Posts from the ‘Bear’ category

Snippets from Saturday: Christmas weekend

Despite all my photos of Bear in bed…he is not always sleeping. He maintains the Beardog watch from time to time.

It is Christmas weekend! Christmas weekend is like Birthday month…indulgences galore for the duration!

Huckleberry Kolaches thawed while I made green chile gravy to be used for my Christmas morning breakfast. And a caramel latte kept me company while I stirred.

After we were all fed, Bear and I headed to town to pick up just a few things I wanted and to have a walk along the way.

Today, we walked on a road that leads to a wildlife area. The road runs from the highway to a spot on the north shore of Flathead Lake. There is a spot to put the Jeep out of the way, about halfway. It is not a walk we typically do during the week so a special weekend diversion of unusual smells and sights.

It was above freezing, the sun was trying to come out…therefore mist and fog.

The walk, the Jeep ride, the shopping…

It wears a beardog out!

Bob was napping also and rather objected to me turning on a light…

I didn’t go for a nap, but a bowl of soup sounded good before I started on some afternoon projects. You can’t see the meatloaf, but there are cubes of meatloaf in this soup. This soup is a kind of Italian Wedding soup using leftover meatloaf cubes in place of meatballs. The broth was some leftover pesto and chicken broth. Orzo for the pasta and carrots and leeks for the vegetables. Refrigerator (all leftover stuff in the refrigerator) Italian Wedding Soup!

One afternoon project was a fennel-leek-broccoli gratin. The first step was parboiling the veg and as I strained the veg, the broth smelled so good and looked so pretty…I froze it for use in soup some day.

The gratin was a success. Fennel, leeks, broccoli, cashew cream, gruyere, an egg and breadcrumbs with parmesan on top.

Done for the day and indulging in a read of the Mountain Trader…Bear near and Bob in the sunroom.

Snippets from Saturday: Christmas weekend.

They keep me guessing

End of week 2 post TPLO surgery for Bear and all is very well!

We did the 2 week follow-up by phone as it was just a check of the incision: clear, no bruising and no swelling and confirmation that he is using the leg for some weight bearing – which he is!

Additionally, I am not to support Bear with the Gingerlead, just be there with support if he slips.

All in all, the load is considerably lighter. We continue on with gradually longer walks every 2 weeks as long as no set backs and the next check up is at 8 weeks, the end of January.

Bear has been looking forlornly through the gate into the living room at his chairs. Now at 2 weeks and with him stronger, I decided to allow him to use the platform for access to his chairs. I got all carpet situated and cushy throws on the chairs…

Bear looked in shortly after I opened the room but didn’t enter.

Bob did, though!

They keep me guessing!

Isaiah 40: on wings like eagles.

I write this Wednesday evening. We are close to finishing week 1 post TPLO surgery. Bear is doing very well! Mostly, he moves with caution. He waits for me to get the Gingerlead on and also “helps” when I lift him in and out of the Jeep by lifting his legs. He gives me lots of kisses when he’s in…Thanks for the lift! Thanks for taking me! I love you!

If he has any pain or discomfort he is not showing it although he is still on some pain medication. I am so grateful this first week has gone well.

I’m adjusting to a different routine and struggling a bit. It always takes me some time to change gears, drop some things that just do not need doing and stick to the absolute priorities. Walks are not really a break for me at the moment as it is physically and mentally demanding to support Bear as well as keep my footing in what is now ice and slush. A few new muscles are making themselves known :)!

This morning, I sat at the kitchen table with my first cup of coffee and just enjoyed the light, the snow, the smell of a pot of beans simmering…

Bear sleeping peacefully. Bob is around the corner on his bed.

After a bit, I listened to today’s Pray as you go. The reading was Isaiah 40. It is a favorite of mine. The subtitle in my NIV Bible is “Comfort for God’s people”. This chapter describes God’s majesty and his goodness and a directive to trust and draw strength from Him.

40:28-31
Do you not know? Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary
they will walk and not be faint.

Amen :) !

Hearing those words, sitting quietly, letting go of worry and fear and tiredness and knowing I have all of the strength and time that I need.

Today’s work day went well. Not quite a full day but close and all got done that had to get done.

Along the line of resting…much as I liked the comfort of sleeping near Bear, particulary those first nights, I knew I had to get back to my own bed. Bob was trying to sleep with Bear. Bear was not 100% with that program and so would move. I would wake up. Etc. And I was hovering over Bear a bit. I know the best I can do for all of us is to keep calm and peaceful in my mind.

I bought a tool to help all of us… (I am SO grateful for Amazon Prime!)

A baby monitor :) !! BTW, this is a very inexpensive one and it was plug and play and works great. And I am not the only one using it for pets per the Amazon reviews. One person wanted to try it to keep an eye on their chickens.

Anyway, it keeps an eye on Bear and I can both see and hear from the bedroom so I’m not jumping up to check on him.

I have the camera set to get a view of the room. It has infrared for nighttime. I am so pleased with the darn thing.

The first night, I waited until I woke about 2:45 and moved to my bed with Bob for a half-night trial. All good. Last night, I went to bed in my bed for a full night. All good. I think we all had a more restful night. Bear was asleep every time I woke. If his eyes are open the infrared makes them glow white. Before I fell asleep, I heard a bit of clanging – he was getting a drink of water and the camera/monitor picked up the water dish bumping the frame it sits in. I watched on the monitor as he got his drink and went back to his bed.

Ultimately, a lot of peace of mind for me and slightly more normal for all of us. Bear wants to go to the chairs he normally sleeps in but that is two steps up to get in them, so we are waiting at least another week – we’ll see how the 2 week post-op checkup goes.

This is one reason the sunroom was the recuperative room of choice: it is the one room in the house that allows Bear to see outside from the floor.

But then…he later chose one of the few spots with no rug. Funny boy!

Week 2 – onward…on wings like eagles!

A nutty Monday

This morning was a nut butter morning…

Peanut butter on the left, pecan-almond butter on the right.

Backtracking to the weekend…we all had a restful weekend. I added another bed to the recuperative suite as it became clear that my single was not necessarily going to be mine. It is musical beds but so far, I’ve been able to snag the largest for nighttime. I did have one nap in the smaller bed and it is quite comfortable.

While I would rather Bear had not had to have this surgery, given that he did and we have a critical period of rehab…I am not feeling like living in the sunroom is a hardship at all. It is very cozy and we are comfortable. Yesterday, I went in the bedroom for a change of clothes and the bedroom felt almost strange. I was glad to get back to the kitchen/sunroom which feels like home. I’ve thought that if I get a chance to build the house I’d like to build, it would be 1 large room with a kitchen corner, a sitting corner, a sleeping corner …a bath/utility room with a door, but otherwise – 1 open space. This experience confirms that I would very much like that. And it wouldn’t have only a front porch…it would have a wrap around porch with doors on all sides – high ceilings so the roof could overhang the porch all around. I have a friend who can design this perfectly.

Well, back to Monday.

For this morning’s nap, Bear in my bed and Bob in the dog bed that is now Bob’s bed as the dog’s preference leans in a different direction…

In lieu of a morning nap on a workday morning, I indulged in one of the nutty mochas I like to make with whatever nut butter is left in the blender. And this morning, for an extra special treat…cashew cream whip with cashew caramel drizzle. I think I can now get on with my day :) !

The Beardog recuperative suite

We are living very en famille for a bit. The idea is to keep Bear’s activity to a minimum for the first week and maybe two. The easiest way to do that is to decrease the accessible space and remove all furniture. I know…the bed…my bed so far and no, I am not sure how long it will remain mine.

We’ve been out for the necessaries this morning…in an inch of new snow with more forecast – Rats! But all went well with no slipping or sliding.

The black thing with handles that Bear is lying on is a Gingerlead. It allows me to provide partial to full support for Bear’s back end while keeping control AND maintaining a solid and comfortable upright position myself. I definitely do not want to stumble into or onto Bear! The sling is padded, lined with a cushy soft corduroy and has a padded handle for the person also. I highly recommend. Bear and I practiced with it off and on before the surgery so it was not a strange thing. He was a bit out of it yesterday when we left the clinic but this morning when I got it to help him up, he wagged his tail and immediately sat.

He is a bit more Bear this morning but I think it will be a quiet day here in the Beardog recuperative suite.