the oracle

We're already over two full months into the 2010, and the last time I wrote something here was last June. Wow. In the past 8 months I've:

• gotten a new job (I love it so much, and I'd totally tell you all about except, well, this is the internet, and I'd rather not share it everyone. Just you!)


• taken the pups to the vet several times (back problems, stomach problems, lather, rinse and repeat)


• had one of the kids move in with us (Z)


• turned 29 (doesn't feel any different than anything after 25)


• visited my nephew lots (he has chipmunk cheeks and LOVES the pups)


• gotten another piercing (my left tragus - it hurt like a bitch, and the healing was WAY more unpleasant than any of my other piercings, but I absolutely adore it)


• scheduled an appointment to meet with a nutritionist and was very, very disappointed


• seen so much snow that I've lost count (four storms? five?). The last big storm (we got over a FOOT of snow. WTF?) was mid-February before last. It started on a Friday, so we got out four hours early, and it closed down my work from Monday - Thursday (paid leave, woot!). We had a delay on Friday, so my total hours worked for that one week were a whopping 7.5 hours. We still have snow on the ground.


• got an iPhone (<3)


• quit drinking soda (232 days without Coke. That's major.)


• finished three people afghans (one for H, one for N, and one for my nephew)


• finally gotten in the habit of making the bed (almost) every day. My mom would be horrified if I told her it's taken me this long to make a habit out of something she told me to do almost every day for at least 11 years, but since she lived with me for over 18 years, I don't think it would really come as a surprise to her, either.


• joined a gym that I go to more than once a month (it's open 24/7 [UNLESS THERE'S A FOOT OF SNOW ON THE GROUND], and I love having the option to go at 3AM, assuming I can get my ass out of bed that early)


• gotten hooked on Leverage, Castle, 30 Rock, The Office, Sex and the City, and The IT Crowd. Some of my old co-workers got me started on Jericho, and I'm SO glad they were given an additional season (six whole episodes) to wrap things up.


• found a line of workout clothing that I adore: Lululemon


• shifted my "sugary drinks" mainstays from soda to fizzy juice, specifically Izze (grapefruit and pomegranate are my favorites)


• made fried rice from scratch


• went to a water park for the first time ever


• carved a pumpkin for the first time in at least 10 years (probably more like 15)

I just got back from the vet, and the verdict is: Max's tooth needs to come out ASAP. There's exposed pulp, and it's probably bothering her, even though she's not acting like it. Poor Mister Jordan is going to have to wait till next month to have his tumor removed.

Since it's been a couple of months since I last wrote anything, we'll play catch up with some lists over the next few days, starting with the doxies.

• Maddy had her follow-up appointment to check on her back, and she seems to be doing okay. We're still supposed to restrict her trips up and down stairs and keep her from jumping (HA), and all three pups are on a joint supplement now that is supposed to help their backs. If anything changes, the vet said to bring her in immediately and we'll look into a more aggressive plan of action, but for now, she's back to her usual self. She chases around the house with her siblings, pounces around like a little bouncy ball, and tears up the stairs like her tail is on fire, although if I call her, she'll sit and wait for me to get there to carry her up or down the stairs.
• Mister Jordan has a fatty tumor in his left "armpit" that is rapidly getting bigger. It's not bothering him or interfering with his mobility as of yet, but at the rate it's growing, the vet recommended having it removed sooner rather than later. The original plan was to have this done either this month or next, but then...
• ...Max broke a tooth this week. She was chewing on a Nylabone when I heard this horrible "crack." I was certain she'd broken something, so I corralled her and checked all her front pointy teeth. Everything looked okay, so I let her go back to chewing, but later, when I was rubbing gel on her teeth, I felt a sharp edge on one of her back molars. From what I could see (it's pretty difficult to see a tooth in the very back of a dachshund's mouth, especially when they're making it clear they'd rather have their mouth closed now, MOM) it looks like the front part of the tooth broke off. Max isn't in any pain, and it's not impacting the way she eats, so we were able to wait until her vet got back from vacation and have an appointment to take Max in tomorrow to see what she recommends. If Max's tooth needs to come out ASAP, she'll go in first. If it's okay to leave until it starts bothering her, we'll take Jordan in to have his tumor removed and teeth cleaned before sending Max in. I hate having to do this stuff in shifts, but, good God, this stuff is pricey.
• Speaking of Jordan, May 1st was the two-year anniversary of his adoption! He's still a reserved little man, but he's come such a long way from the skinny, timid fellow we first added to our pack. His newest fascination is fireflies. When he sees one, he perks his ears and tips his head to the side then freezes with tail curled up, tracking it for a few seconds with his eyes before he trots over to where it was and waits for it to blink again. He does this until it's time to go back inside. I wish we had fenced yard so I could let him outside to do that for as long as he'd like.
• Maddy has taken an interest in winged critters too, although her fascination is with birds. Whenever she sees a bird, she perks up her ears and starts trotting over to them, picking up speed as they hop away. There are vents on the end of our townhouses, and several of those have birds nested in them. Maddy saw a bird flying out of a vent once, but now she stops by every one we pass and waits to see if anything will fly out.

As I'm typing this, the pups are lying on the couch with me, nested on my lap and around my legs, cocooned in the afghan. Occasionally I catch a glimpse of a nose or tail as they burrow themselves more snugly into the blanket, but if not for that, you wouldn't know they're here. They've all got gray little chins now, and it makes me sad to think that they're getting older. Thankfully, doxies have been known to live quite a long time, so at ~6 and 4 (the girls turn 5 in August) I'm hoping we have lots more time with them.

Maddy's having a rough go of it lately. Last month it was her tooth, two weeks ago we were at the vet for x-rays and bloodwork because she still wasn't eating well, and this week we were back to see the vet because her back is giving her problems.

She doesn't have IVDD, but she does have the narrowing between her vertebrae that precedes it. That doesn't guarantee that she'll develop IVDD, though, so I'm hoping that our current plan of action (a two-week course of steroids + keeping her as quiet and still as possible) is enough to let her poor little back heal the way it needs to without having to do anything more invasive. Out of all of my three, she's the most energetic - always tearing around the house, bounding everywhere instead of walking - and it's heartbreaking to see her walking gingerly and getting into the kennel one paw at a time.

We have a follow-up appointment next Thursday to see how she's doing, but in the meantime, please keep my poor little Maddy in your thoughts.

(On a less worrisome note, there was a videographer shooting footage at the vet's office while we were there this week, and he filmed Maddy being weighed in and examined. If her footage makes the cut, she'll be on the vet's web page for everyone to see!)

I couldn't post about this when it happened because my blog was broken, but now that I can write again, I can share Mister Jordan's moment of internet fame.

Who's Your Dachshund is having a fundraiser this month to raise money for dog shelters. They're including rescue dog stories as part of the fundraiser, and they asked if I'd share the story of Jordan's adoption. I love talking about my babies, so I was delighted to participate, and here it is! Jordan the Rescue Puppy