Category Archives: Service Dogs – Tahoe and Twix

Paws to Remember

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My friend, Krista, said goodbye to her precious Gracie yesterday.  Gracie was in her family for 12 years and helped Krista and her husband raise four children. She loved her squeeky toys, and her bark was bigger than her bite as she mastered the role of ‘pseudo guard dog’ upon initial greeting. Before you could blink she’d curl up next to you. Everybody loved Gracie.

Losing a ‘pet’ is often given too little emotional weight – these creatures are not ‘replaceable’, and I pray friends and family appropriately grieve when this situation occurs. It’s natural to mourn when we lose our beloved four-pawed companions. It calls for the jolt of ‘a new normal‘ in our lives. Gracie, you will be missed.

A trip down memory lane is in order for those of us who have experienced the loss of a furry friend…Today, Gracie reminds me about my past losses.

Mindy was our first family pup.  She joined us when I was eleven and passed due to cancer during my first year of college. There was a strange void when I came home for a visit after she was gone.

It was years later when my heart welcomed ‘Mr. Murray’; he was the first pup who claimed me as ‘mom’.  Murray was a party dog and an enthusiastic Canine Assistant.  He retrieved everything from keys to dollar bills for me and was the office mascot who sometimes took the role of Santa’s helper in the lobby at Christmas.  Murray, in my opinion, is the reason that my dog-whisperer husband, Brent, noticed me. He loves animals and had Boone, a black lab, when we met. It was a match made in doggie heaven.

Boone was loyal, loyal, loyal. He was Brent’s dog through and through, and he was my adopted little one when we married.  For over ten years he served as a therapy dog at Eggleston Children’s Hospital and he claimed the foot of our queen-size bed until his last days.

Awwww. Now it’s just Tahoe!

Gracie, Mindy, Murray and Boone you are missed. Thank you for your display of unconditional love and acceptance. The world would be a better place if humans could be as kind, forgiving and accepting as you were.

For those who grieve and face ‘a new normal‘ – May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

Oops! I Cut My Toe

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One of the best and worst things about my paralysis is that I cannot feel pain below my injury level the same way most people do.  Pain may not hit in time to prevent injury and when it does hit, it may not be obvious where and why I am uncomfortable. Strange, I know! This phenomena opens up possibilities for secondary injuries like burns, abrasions, pressure sores and other unwanted pesky and ugly, sometimes scarring events.

A recent clash with unknown pain came one night last summer when I was washing my face. I finished my face and brushed my teeth and was ready for help with the final bedtime routine.

As I backed away from the counter and looked down at the stone tiles, I saw a pool of blood. Alarming?  Yes, alarming, because I couldn’t tell where it was coming from.  In a panic, I called for my sweet hubby and we discovered it was my toe bleeding. Oh my, I had banged it against against the cabinet.  I usually don’t take my shoes off until the last minute, but for some reason this night I did. **Note to self – don’t take shoes off before finishing your face.

Anyway, we called our nurse practitioner neighbor, aka neighborhood 911, and she took no time to ascertain that we needed to go to the emergency room for stitches immediately.  I wanted to wait until the morning… So we went to the ER.

As an aside and perhaps the only value in this post: We have several good hospitals within 30 minutes of us, and because this was a minor injury we didn’t care which hospital we chose.  We wanted to get it done and get home.  As we pulled out of the driveway I called the ER  where we were headed and they reported ‘at least a three hour wait’.  I called another hospital’s ER and they said they had one person waiting but could not predict if someone else would come.  We changed directions and headed to that hospital where we were taken care of ‘right away’.

‘Right  away’, of course, still includes the obligatory half hour here and half hour there while the medical staff helps others and work on increasing your bill.

 

 

 

 

 

Brent tolerated the wait well with his iPad in ‘toe’.  Hope you don’t have a weak stomach for blood….Four stitches later we headed home.

…and the next morning Tahoe helped the healing along with kisses. The kisses made the boo boo all better.

Madge

Comfort in Cold Weather

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Autumn is unwelcome weather in my life.  I don’t mean to be a grinch because I realize many people love the cold weather. I’m all for the temperature to cool from 98° to 78º, or maybe even 72º, but once we drop lower than that, introduce a few showers and cool winds….ugh!  I’m such a wimp. And autumn is a sign of the inevitable upcoming winter! I try to be positive about cold but just need a little time to vent. As the cool blows in, clothes become cumbersome and it is nearly impossible for me to stay warm. Sometimes it’s hard to sleep because I’m cold. It’s just a side effect of most high level spinal cord injuries. Often, the brain is not able to correctly interpret thermostat signals from the body.  I think I’m cold even when my temperature is actually fine.

Things I dislike about fall…
– I’m nearly always cold…well I think so anyway and that’s what counts.
– Fall is the beginning of cold, yikes! Winter is coming!
– More layers of clothes makes getting dressed/undressed more difficult and time- consuming.
– Tahoe wants to play outside, but it’s cold so we play less.
– Every year I burn myself trying to stay warm.
– I get obsessive about searching for ‘warm’ solutions. It wastes time.
– I buy more wool socks, shirts and sweaters even though I have enough.
– Wool is expensive.

Enough rant.  I have hope.  My medicine of adding gratitude is in order.

Things I love about fall…
– Our wedding anniversary.
– Trips to the beach…if it’s warm!
– Trips to the mountains.
– Pumpkins.
– Bonfires.
– Tahoe loves cool weather.
– Children love to play in the leaves.
– Snuggling with Brent and Tahoe.
– The air is crisp and clear.
– Trees are extravagantly colorful.
– Stars are bright.
– Wool. The soft kind.
– Two of my nieces birthdays.
– Hot soup.
– Hot water.
– Heat.
– Pedicures are unnecessary.
– Online shopping for wool.
– Did I say I love wool?

 

Today I’m thankful for fall and glad I’m alive to experience another one. It’s therapeutic for me to realize that all the reasons I don’t like cold weather stem from my perceived temperature and comfort. I let cold impact me more than I should. Maybe I’ll find a new way to enjoy the cold weather this year. That’s my resolve.

Are you warm and cozy today?  Got any ‘keep warm’ tricks to share?

Tahoe’s Vet Visit – One of ‘Those’ Days

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Tahoe had a recent trip to the vet to get a check-up and to get his teeth cleaned.  I didn’t have the pleasure of seeing him get drugged, but I was told he walked around with his leash in his mouth – resisting sleep and finally collapsed with his leash squarely planted between the very teeth that were about to be cleaned.

After his teeth were clean, he recuperated on the floor….would you look at that tongue?

He was plain tired out.  I’m glad he’s a dog and not a human.  A child might not forgive his mom for posting photos like these!!

Some days I feel a bit like Tahoe looks in the above pictures.  It’s OK when it happens, right?  We all have ‘those’ days.   When ‘those’ days strike, I try to strike back with a bit of faith – and quote a couple short verses for inspiration:

“March on my soul, be strong.” Judges 5:21   or

“Rely on the Lord! Be strong and confident! Rely on the Lord!” Psalms 27:14.

An ‘attitude of gratitude’ is another effective weapon.  I tell myself, ‘Name 10 things you are thankful for in less than a minute.’   Then I go on with my day, knowing there’s hope that it’ll get better today…or…tomorrow may be more like this:

…or even like this!

Tahoe jumps for the kong

Today, I’m praying for my niece, Crystal, who lost her young husband to cancer last January when she was six months pregnant.  She’s an inspiration to me as I watch her navigate being a single, working mom of three.  My hope is that she has less days like the first pictures and more like the last ones.

…..what do you do to get through ‘those’ days’?

May your day be filled with wisdom, faith, hard work and fun.  Love to all from Madge on a ‘Tahoe Tuesday’!