A New YEAR 2023

Well it has been a long last day since I wrote my last post.

My poor Alvin threw up at 10:30 yesterday morning. I went to the Vet Clinic around noon to pick up the food supplement and had wanted to speak to his Doctor but she was out for lunch so I asked the staff to have her call me and explained why. At home I patiently waited for her to call. I had been counting down the time since Alvin threw up last so that I could try to give him some food. Well that time didn’t arrive as he threw up at 4:30 pm and not once but twice. After I cleaned things up and got him settled onto the sofa, I called but his Doctor was already gone for day. Instead of counting dix hours without vomiting, we ended up going to sleep on the sofa. He woke up at 3:00 am and outside he peed and pooped and then back to sofa.

The next time he woke up was 5:30 am and jumped off the sofa and proceeded to the kitchen where he wretched a yellow bile and then whitish foam onto the floor. My heart crashed to the floor. I held him up as he was slightly wobbly. After cleaning things up and getting the boy comfortable again, we were back to the sofa.

I waited for some time before calling the vet. Luckily I was able to speak to her and because I did not have a way to bring Alvin to her, she stopped by to give him an injection to stop him from vomiting. We had a good conversation and both hope the results from the poop sample show something wrong that is treatable. She also said the injection would last gor 24 hours and that I could try and give him a small amount of chicken and rice. So after the time had elapsed I brought him the food, he wasn’t interested. He did eat a couple of tiny amounts from my hand. That was it. He is resting now. I will keep trying. At least he has not thrown up.

I am so grateful that I am on vacation as I cannot imagine him being alone.

Almost time to see if he will eat. I am trying to remain positive throughout this…..

I hope that you are having a good day and please keep Alvin in your thoughts and prayers.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol&Alvin

A New YEAR 2023

A NewYEAR 2023

Good Morning ALL!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY

The sun is shining here in Edmonton. The air is somewhat cooler than it has been the past week or so. We are doing well here in our home on this day. Alvin is downstairs sleeping on the sofa while I am upstairs getting dressed (done) and writing this post. I think that I heard someone stirring.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all! I was thinking back to my childhood in the 1960’s, in Elementary School when we used to write up a little card for each of our classmates. I think each student had a box or bag with our names displayed so that everyone knew where too deposit the cards. For years I used to send cards out to family and friends and somewhere along the way, I stopped. Not even sure when or really why. I loved receiving but most of all I absolutely loved sending cards to everyone. Sending cards to family and friends whether it is for this day or any other special occasion is something that I LOVE to do. As the years pass by and less and less people send cards, I feel a bit more sad. When someone receives a card it brings joy to their face and to their hearts, I know it does for me. It means that someone took the time to purchase and pick out or make by hand and then write up and mail the card. There is a lot of work that goes into this.

I hope that you all have a great day. Whether you give chocolates, flowers or go out for a nice supper with your significant other (if you have one) or if you are like me and spend the day with your pup or for those that have a kitten, it is all wonderful. Just being with someone whether two or four-legged you love is all one really needs. Happy Hearts Day.

Alvin’s vet appointment went okay. He has ear infections once again, not really surprised. Poor guy. Big change. We are changing up his diet. From last night forward he will be on the Balance Diet which is human food and a supplement. Fingers crossed. Last night I did not have the supplement or this morning so I did my best. He does like chicken, peas and carrots and boiled eggs and not so much oatmeal. So will have to do even more research to get this right. I will be picking up the supplement from the vet today as they ordered it yesterday and claimed it to be delivered today. Someone just woke up so I had better go downstairs. As you know, I threw out a huge amount of his dry food as I was not confident that it was still good according to research that I did on the WEB and the remaining five cans of his wet food, I will take to the vet today and have asked that they donate to someone who needs a special diet for their pup as it would help someone financially. Sorry, gotta go.

Have a Happy Valentine’s Day.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

A New YEAR 2023

Good Morning ALL! Another kind of cold morning out there. It has been snowing off and on throughout the night and early morning hours. We did not have a great night. Bed at 9:15 p.m. and then just as I laid down and turned off the lights, Mr. Alvin began to pant, on with the lights and back downstairs as I realized that he had to poop. Outside, after more than one day with no blood in his poop and poop starting to look like good poop, we were back to blood and not good poop. How many times can I put poop in one sentence. Lots. Let me tell you. After he was done, as it was not even 10:00 p.m., I carried the boy back upstairs to bed. We are starting to spend more time on the sofa than in our bed. After that we were back downstairs in less than two hours, I wrote down the time (which is downstairs on the kitchen cupboard) every single time we got up which was four times not including the time we got up just after 5:30, and I gave him breakfast and back outside. Back in the house, I set the alarm for 7:00 which gave me another hour of sleep. Did not really feel like it. I am exhausted. So hard to concentrate or even straight when you have not had much sleep. I did call the Vet yesterday and spoke to the Vet Assistant. I had told her because at the time, he was doing so much better. No blood and his poop was beginning to look like poop should. Instructions were to continue to give him the Prednisdone for two weeks after no blood/poop and then every other day for a week until the pills are gone. Now she also said that perhaps he will need to be on them for the rest of his life. ARGH. It seems like it has been forever since he was on this medication but has it been one week or two? Good thing that I write things down. I will have to call back and see what to do. I am worried about leaving Alvin when I got to the office this week which is starting tomorrow. Too long days for him and I am sure that having to hold it in does not help matters. Oh, how it would be great to have him back in good pooping order and me being able to work from home all of the time. I guess I need to get going on things but it is so difficult when you are not getting proper sleep. I know. Procrastinating. Maybe but I am scared to be honest. Our future is uncertain. I know all of the things that I need and should be doing but I cannot get my head wrapped around any of it. The days are counting off and I am running out of time. So I need to be doing more but I feel stuck and tired. Okay this is not the positive outlook that I need to be having but it is how I feel after yet another night of literally no sleep.

Time to head downstairs and put on some coffee. I am surprised that Alvin has not started to bark yet. Perhaps he is tired as well.

Fingers crossed that he gets better soon. I feel so badly for him. He must be in pain from all of this. I will need to buy another package or three of chicken tomorrow when I go to the office. Thank goodness there is a SaveOn nearby the office. There is one close to my home as well.

I hope that you have a good day.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

I am grateful for my life, Alvin and my home. Just a few things that I would like to change.

Always, Carol & Alvin

A New YEAR 2023

Good Morning ALL! Another busy day ahead. My daughter slept over last night and she is still sleeping. We are having my cousins over for a visit and supper today. So I have lots to do. Cooking and cleaning. Alvin has taken the corner in major improvement. He had a good poop or poops yesterday so that is such a relief. I will continue with his regiment and hopefully by next week he is back to his old self. Next Thursday is his 14th Birthday. We will celebrate not next Saturday but the following Saturday with our family and perhaps even a friend or two. I am grateful for all of the many blessings in my life. Family and Friends.

Speaking of friends, just a special shout out to my dear friend Gillian who helped me out in a major way yesterday. After work, I had to go to the vet to pick up something (treats, yes I know – not like Alvin can have them now but they are a hard commodity to secure), my eyeglasses and some groceries. She picked me up shortly after 4:00 p.m. and we had all three stops done and back home by 5:00 p.m. How is that for getting things done. I am so grateful for her friendship, love and support. She saved me time and walking and carrying.

Another dear friend received good news about her pathology report and we are forever grateful.

Just good news all way round.

Freezing rain earlier ….. yes ….. raining in Edmonton ….. in January. Go figure. The next days and virtually all week are to be mild. Perhaps Alvin and I may get out for a walk yet before the temperatures change.

I will post a few photos tomorrow but need to get this show on the road.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to read my posts, it is so appreciated. I love to write and to share my life with you. Maybe some of the pooping stories are a bit much but they are part of my life, unfortunately or perhaps fortunately! Take some time for yourself on this weekend and have a good one. Be safe and take care.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee. I have already enjoyed a mug of that good stuff, lol.

Always, Carol & Alvin

A New YEAR 2023

Good Morning ALL! Well today is another day. Alvin is doing okay. There is a bit of change in his poop, less blood but he still has diarrhea. I know not really the kind of thing one wants to see first thing in the morning. I still feel kind of blah but likely due to the up and down during the night. Missing two days is a lot so back to work today. Hopefully things are “quiet.” I am grateful that I can work from home during this time. Between going outside with him to monitor him and giving him medications, one cannot do this from the office and also it would mean having someone stay with him and that is not possible. So I will work from home. Thankfully today is Thursday, it is Thursday, correct? I am totally lost on the days at this time.

Thankfully the weather, the temperatures have been nice as sometimes we are outside for a bit as it takes Alvin time to be done. I am hoping that by tomorrow there is a major difference in his bowel movements, if not we may be going back to the vet. For now, medications and keep an eye on him. Thankfully he is eating and drinking water and his pee is clear.

I am still figuring out this new computer and some of the new updates over the last few years have changed things quite a lot. Hopefully on the weekend I can get things figured out. My daughter is coming for a sleepover tomorrow night. She will help get the external hard drive set up (formatted) so that we can put all of my photos, almost 50,000 of them on the HD. I will be so happy when they are on something that can be easily accessed. YAY.

Hard to believe that today is January 5th, 2023. Almost one week into the New Year.

A reminder of Christmas Eve 2022. Aspen at the window looking out to see where her Mom & Dad are or perhaps at someone out for a walk, I do not quite remember. Alvin and Mi-Mi watching her. The fireplace, the mantel with stockings. We had a great Christmas. A good memory.

Time to head downstairs. Put on the coffee, I need a boost this morning.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

Last Half 2022 – October

Good Morning ALL! Well almost noon. What a morning already! I am grateful that I booked today off. Poor Mr. Alvin. We are just back from the vet where once again he is suffering from ear infections. One ear was way worse than the other. I have a difficult time keeping them clean as he does not like me poking around or touching them. So another round of meds which will keep them okay for a month. I spoke to the vet about our options. There are two different surgeries that can be performed. One is where they remove his eardrums and ear canals and he would not be able to hear but he would no longer suffer from these nasty yeast infections. She does not perform this surgery. The other she can do and it would mean leaving the eardrums intact but opening up the ear canals so that the yeast cannot grow and he would still have hearing. I think the second option is the better of the two, for sure. Cannot imagine having my hearing taken away like that but she also thinks that his hearing is compromised now. The idea of another surgery with him turning 14 in January, scares me but I am not sure that we have an option at this point. I just want him to have a good quality of life. Yesterday he was panting and work was driving me over the edge and I was raising my voice to him. I feel incredibly guilty and overwhelmed. My poor boy. I just hope he has forgiven my bad reaction to the situation. It is difficult when you are alone. Anyway for now, he has medicine in both ears and it will get rid of the yeast infection soon. I think his paws are bothering him as well.

I do have a beautiful story to share. Earlier this morning I noticed a little girl waiting on the sidewalk across the street from our house. Clearly she was waiting for the school bus which never came. It was cold out there earlier. My neighbor (whom I borrowed her car to take Alvin to vet) had popped in to grab a cup of coffee as she had run out. Sonja said that the girl was waiting for the bus which is always late. I decided to check on her so I opened the door and called out to her to check on her, I think that I scared her. She then started walking away from where she was standing which appeared to be toward home, when an older child came out. I should have asked what school she went to and then called them but I did not think of that. I watched them from my window when a dark blue Toyota Rav4 pulled up and a woman got out. Poor kid was scared not because the woman was trying to hurt her but because of the attention and she was cold. The woman talked to her for a few minutes and the older child came back out. The woman walked back to her car and grabbed her cell phone and then after speaking to the older child, she made a call. Likely the school. Nice to see good samaritans. This woman stood outside chatting with the kids for over 30 minutes closer to 45 minutes. At one point she grabbed a kleenex out of her car for the little girl. After awhile, the little girl got into the car while she waited outside with the older child (early teens, I think). The girl must have been frozen. She had a good warm coat on but her face and hands would have been cold and she was carrying a heavy backpack. Near the end, just a few minutes before a school bus showed up, the woman and the older child, a boy got into the car. They must have been cold. My neighbor told me earlier that the bus is always late. So this bus driver for whatever reason makes these children late for school everyday and nothing has been done. This is deplorable. Hopefully now, they will do something about the driver. This kindly woman who was just driving by put my faith back in humanity. She took almost one hour out of her day to help strangers, two children. She had a smile on her face and appeared to be trying to keep the children in good spirits. I am grateful to her for helping. Doing something that I should have done. Not that I did not want to help but I thought that the bus would have showed up sooner than it did.

Well, I made another pot of coffee as I just need one. It has been quite the week. I am beat. We will just relax on the sofa for awhile and then go for a walk. I hope that you are having a good day.

The sun is shining now which is great so it is warming up now.

Thank you Universe for good people in my neighbourhood.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and more COFFEE.

Always, Carol & Alvin

PS: wow, how could I have forgotten this. Yesterday Alvin and I received a package from our friend Val in Regina. So many treats. We are truly spoiled. Alvin was so excited when I went to the mailbox and came back with a box. There were homemade treats for him which he opened. There were three kinds of buns/scones, mini loaves, biscottis and so many other sweet treats. I also had a package of some items that I had ordered from RICKIS. Just needed some clothes. I was happy to see that they all fit. I guess time to do some laundry, too. Coffee first. I think that Alvin just wants to have a nap. Poor boy.

Last Half 2022 – October

Good Morning ALL! We are off to a “start” this morning. Alvin had us both up extra early as I believe that he has an ear infection. So no sleep. I am very tired at this moment. I stayed home from work today so that I could take him to the vet. Hopefully they can squeeze us in so that I can get his ears checked and get some medicine. I have a headache and not sure if due to lack of sleep or no coffee as yet. I made a pot and am going to have a cup soon. I was dozing off and on while on the sofa for the last couple of hours. Fingers crossed all goes well.

It is interesting now that I have to call my carpool (as we were in the office today), the person looking after Alvin today, my Manager at work and email my Supervisor at work. I had to keep going over the list in my head so that I did not forget anyone.

Today is also the funeral services for the sister of one of my long time friends. Sending hugs with love to my friend and her family. Diana will be missed. We never know how long we have on this earth. So important to ensure that we do the best we can while we are here and Diana did just that despite her struggles with mental illness. She was living proof that you can do anything! I had not seen her for many years but have fond memories of Diana and will keep her in my thoughts and in my heart forever.

Rest in Peace Diana Rose, rest in peace.

Be well everyone.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

Last Half 2022 – October

Good Morning ALL! Welcome to Wednesday. Back to the office for today, tomorrow and Friday. Not my favourite place to go but I will make it work as there is no choice in the matter. We had a pretty good sleep last night. In bed by 9:30 and I read for a few minutes before lights out. Alvin woke up about 1:00 a.m. so we went downstairs. Surprisingly enough he did not want to go outside so we laid down on the sofa, next thing I knew the alarm was going off at 5:30 a.m. We were up shortly thereafter. I did lay back down waiting for Alvin to wake up first which he did. What a guy? Then it was preparing his breakfast before heading outside. The grass was wet as it has been for the last while but no heavy frost which is good. I was expecting it to be raining but perhaps that is supposed to happen during the day. The temperature is to be much cooler than it has been for the past week or more. I am so grateful for these beautiful fall days. Watching the leaves turn from green to gold and then falling from the trees has been delightful. The colours of fall warm my heart and make me feel warm inside. I do love this time of year. We have trees that are green still, some have turned gold and others variations of red and wine.

Alvin had a good appointment although he did fuss when his front nails were being trimmed. Poor boy. Since COVID, I have to wait in the exam room and they take the pets to the back area where they perform surgeries etc. So I can only listen to him “cry” and whine which breaks my heart. I stocked up on his toothpaste, glucosamine chews, small bag of treats and pain meds. You never know when things are not going to be in stock, so if I am able to, I pick them up before we actually need the items. It is sad that so many items in our everyday lives are becoming so difficult to secure. Between supply chain issues and staffing (which I do not understand) and soaring prices – it makes me sad and to wonder why?

I will have time to snuggle with the boy, make sure that he drinks more water and goes outside to pee again before I leave for work. With the price of coffee, I decided not to make coffee at home and take it to work, I will drink the coffee from work (it is free). Might as well take advantage of that as not much is free any more and who knows if that will change.

As I had taken yesterday afternoon off (vacation) for Alvin’s appointment because we cannot take time off in anything less than 1/2 days – I had time before the appointment to chop up more apples, which I did. Still have most of a large bowl left to do. That I will work on after work tonight.

I hope that you have a wonderful Wednesday.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

Last Half 2022 – September

Good Morning ALL! Well the sun is beginning to rise and to the south the sky has bands of dark blue on the horizon and then a hazy kind of pink blue, so pretty. I wish that I could give it justice in my description. So very beautiful. It is cool out this morning but comfortable. The daytime highs are more normal now for this time of year. The trees are standing still.

The last twenty-four hours have been filled with incredible lows, then highs and then lows. How do you manage to live your life when things are so up and down. Good question?

So to the story. Yesterday as you already know was Mr. Alvin’s ultrasound on his belly to check his liver, kidneys etc. We walked over to the vet clinic for 10:00 a.m. I just had donned my mask and was about to call the clinic as we arrived when one of the staff just happened to be at the door so she let us inside. Another clerk gave me the form to sign regarding liability, another went to prepare some blankets for him (I gave her the bag with his blue blanket and for putting his leash and harness in, and with a little whisper “love you”, he was whisked off to the back. It happened so fast. I felt a lump in my throat and then I was out the door and he was left behind. Not forever. I decided that I would pick up a lotto ticket so I stopped at the convenience store nearby. Then home. All the way home, I was wishing that I had told Alvin “I will see you later so that he would know that I would come back.” Back home, I put on a pot of coffee and then once perked, I sat down to think and blindly watch a morning show. I did catch a segment about COVID and the higher than normal influenza season that is being predicted. Once I drank some of my coffee, I decided to have something to eat. I felt very guilty knowing that Mr. Alvin would have to wait for a few hours before he could eat. I always feel guilty. After that, I decided to pull up all of the floor mats and give the main floor a good vacuum followed by washing. I was almost done washing the floor when the call in from the vet. It was Michelle to say that they were done and Alvin was ready to come home. That was 11:45 a.m. Fast I thought but what would the news be, I wondered! I quickly finished and brought in and put down most of the floor mats so that Alvin would not freak out when he got home.

At the vet, I was going over some things regarding the payment and insurance, when another staff said, go see Dr. Karen she is in the exam room with the report. So off I went. We went over the rather lengthy report. There seemed like something was noted for every organ except for his heart and lungs. But gratefully, the most urgent issue was that he has pancreatitis which could be treated with antibiotics. He does have an enlarged liver and the liver is covered with benign lesions. There were a number of other items all related to age. I breathed a deep sigh of relief. Alvin’s Doctor said that he will need to be monitored closely as things could change but for now he is okay. I had a lot of questions. Dr. Karen had one of the staff take a copy of the report so that I could read when I got home. He was weighed and had definitely lost some weight but I was reminded by Dr. Karen that he had not eaten for several hours. After making the payment of over $800.00 including the antibiotics thanks to my daughter (loan), we were on our way. Such a relief.

On the way home, he pooped. It was very loose. Not surprised. I cleaned it up and we were on our way. Once home, I got him settled. He drank lots of water. I gave him a bit to eat. We settled down on the sofa so that I could text family and friends with the results of his ultrasound.

A few hours later, I found out that my coworkers had met with our higher up and were instructed to come back to the office for a minimum of three days per month starting October 3, 2022. Well that was a bit in the rear end. I was just feeling better with the news for Mr. Alvin and then this. Now what. I cannot leave him and will I be able to find someone to watch him for three days a week in less than three weeks time. My heart sank. I was sick to my stomach, well the feeling anyway.

So last night was up and down. I have lots to figure out over the next not quite three weeks. He definitely cannot stay alone as Dr. Karen said he will need to go out for a pee at noon and then have some water and food. That was based on the more slow call back to the office.

Why oh why, could we be one of the offices that allows their staff to work from home.

They make the decisions and I do not have say in the matter.

So that is where we stand. I am going to take Mr. Alvin for a walk.

I know that I will figure out something.

Have a wonderful day.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

PS: at the end of the day the most important thing is that Mr. Alvin is okay for now. That is all that truly matters. The other stuff will work out with some “elbow grease.” He also had a perfect poop this morning.

Last Half 2022 – August

Good Morning ALL! I can smell the coffee perking as I type these words. Oh, how I love the smell of coffee bubbling away. How are you this morning? We were at our normal times but when we got up just before six as Alvin wanted to eat his breakfast, I just could not stay up. I have been having the most unusual dreams as of late. All I remember is that I kept losing my purse and then I lost my phone. I have had the dream where I keep losing my purse. Does that mean “loss of money?” I have no idea and perhaps it is just the insecurity of losing something that I am not quite aware of! After clicking on the snooze button a couple of times, I bounced up from the sofa. I placed Mr. Alvin on my shoulder and carried him upstairs. Earlier when we got out of bed – he let out a cry and I do not know why. It was dark in the room and I could not see what exactly was going on. Upstairs, I brushed my teeth, washed my face, moisturized, put on my eyebrows and got dressed before scooping the boy up once again for the return trip downstairs. Once again on the main floor, I filled his water bottle, grabbed my sunglass clips, his harness (put on his harness), grabbed his leash and my sweater with pockets and my keys. Once outside on the porch, I locked the door while keeping him on a short leash so that I could again carry him down the steps. He did not seem to be limping or in any sort of pain so perhaps he just got scared in the darkness – maybe he thought I was going to step on him – or maybe he twisted the wrong way when he climbed off the bed onto the padded bench at the foot of our bed. Outside we both breathed in the fresh morning air. So refreshing and wonderful. He sniffed and I sniffed as we walked along. Just inside the park, he stopped and looked away and I looked in that direction to see someone coming fast on a bike, thankfully he looked as I had been watching him and did not see the bike. I would have stepped right into the path. After that – he walked for a little bit – stopped – looked around and we headed for home. There was no swaying his decision this time. So off we went. A shorter walk but a walk all the same. Then we were home, I scooped him up and set him on the porch landing before unlocking the front door.

Once again home sweet home. I think the temperatures are on the rise once again. The weekend is supposed to be hot again. Yesterday I booked Friday afternoon off as my brother and his partner are coming for a visit on their way to Manitoba with stops at our sister’s in Regina. It will be great to see them again, seems like forever.

Time.

I received a phone call yesterday from the Vet stating that the new wet food for Mr. Alvin was now in stock. After work, I borrowed my neighbour’s car and went to pick it up. I was not surprised as they had previously mentioned the higher cost. The previous urinary SO diet wet food was almost $65 for a case of 12 cans and now the Liver Care wet food is $98. Quite the difference. His dry food is on backorder and I can only get a large bag of that which is $150.00. So quite the jump in his food costs. But I am so grateful that he did not require surgery or something else. I will consider myself lucky. I guess this is a good time to give up sugar as treats will be just that, a treat for once in awhile.

Well time to head downstairs and have some coffee before starting work.

Have an awesome Wednesday.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin