Disturbed Routines

I'm a couple days late writing the blog from last week, and I have no good excuse.  Honestly, last week was pretty boring and uneventful...I'd even say unproductive.  I have spent a lot of time over that last couple of months trying to use up all of my time off from work that I didn't get to use earlier this year, and last week I had days off Monday, Tuesday, and Friday.  I thought I might get some things done around the house, but I didn't accomplish nearly as much as I thought I might...and I guess that's okay.  Really, there isn't any way to change that, so it has to be okay.

With the week starting just a few days into Smokey's recovery from his surgery, it certainly came with it's challenges.  I had Monday off, Smokey was early in his recovery, and we were in the midst of the Christmas season, and none of those things are part of our normal routine.  I think the dogs thrive on routine, and when our routine is disrupted, it certainly can present some challenges.  It can also create some really nice opportunities to change things up and relax a bit.  

Since Smokey was on some really strict activity restrictions, it made our days more challenging and created extra work for me since I couldn't just take all three dogs out for a nice long walk.  So I had to make time to get the girls at least some of their normal exercise, but also find ways to keep Smokey happy, mentally stimulated, and calm.  That challenge is real with any dog, but especially in a high energy breed like a GSP.  While I had trazadone post surgery to help keep him calm, he still had moments when he really just wanted some fun, so he and I took several short potty walks up and down my block.  I took longer walks with Mina and Peaches, and I was happy when Peaches climbed into my lap with Smokey napping on the dog bed nearby, and we all got to sit quietly, enjoying some Christmas movies and the pretty sparkling lights on the tree.   But eventually the quiet ended, and I was back to having a constant shadow with every move I made.  

While he had worn a t-shirt to cover the incision over the weekend, I had to add the donut for a couple of days when he wanted to chew on the shirt.  By his first follow-up appointment on Tuesday, the incision site had stopped draining and the incision was healing well.  He got to go to his appointment completely naked.  Boy he loved seeing everyone.  He is such a social butterfly!  

During his appointment, we received the results of the biopsy from the growth on his shoulder, which came back as a Grade 2 Soft Tissue Sarcoma.  Initially that sounded very scary, but what we learned is that Dr. Gretchen was able to get clean margins and a Grade 2 will not have metastasized, so he is cancer free thanks to the surgery.  We really couldn't have gotten much better news than that.   His appointment gave him a lot of mental stimulation, which certainly helped him relax a bit better the rest of the day.  Everyone got a really short walk that day, so when we got home, I gave them dinner in brain games, which really helps keep them happy when our routine is disturbed.  

We were expecting some snow on Wednesday.  I wanted to make sure to get the dogs out for a nice walk before the snow arrived, so I took an early lunch.  First I went out for a short walk down the block with Smokey, then I got the girls out for a nice 2 miles.  I even ran a quick errand to give them a ride in the car, and they all got out for another quick walk around the block before I headed back inside to finish my work day.  

I got extra lucky that the snow waited to arrive until early evening, and I was joined by a couple of other shelter volunteers to get a few shelter dogs out for a walk.  I got to walk Momma Ida.  She is the sweetest girl!  As I got ready to head home from our shelter, the snow began to fall. Thankfully, I made it safely home before the roads got slippery.  It was another night of dinner in the brain games and everyone settled in nicely for the evening.  I was thankful I could get them some fresh air and fun to keep them all happy.

On Thursday after work, we headed out for a Christmas light adventure.  The temperatures were absolutely frigid so the dogs had only spent a few minutes at a time outside throughout the day, and I thought I drive might give them a little excitement in their day.  It was a little snowy, but the roads were good, so we were able to enjoy the evening.  I really loved this house all lit up for the holidays.

Ultimately we ended up in Corunna at the Historic Village inside McCurdy park, and I decided that we could get out for a quick walk around.  The dogs were crazy and ready to go!  The picture below is a blur, which is exactly what it felt like to walk them that night.  

I love visiting this park every Christmas, and I was really glad that I could get the girls to sit still long enough for a picture in front of the church. 

After we took a walk around looking at all of the buildings, I put them all back into the car and took another quick walk around by myself so I could enjoy the peace and quiet of this cold, cold night.

It was so pretty with all of the luminaries lighting the way and the buildings and trees all decorated.

Then we drove through the rest of the park to look at the light displays as we left.  I really thought this elf kissing the reindeer was pretty cute.

After a fun Thursday evening, I had the day off Friday, and I had a list of things to get done.  The temperatures were once again frigid, so we didn't spend much time outside, although I did get everyone out for a walk around the block.  They helped me as I finished up some decorating that I had put off, and I finally was able to get all of my Christmas cards finished and ready to send.  The season is going so quickly and I never send my cards out this late.  But I was happy that I got them done.

Friday evening I met with Nicol, Tyler, and Fiona to visit the holiday lights at Glenlore Trail in Commerce Township.

They had gone here for the Halloween trail, and Fiona loved it so much that they knew we all had to go back for Christmas.

It was a cool trail with a lot of neat displays, and we all enjoyed it despite the 11 degree temperature.  Nicol brought each of us a thermos of hot chocolate for the walk, and when we were finished with the one mile trail, we got mini doughnuts to share while we warmed up in the car.  Then we listened to Christmas music on the drive home, and I got to read Fiona a book before I had to head home.  I love being able to make these memories with her during the holidays.  She is loving everything about Christmas and I love listening to her sing along with the songs and talk about all of the fun new traditions that she is experiencing with Nicol and Tyler.

I was so excited for Saturday because other than my morning shelter dog walk, I had nothing planned for the whole day.  Thankfully the temperatures had improved a bit for our walk, and we were able to get seven dogs out of the shelter for a walk around Mason.  We made a visit to the Family Farm and Home along the way to warm up and let the dogs do a little sniffing around.  It was a great walk.

George Sanderson and Rob Roy are two of the dogs that joined us for our walk.  They had the best time.

After leaving the dog walk, I made several stops on the way home.  First I made a stop at the Holt Farmer's Market to pick up a few items from Fur Real Dog Snacks for the dogs for Christmas.  Then I made a stop at Aldi and few other stores to get everything I needed to be ready for our Christmas Eve dinner and some holiday baking.

When I got home, the sun was shining and the temperatures were tolerable for the first time in a few days, so I got the dogs out for a walk.  The girls got a longer walk than Smokey, but they all were happy to be outside.  They all got a brain game for their lunch and an afternoon Kong, and I was able to get some things done around the house.  It was such a great day.

Our Sunday started slowly, and we didn't have any big plans for the day, but there were a couple of holiday events locally that I wanted to check out.  After a quiet morning, we had lunch before heading to Mason for the pictures with Santa event at Amanda's Grooming.  While we had already done pictures with Santa earlier in the season, I never got a picture of just the girls together, and I really wanted one.  For a small donation, I was able to get a printed picture.  Then we headed inside the building for a hot chocolate, a cookie, and to check out the raffle.  I took the girls for short walk down the street before putting them in the car.  After I put the girls in the car, I got Smokey out so he could go inside to say hello to people and to give him a little fun.

Next, we headed to Woldumar Nature Center for their Cocoa & the Cabin event.  The temperatures were in the low 40s and felt so nice after all of the frigid weather we had been having, so I wanted to get the girls out for a walk on the trails too.

We had gotten some freezing rain overnight, so some parts of the trail were really slippery, but we got in a nice walk and the girls really enjoyed checking out some new trails.

I made sure we also stopped by the cabin to get a picture of them on the front porch.  They stayed very nicely for a picture and were photo bombed by a random little girl who was visiting the cabin with her parents.  She was very excited about the dogs.

Finally, we went back to the car to get Smokey so that he could take a short walk around, take a potty break, and do a little sniffing.  He loved his time there, even though it was very short.  

Finally, we headed home.  The dogs enjoyed some more fun brain games for lunch and dinner, and of course they all got a Kong to keep them busy in between meals.  I finally got the chance to try a new recipe-Quinoa stuffed delicata squash with pomegranate and goat cheese.  It was really tasty.  I enjoyed dinner and the Christmas lights while watching the Lions game to end our day.

It was late Sunday when I realized I hadn't started the blog, so I decided to wait until Monday after work to write.  My work day was busy, made busier by the fact that I'm in the home stretch with only a couple of days left to work this year.  The weather was mild so the girls could spend some time outside, but with Smokey still on activity restrictions, he was stuck inside unless I could take him out on leash.  More brain games for meals and Kongs filled our day.  The picture below says to me "Mina was here" because once everyone finishes their Kongs, Mina gathers them all to make sure that no one missed anything.  

My Monday evening was completely thrown off course when I had to take Smokey to the vet a day early for his second follow-up after his surgery.  Over the weekend, a couple of his stitches had come undone in a spot on his shoulder where the skin was stretched very tight.  The vet had warned me that this might happen and told me not to worry unless it was looking infected.  It was a small spot, but got larger over a couple of days, and I didn't want to wait another day to have them check it out.

I was glad I was able to get an evening appointment, and the girls came along for the drive to the vet. I'll share a picture below.  It looks pretty gross, but Dr. Gretchen was really happy with how well it was healing and how healthy the skin and flesh in the incision location looked.  They did a light treatment which will help stimulate healing and gave me some cream to put on the spot a couple of times a day to help it heal.  And now we wait.  The location of this incision is a difficult spot and is just going to take some time to heal.  So his activity restriction continues for now, and he is not happy about it.  As it starts to heal more, I will start to take him on longer walks.  I hope he can be patient while he waits for that to happen.  We'll go back for another check up next Monday.

Smokey is back to wearing the t-shirt again, and he's finally resting for the night while I write this.  My work day has been packed so we didn't have much time for anything fun. We did take a quick drive so I could make a stop at the store over my shortened lunch, and the dogs got some short bits of time outside.  There have been bones and Kongs, each dog got to clean out a peanut butter jar, and they got two meals in brain games today.  And there has been so much whining by this boy.  He is a world champion whiner, and even with a trazadone, he wasn't settling very well.  But finally, he has fallen asleep.  The rest of my evening should be quiet now.

On top of dealing with Smokey and his issues, Peaches has also been dealing with some issues too.  I'm calling them her old lady issues.  She's just got some weird quirks and some odd things that make her nervous, but we're working through them the best we can.  An occasional trazadone helps with her nervousness and I'm just adjusting to the quirks...like her desire to run into the basement any time I start to get her meals ready.  She also refuses to take treats from my hand, but at least she'll take them if I toss them on the bed or floor or wherever she happens to be.  She is still happy to take treats from friends and strangers though.  I don't understand it, but we're doing what we can to work through it.  And she still seems happy most of the time.  

So that gets you caught up in our world.  Tomorrow, I work a half day, and then I'm off for the rest of the year and won't go back to work until January 6.  I am so excited for the extra time off during the holidays, and I have plans to make the most of this time, including some more holiday fun with Fiona, Nicol, and Tyler, a potential adventure over the weekend, the holiday festivities next week, and some quiet time to relax and reflect.  Only one week until Christmas Eve, my most favorite night of the year.

Holiday Spirit

The holiday season really kicked off this week with a variety of fun activities on the calendar.  While we enjoyed several events, we also had a fairly quiet and relaxing week.  I'm trying to ensure that we enjoy all that the holiday season has to offer including some quiet evenings just enjoying our decorations at home. 

The fun all kicked off last Sunday.  We were up early and on the road by 8am for the drive north to the Roscommon County Animal Shelter for pictures with Santa.  

It was a sunny morning with clear roads and beautiful blue skies on our drive.  With snow on the ground for a large part of our drive, it made for a magical winter drive.  We arrived at the shelter with a light snow falling as I wrangled the dogs out of the car.

We received a warm welcome from all of Peaches' shelter friends and the girls and Smokey were very excited to get lots of love and treats before they finally settled in for their pictures.  They all did such a good job for the individual pictures, but I was really pleased with how well the group picture turned out.  

We left the shelter with three doggy goodie bags, lots of pets for the dogs, and a hug for me.  We always feel very loved after our trips north, and this trip was no different.  

Originally I had thought we might be able to get out for a little hike while we were in the area, but we didn't have enough time since we had to head south for a family Christmas party.  We did have time for a quick stop for a walk around Clare on the way to the party, though.  It was festively decorated for the holidays and the perfect spot to get out to burn some energy and stretch our legs.  

After our stop in Clare, we continued our journey to our family Christmas party.  This party is one of the few times each year that we get together with my grandma's family.  With her and all of her siblings gone, it's kept alive by my dad's siblings and cousins.  It's been a tradition to have this party for as long as I can remember, and it's always nice to see family that I don't see often.  We had a nice potluck meal and I had a good time visiting everyone.  Finally, it was time to head home.

After getting home, I fed the dogs dinner and then loaded them back into the car to run a couple of quick errands before heading to Toys for Tots night at the Wonderland of Lights at Potter Park Zoo.

This event is usually held on a Saturday evening, but I really liked the fact that it was a Sunday this year.  The zoo was much less busy, which made for a much more enjoyable visit for me.

After dropping my toy off with the group of Marines on site colleting them, I took a nice stroll through the zoo.  While I wasn't as impressed with the light displays as I had been in the past, it was still a nice walk.  I heard the tiger roar, saw the penguins swimming, and enjoyed a s'more at the campfire along the way.  Then, after my short visit, I headed out to the car to make the drive home.  

It had been a full day, and I had really enjoyed all of our stops along the way, but I was ready to get home for the evening to rest up for the work week ahead.

Monday was a fairly uneventful day.  At the end of my work day, I had to take Smokey out for a follow-up appointment with Dr. Jason to check on his eye cyst and determine next steps.  The office was so busy when we arrived and had a couple of unexpected emergency appointments, so our appointment took longer than I had expected.  But everything went great and it was determined we could move forward with surgery for his eyelid and shoulder cysts.  They completed bloodwork and chest x-rays while we were there and we scheduled his surgery for later in the week before we left.   After his appointment, we came home and everyone ate dinner out of one of our brain games and then settled in for the evening.  I had hoped to get out for a walk, but we just ran out of time.

Luckily our Tuesday went pretty well, and when I finished work for the day, I was ready to get everyone out for a good walk.  So off we went for a walk around the neighborhood.  We walked just over three miles and were all pretty happy about it.  Afterward, everyone ate dinner in their snuffle mats and then we took a drive.  We made a stop at Biggby Coffee for a hot chocolate and three pup cups on the way home, since they were donating $1 for everyone drink purchase to the animal shelter for Giving Tuesday.  Everyone enjoyed their special treat...even though the picture didn't turn out very well.

On Wednesday, we had a Winter Weather Advisory starting in the early evening as a big storm system was moving into the area.  I decided that I really needed to make sure that we got out for a walk before the snow arrived, so I took the dogs out for a nice long lunchtime walk around the neighborhood. 

With the storm moving in and with Smokey's surgery scheduled for Thursday morning, I didn't know when we'd be able to get out for a nice long walk again, so I was glad that I had made the time on my lunch.  After a walk, lunch, and a mid-afternoon Kong, the dogs settled in for a nap while I finished my work for the day.

When 5 O'clock arrived, the storm hadn't started yet so I decided to run a couple of quick errands.  We added a stop at Soldan's to our trip, and I made sure to take each dog in for an individual trip.  They all walked around the store, said hello to the employees, and picked out a treat to take home.  I know that they all loved their visits, and I picked up a few extra goodies for their Christmas stockings while I was there.  As I loaded the final dog into the car, the snow started to fall.  We made it home quickly and were all settled in for the evening before the wind and snow really picked up.  

I enjoyed watching the snow fall as we sat inside with the lights from the Christmas tree sparkling.  I really do love to watch the snow fall from the warmth and safety of home.

After a snowy night, I was up early on Thursday to get Smokey up and out to the vet for his surgery.  We had a decent amount of snow on the ground and I was out at 6:45am shoveling the driveway to clear it out before I left.   When I finished shoveling, I loaded everyone into the car and headed out toward Mason.  

Smokey was in a pretty sassy mood when I dropped him off, but he was also really happy to be getting lots of love.  

When I headed out to the car for the drive home, I found Peaches happily sitting in the driver's seat.  It was too cute not to take a picture.

As we made the drive home at sunrise, I couldn't help but appreciate the beauty of the snow on the trees with the beautiful cotton candy colored clouds in the beautiful blue sky.

I finished shoveling the sidewalks when I got home so that the girls could spend a little time outside running around, and then I headed inside to start my work day.  It was such a quiet morning with just the girls here and they napped the day away while I worked.

Smokey made it through his surgery like a champ, and I was able to pick him up around 2:30 so I took a late lunch to make the drive out to get him.  Since the cyst on his shoulder was quite sizeable, it took a lot to remove it and then stitch him back together.  He's going to have quite the scar when he's all healed, but it is so nice to see him with that cyst removed.

I finished my workday after getting Smokey settled in at home.  He was sleepy from his surgery and happy to take a nap.

Then after work, we headed to Marshall for our annual holiday trip there.  Each year I pick a day to travel there for a hike on the North Country Trail and to check out all of the pretty lights in town.  I decided earlier in the week that this would be the perfect day for it. 

Thankfully the roads were clear for the drive there, and we were able to get there just after sunset.  Since Smokey was unable to join us for a longer walk, I made him a cozy little spot in the car to rest while the girls and I got out for our walk.  

The riverwalk was snow covered, and with Smokey waiting for us in the car, I knew we weren't going to do a long walk, but I was excited to get out on the trail.  We started from the parking lot and followed the riverwalk to Marshall Ave, where we turned around and headed back toward the car.  We had finished 1.25 miles, and I did a quick check on Smokey before deciding to walk a little farther.  So next we headed along the riverwalk in the opposite direction toward M227 which added another 1/2 mile to our total.  

After completing our 1.75 miles,  I loaded the girls in the car and drove toward the Calhoun County Fairgrounds for our trip through the Merry Mile.  The North Country Trail runs along the sidewalk through a neighborhood just a block away from the fairgrounds, so I parked along the street and got all three dogs out to walk down the NCT along the sidewalk through the neighborhood.  I figured Smokey could use the chance to stretch his legs, sniff around, and take a potty break, and I was right.  We walked down the block and back to the car to get one final 1/4 mile on the trail for a total of 2 miles for the night.   Then I loaded everyone in the car and drove the block over to the fairgrounds.

This was the first night of the Merry Mile at the Fairgrounds and I was happy to see that it wasn't very busy.  

We tuned to the radio station recommended for the drive and I rolled down the windows so the dogs could stick their heads out while we made the drive. 

They all seemed to enjoy the drive, and I enjoyed it too.  I always enjoy our visit here and it is always an nice addition to our holiday fun.

After we finished our drive through the Merry Mile, we had to make a stop at the Holiday house before we left town. 

Normally, we'd take a walk down the main street through town before leaving, but I decided against it since Smokey couldn't join us.  I just love how festive Marshall is for the holiday.  I grabbed a quick dinner at the barbeque place in town before making the drive home.  It had been a really nice way to spend our evening.

Friday morning we awoke to a beautiful sunny morning.  We have been following a daily routine for a bit, and to keep Smokey happy while he's healing, I've continued the routine with a couple of additions.  We start with breakfast and a potty break followed by a nap.  Then mid-morning everyone gets a frozen stuffed Kong or bone to enjoy, which is usually followed by another nap.  I take him out front for a quick potty walk and then lunch is served in a brain game.  The afternoons are usually quiet until late in the day.   Mina is really loving the mid-morning Kong break and is happy to put herself on the dog bed right next to Smokey to finish hers.

On Friday after work, I decided to take each dog out for a walk individually.  I started with a quick walk down the block with Smokey.  I'm limiting him to a quarte mile walk, which seems to be just enough to give him time to sniff and potty.  Next I took Mina out for her walk, followed by Peaches.  

After their walks, I got the dogs into the car so we could visit the Holiday in the Square event down the street.

Each dog got out for a short visit, and I enjoyed a s'more and a hot chocolate.  The dogs were very well-behaved, got lots of love, and a couple of special treats.  It was a good way to get them a little extra excitement in their day without a lot of work.

Afterwards, I ran some errands, picked up a few groceries, and then headed home for the night.

Saturday was a day full of fun.  My morning started with our Saturday morning shelter dog walk.  We walked four awesome dogs, included Boo, who is a very sweet girl.  Afterward, I enjoyed lunch at the shelter during our Volunteer luncheon.  It was a nice lunch and it was nice to spend some time talking to some of my fellow volunteers.  On the way home, I made a quick stop at the South Lansing Farmer's Market Winter Market to pick up a couple of goodies.

After a late lunch and a little time at home, we headed out to the Old Town Krampus Nacht.  We really enjoyed this event last year, so I was excited to take the dogs again.  I parked as close as I could find, and I took Smokey out first.  He was pretty happy to be out meeting new people and smelling all the smells,  But his favorite stop was definitely at the Fur Real Dog Snacks booth where he was treated to some chicken feet.

After I got Smokey back to the car, I took the girls for their visit.  They had the best time and got all kinds of attention.  We got in a nice walk around Old Town before I took them back to the car. 

We decided to make a visit to Preuss Pets while we were in Old Town.  It's always so fun to stop there and everyone enjoyed their visit.  I think Mina could stare at the ferrets all day.

On the way home, we swung in to Frances Park for their drive thru holiday light display.  Then we came home for dinner and a relaxing night.  

This morning we had no early morning commitments, so we lounged around a bit.  The dogs got their mid morning Kong while I had a late breakfast.  Then I got everyone out for a walk.  It was a beautiful, mild, sunny morning.  It felt almost like spring.  After their walks, I fed them lunch.  Then I got them settled in for the afternoon.  

I spent my afternoon with Nicol, Tyler and Fiona.  I met them at the Wharton Center for Fiona's first time watching the Nutcracker ballet.  I was so excited for this day and it did not disappoint.  

She got all dressed up in her pretty blue dress and was so excited to see the ballerinas.  It took me back to a three year old Nicol and our first time watching the Nutcracker at the Wharton Center.  At that time it wasn't just her first time at the ballet, it was mine too.  I remember how excited I was to be there and to take Nicol and  I'll never forget how she stood in the aisle wanting to dance in her little pink dress.  We both loved it so much.  And that led to me buying her her first Nutcracker.  We've seen this ballet together many times over the years and her whole Christmas theme at her house is Nutcrackers.  Every year I still buy her something Nutcracker themed.  This ballet is an important part of our lives.

This year, taking Fiona to see this ballet, it was special.  Her mom has read her Nutcracker books so she knows the characters and she knew who they were when the entered the stage.  She was so excited to see Clara and to watch the Nutcracker fight the Rat King.  And she knows the music.  She watched with wide eyes for the first act, we took a walk around Wharton Center during Intermission, and she sat on my lap for the second act.  She gasped and clapped and didn't want it to be over.  It was such a wonderful moment for me.  I don't think I'll ever forget it.  

After the ballet we had dinner and then it was time for them to head home.  Fiona was sad to go and asked if I was coming to their house with them.  We promised her that grandma will be joining her for another fun Christmas event soon.  The rest of our evening was quiet and uneventful.

I'm excited about the upcoming week and the fact that I'm only working two days plus I have some fun planned.  I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy some holiday spirit.