Fun with Friends and Twins

On Sunday, Joe and I headed over to our friends' house for dinner. We haven't seen Ed and Jessica since we moved back, and the last time I saw them was back in March, when my friend Heidi flew me home and hosted a wedding shower for me. At that time, they had just had their twins, and boy, have those girls grown up in the last 6 months!

We had such a nice visit and had SO much fun with the girls.















The pictures speak for themselves, don't they? I especially love this last one of them both sitting up on the couch, happily playing. They are SUCH good babies, hardly cried at all, and were smiling and giggling and playing the whole time we were there.

We look forward to many more visits with this awesome family. :)

My New Favorite Music Video

For all my fellow dog lovers out there. OK Go has a new video!

Come on, you can't tell me you don't love that!

New Vet

Ava needed her prescription refilled, so we were finally forced to find a new vet here in Seattle. I hate looking for a new vet, I stress so much about it. I have had some bad experiences, and with a 'special' dog like Ava, I have to be certain that if something flares up due to her condition, the vet will do all he or she can to help her. I had that in Cheshire (I told you about crying, yes crying, when I left my vet there, right? Embarrassing, but true.)

Anyway, usually I visit half a dozen vets in the area, tour their facilities, the whole nine yards before making a decision. Well, I didn't give myself enough time to do that, because Ava needed her meds. So, last Thursday, Joe took both dogs into Elliott Bay Animal Hospital, which was recommended to us by some people I work with.

Joe took them because it was his day off and I had to work. But he said that he was very impressed with the amount of time the doctor spent with Ava, looking her over and asking a ton of questions about her condition.

She spent about an hour with Ava, then checked Jackson over in about ten minutes. Ah, I love my mutt!

Two nervous dogs.

I hope this vet works out. I may go ahead and check out a few others, just to make sure.

Out at the Bar with Ava

On Friday at about 4:00 p.m., my coworkers and I were at work, discussing how it was such a gloomy day and that the office was just so *down* today. We needed something to pep us up! So, we decided to skip out of work early, and head out for happy hour.

"But," I said, "I have Ava. I can't go out today."

I forgot. This is SEATTLE.

You can take your dogs to bars in SEATTLE!! *woot woot!*

Akvile, no longer gloomy!

Martyn and Akvile's dog, Batman, bellied up to the table.

Me and Ava, sharing a refreshing Heffy!

Cheers!

It's official. I love Seattle!

Dedicated to all the Shelter Dogs

You all might be aware of the fact that I'm a bit of an animal advocate. And you might also know that I have a thing for shelter dogs. So, when I found out that Pedigree's new campaign was called "Write a Post, Help a Dog", I knew I'd be involved! Because, you know, #dogsrule.

Did you know more than 4 million dogs wind up homeless every year. It actually pains me to type that. Because not only is that a huge number, but it's also a number that I know can't be matched by adoptive families. Which means that there are too many dogs and not enough adopters, which leads to good dogs being euthanized for no good reason.


Both Jackson and Ava are rescues. Ava came from an independent breed-specific rescue, so is probably not considered a 'shelter dog'. But Jackson certainly is - we adopted him from a shelter in Portland. And many of you know about my first Italian Greyhound, Sophie, who DID come from a shelter. (Yes, you can find purebred dogs at the shelters!) I've visited many, many shelters on the West Coast and East Coast and there is one common factor - there are AMAZING dogs all over the country just waiting for their forever home.


Many people I talk to say they won't go to a shelter because they don't want a mix. Well, I've already dispelled that rumor. You absolutely can find purebred dogs at shelters, and if not, there are breed-specific rescues all over the country that you can adopt from.


The other thing I hear a lot: "There are only adult dogs in shelters, and I want a puppy!" Also not true! Pregnant dogs are brought into shelters every day, who give birth to puppies that also need to be adopted. Plus, puppies are difficult and many people get in over their heads and drop their puppy off at the shelter because it is 'just too much work'. (Don't get me started on the escuses I've heard - OMG.)


Every shelter dog deserves a good home, so please consider them when you are looking to bring a pet into your family. If any of you have met Jackson, Ava, or my first iggy Sophie, you must realize that they are worth it!

One Year Ago...

I just realized that Ava was diagnosed with her auto-immune disorder a year ago this month. A YEAR ago! I cannot believe that. It seems like last week I was taking her into the vet every other day, up with her crying and screaming all hours of the night, whisking her up to Massachusetts for appointments with specialists, and just feeling hopeless and scared and oh-so-sad.

I was convinced back then she wouldn't make it through Christmas 2009. And now, here it is, a whole year later, and Ava is back to being her cuddly self, happily jumping around and burrowing under covers, and most importantly, she is still here. Still with us. Still able to annoy us with all her coffee-mug-breaking, counter-surfing, leftover-smuggling, food-begging, bed-hogging antics.

And as much as I complain about all of that, I would miss it terribly if she wasn't here.

We went from this:

In her 'Hannibal Lector' mask at the specialist's office.

To this:

Sitting pretty at my work.

And true, she isn't 100%. Probably never will be. She still has those awful sores on her ears, she is on medication that makes her fat (or swollen, as my mom says), has new sores that aren't really healing, and is on a very restrictive diet. But we look past all of that because it's all manageable.

So, I just wanted to send a quick 'thank you' out into the universe for this year. I hope for many more to come.

Cupping

Joe hasn't been feeling that great (headaches, mostly) and he was mentioning that at work the other day. One of the therapists there who practices Chinese medicine recommended cupping. Apparently, they put these glass cups on your back, suck out all the air, and leave them there for a while. It's supposed to suck the toxins out of your body and make you feel better.

This is what happens, though:

That is Joe's back! When Joe showed me, I totally freaked out. It looks sooooo creepy and a little scary, like something is seriously wrong with him. But he assures me this is what it's supposed to look like.

The morning after, Joe woke up with an upset stomach. He thinks the cupping is releasing toxins, which is making him feel sick. But that is actually a good thing, because once he flushes the toxins, he'll be better.

Interesting, no?