Adding to the aforementioned chaos that is our life...we got Isabella early. We hadn't planned on getting her until we were in the new house. Things change, so we adapt. The breeders delivered her to us yesterday morning. James is in puppy heaven. Jude is in puppy hell. I'm somewhere in between. Would that be puppy purgatory??? Not sure how all that works.
Isabella is a VERY sweet dog. As far as dogs go...she's sort of perfect. She loves to cuddle with me. She loves to play with James. She pretty much has the potty training thing down. She's super cute with lots of extra skin. She is not so perfect in that she is LOUD when we make her go in her crate. In the long run, it will all be worth it.
Here's the problem. I love all things baby. If you show me a baby anything, it's highly unlikely that I am going to say no to it. I have to avert my eyes when I go past those people who sit outside stores with their crates full of puppies for sell. Brad preyed on this weakness when he hit me up for a this dog. BUT...he lets me do anything I want to do so I can certainly go through a few rough days and nights of puppy whining.
Jude hates all animals, insects, and pretty much any other living thing besides people. And even some of those he doesn't care for. He genuinely has a phobia...cynophobia to be exact. We are not entirely sure where it came from either. Today was a better day for he and Isabella. I gave Jude his "safe place" where he can get away from her if he starts to feel scared. He started to show interest in petting her (in a very controlled environment). James is the opposite. He is all about Isabella. He spent all afternoon outside making her chase him. She came in and hid under the rocking chair and took a nap. I totally get it.
So although it is tremendously bad timing on bringing home a new puppy...I know this will all work out for the best. We will be so glad to have her as part of our family. I hope I remember this at 2 am when I have to get up to let her out to potty.
She is a Doberman Pinscher. Or as James says, a "dover man". She is exactly 6 weeks old today and weighs nearly 10 pounds.
I love how she eats with her paws in the bowl. Sometimes I like to eat like that too.
We picked her out of the litter because she was the largest and we want her to be a guard dog. However, she does a lot of cuddling at this point. Not sure how fierce she'll be.
I can't tell you how painful and frightening it is to watch this happen over and over all throughout the day. I want answers. I want it to stop. I feel like every breath I take is a prayer for wisdom, answers, relief for Katy Jane, for her to be ok, and for this to just resolve.
Today, in the midst of the dog whining so loudly, the boys screaming and playing, Katy Jane jerking and spasming, I had run upstairs to wash the dog bed that was covered in ground-in dog poop. After I threw it in the wash, I heard Brad running up the stairs yelling my name. I immediately thought something was wrong with Katy Jane. Until he yelled at me to stop the washer. Unbeknownst to me, it had overflowed and was pouring through the ceiling beneath into the living room. Exactly what you don't want to happen 2 weeks before you put it on the market and move out. If you have read this blog for very long, you might know that I do not cope well with home problems or renovations. It's my Achilles heel. So for that to happen on top of everything else was immensely discouraging.
I can relate to the Charles Dickens quote: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." On one hand we have so much weighing on our hearts, yet on the other we have so much to look forward to and be excited about with the new house.
When we are in crisis mode, as we have been so many times, Brad and I have "the talk". It's not planned. It always organically evolves out of necessity. One of us...ok...it's always me...starts to break down under the weight of the circumstances. Then we have the talk: "We can do this. The Lord is in control. He led us here, He will get us through. This did not take the Lord by surprise. He will give us the strength we need. I can do this as long as you are with me. We will get through this and be stronger on the other side. If you stay strong, I can stay strong. If you keep it together, I can keep it together. We've been through worse." Not to be overly-sentimental or mushy...but I swear to you...he makes me feel like I can do anything as long as he is there with me. He is a rock. Today I looked at him and said, "I bet in 2 months we look back at this time and laugh." That was met with a blank stare and a large dose of incredulity. I adore that man for so many reasons...one of which is his amazing ability to "deal with me". He knows just what to say and do. I pray I am the same for him.
Thank you for continuing to pray along with us for Katy Jane. Particularly for wisdom as we try to get to the bottom of what is causing these spasms and for protection for her until we do. Mainly for the Lord to just heal her and for the spasms to stop altogether.
I don't know where we would be without the Lord and the prayers of our family and friends.
The verse I have said to myself a thousand times today is:
 |
| Jude (and Perry) are skeptical |
Jude hates all animals, insects, and pretty much any other living thing besides people. And even some of those he doesn't care for. He genuinely has a phobia...cynophobia to be exact. We are not entirely sure where it came from either. Today was a better day for he and Isabella. I gave Jude his "safe place" where he can get away from her if he starts to feel scared. He started to show interest in petting her (in a very controlled environment). James is the opposite. He is all about Isabella. He spent all afternoon outside making her chase him. She came in and hid under the rocking chair and took a nap. I totally get it.
~~~~~
Now on to my precious Katy Jane. The spasms continue. She has been on her medicine for 6 days now and I was hoping that it would've worked by now. We have an upper GI scheduled for the 4th. Depending on what that shows, we will decide on going for the 24 hour EEG. The exhausting thing is that I spend almost every second of the day looking at her waiting for the next round of spasms. Today she added a little repetitive rocking, jerking motion to the mix. I think it is causing her to not rest well because she has dark circles under her sweet little eyes and they are all puffy.
Today, in the midst of the dog whining so loudly, the boys screaming and playing, Katy Jane jerking and spasming, I had run upstairs to wash the dog bed that was covered in ground-in dog poop. After I threw it in the wash, I heard Brad running up the stairs yelling my name. I immediately thought something was wrong with Katy Jane. Until he yelled at me to stop the washer. Unbeknownst to me, it had overflowed and was pouring through the ceiling beneath into the living room. Exactly what you don't want to happen 2 weeks before you put it on the market and move out. If you have read this blog for very long, you might know that I do not cope well with home problems or renovations. It's my Achilles heel. So for that to happen on top of everything else was immensely discouraging.
I can relate to the Charles Dickens quote: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." On one hand we have so much weighing on our hearts, yet on the other we have so much to look forward to and be excited about with the new house.
When we are in crisis mode, as we have been so many times, Brad and I have "the talk". It's not planned. It always organically evolves out of necessity. One of us...ok...it's always me...starts to break down under the weight of the circumstances. Then we have the talk: "We can do this. The Lord is in control. He led us here, He will get us through. This did not take the Lord by surprise. He will give us the strength we need. I can do this as long as you are with me. We will get through this and be stronger on the other side. If you stay strong, I can stay strong. If you keep it together, I can keep it together. We've been through worse." Not to be overly-sentimental or mushy...but I swear to you...he makes me feel like I can do anything as long as he is there with me. He is a rock. Today I looked at him and said, "I bet in 2 months we look back at this time and laugh." That was met with a blank stare and a large dose of incredulity. I adore that man for so many reasons...one of which is his amazing ability to "deal with me". He knows just what to say and do. I pray I am the same for him.
Thank you for continuing to pray along with us for Katy Jane. Particularly for wisdom as we try to get to the bottom of what is causing these spasms and for protection for her until we do. Mainly for the Lord to just heal her and for the spasms to stop altogether.
I don't know where we would be without the Lord and the prayers of our family and friends.
The verse I have said to myself a thousand times today is:
Philippians 4:13- I can endure all these things through the power of the One who gives me strength.
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