am really liking my new vet!!). Because of Tipsy's history with round worms, I took in a fresh sample to be checked. I wasn't expecting them to find anything, but I wanted to be safe. Well, it is a good thing that I did because she STILL has roundworms!! Over the last 6 months she has been treated with atleast 5 doses of Stronget (2 doses when she first showed up and another 3 over the summer). Has anyone else ever had trouble getting rid of roundworms in their kitties. Dr. Broz sent us home with 3 doses of Stronget to be giving every 14 days. She said that if this doesn't take care of them we will have to try something stronger.

They also took some blood to check Tipsy's pheno levels. We are starting to wean her of off the pheno, but Dr. Broz wanted to know her baseline Pheno level, just in case she were to start seizing again. I am cautiously optomstic! As for the weaning. we are dropping her evening dose to about 4 mg (a quarter of a 16.2 mg tab) for a week or two and then, if everything goes well, we will drop her morning dose to a 1/4 tab for a few weeks. then, we will eliminate the evening dose and eventually eliminate the morning dose as well. The rationale behind dropping the evening dose first is that if Tipsy were to start seizing b/c of the lower dose, it would happen at night while we are home...instead of during the day while we are at work.

p.s. you should have heard the ooohs and aaaahhs that Tipsy got yesterday! They took her into the back to draw her blood. The vet and her assistant both saw Tipsy's little white toe at the same time!! She is an all black cat with the exception of one of her back toes! It is pretty darn cute!

I no piggy!

Ok... so I think Lexi might be a little mad at me for making her wear the piggy hat!! I couldn't resist! When I make a monkey hat...she is definitely wearing that one too (Mike's nickname for her is chunky monkey!!). I think a frog hat is next on the list though...