I have had a few requests for an update. Sorry that it has taken so long. We’ve been pretty busy as you might imagine given the condition of Ozzy. Last Wednesday he had the drain removed from his chest (it was put in as part of the surgery) and his stitches/staples seem to be healing well. He will have the staples removed later this week. He finished taking all of his GI medicines this weekend, so now we are down to only Antibiotics and pain meds- which is much easier to manage. We have seen some movement in the right arm (the one that was/is lame). He can move it forward to paw at you, but is still unable to bare weight on that leg. When we take him outside for potty (using slings)- he continues to drag it along. Ozzy is eating and drinking well and finally this weekend- all digestive tracks began working (we were worried about #2). He still requires 2 people to take him outside to potty- if we want him to try walking. He uses his back legs somewhat inconsistently. Sometimes they cross when he takes a step, sometimes his feet buckle underneath him. These issues may be related to a spinal column injury. But then other times, he uses his back feet well, baring all his back weight on those legs. We are still in limbo in deciding what to do. I read the paperwork incorrectly, and the neurologist suggested giving Ozzy 6 to 8 weeks (not 2) to see if he would be able to walk again. This weekend, since the weather was nice, Ozzy spent most of days outside on a quilt. He loved sitting/laying in the sun! Who wouldn’t? So, Ozzy’s spirits continue to be positive and are still left wondering what the best course of action will be for him long term.
Well, on Wednesday evening, Ozzy decided (unwittingly) to see how he would hold up against the local UPS truck. As you might imagine not so well. We are not sure exactly how it happened, but our best guess is that while the UPS truck was stopped, Ozzy innocently went looking for his daily treat from the driver. Unfortunately, it was not our usual driver and when the driver took off, Ozzy was in front of the truck. The UPS driver said that he never saw him. When we ran outside to see the damage, I was completely expecting to find Ozzy dead. Instead we found him alert and unable to get up. My neighbor calles in a favor to their vet down the street and Tim rushed Ozzy to get help. When they did x-rays the next day they did not find any broken bones (good) but suspected that there was some severe nerve damage to his front right leg (not good). This is especially troublesome because as a black lab, Ozzy has rather severe arthritis in his back hips. For the past two years, his hips have slowly deteriorated to the point that he relies upon his front limbs to pick himself up from a laying position. Without the use of both front legs, Ozzy may never walk again. The vet suggested giving him through the weekend and then if he regained no movement suggested we consider putting him down. We were heart broken with this news.
Anyone who knows me personally knows that Ozzy has been a part of my life for the past twelve years. He was my first baby and even though he has taken a back seat to Grayson, his is and continues to be a major part of our family. So to hear the news that we may have to decide to euthanize him was agonizing to say the least. After hearing the prognosis from the vet, we decided to take Ozzy to the local animal hospital to see a veterinary neurologist on Friday. The neurologist gave a similar diagnosis- but suggested we give O at least two week to regain muscle movement before making any final decisions. I guess many times, nerve damage can be recuperated if given time- depending on the type of nerve that was damaged. He also suggested that O needed surgery to close of a major gash on his chest. The surgery went well and we left him over night at the hospital for observation. On Saturday morning we received a call from the hospital to let us know that Ozzy was doing great and that we could take him home at any time.
30 minutes later, as we were getting ready to leave, we received another call from the animal hospital. Ozzy had vomited a large amount of blood and they were then concerned about some internal bleeding. The bleeding was most likely due to his arthritis medication. The began treating him for a possible ulcer, but were not sure if he would make it through the day. Their concern was that if he continued bleeding in the quantity that he had vomited, then he would most likely need a blood transfusion to stay alive. Tim & I were again devastated to hear this news. It seemed as if we were riding a roller coaster of good and bad news. Thinking that it might be the last time we got to see him alive, we then went up to the hospital to visit with our sweet O. It broke my hear to see him in the hospital that day. He was basically comatose and would not respond to our voices or touch. We sat with him for a while and pleaded with him to get better. Truthfully, we did not expect to have him last through the night.
The next morning (Sunday) we received another call from the hospital with good news. Ozzy was back to his perky self- although still lame in his front right leg. We could take him home. It was amazing seeing the difference in him from Saturday to Sunday. When we picked him up form the hospital, Ozzy was awake and looked happy. He pawed at Tim the entire ride home, letting Tim know that he needed more petting. Not much has changed since yesterday. Ozzy continues to appear happy- expect for when he needs to be repositioned (he cannot roll himself over) or when he needs to go the bathroom. He is taking a ton of medicine and needs the help of at least two people to go potty outside. He will use and put some weight on his back legs and front left leg- but there has still not been much improvement in his right front leg.
So at this point we continue to pray that he will be able to walk and we are his constant nurse maids. I keep telling him that he’s a lucky dog that we love him this much…but the truth is that we are the ones who feel lucky to have him in our lives- even if he isn’t 100%.
Way, way back on December 18, my dear friend Tiffany over at Rural Chaos bestowed upon me my very first blog award-The prestigious Smile Award. Thank yo so much Tiffany! What does this great honor mean? Recipients of the Smile Award must:
~ display a cheerful attitude.
~You must show love to others.
~You must make mistakes.
~You must learn from others.
~You must be a positive contributor to blogging.
~You must love life.
~You must love kids.
According to Tiffany, I deserve this award because “Kelly has been making me smile for YEARS! We have been friends since middle school and have made some wonderful memories together over the years. She has a great personality that makes you want to be around her - and she always has something funny to say! She’s got a pretty cute little boy, too, who will definitely make you smile just looking at him! Kelly lives far away from me now, but is still very dear to me!”
Once you accept the Award you are then required to follow these simple rules:
Here are the rules for the Smile Award:
~You must link back to the award creator. (We still can’t figure out what the name is–the text is so small!)
~You must post the rules if you are a recipient.
~You must choose 5 people to pass the award to.
~You must fit the characteristics of the award.
~You must post the characteristics of the recipient of the award.
~You must create a post sharing your win with others.
~You must thank the giver of the award…
So it is with great pleasure that I present the Smile Award to:
soapbox.SUPERSTAR- As a close friend of my sisters, Misty is the blog that inspired me to start one of my own. I know that I will never be as funny, crazy, or blog as consistently as Misty- but she inspries me everytime I get behind to just keep blogging!
Nae Nae in NC- My older sister who often makes me smile with the funny things her girls do! Who couldn’t smile when she writes about the funny things that come out of their mouths?
Morpheme Palette_ Dena has the funniest son I have had the pleasure of wathcing on the internet. As a BFF of Misty listed above, you know she’s going to have some funny stories- but watch any of the videos that she posts of Ethan and you will be rolling!
Crabby Mama- Angelle became my friend when we taught together 7 years ago in Florida. Then as luck would have it she moved to NC a few years after Tim and I did! Angelle is full of great tips on all types of things- from cooking to great kid DVDs. She posts regularly and hers is one of the first that I check when I finally get the time to get on the internet.
It’s a Mom’s World- Stephanie often write about her two daughters and posts photos that will definitely light up your face. She also deserves this aware because she is so good about check my blog and leaving comments.
This week, Grayson has discovered a love of fishing. Across our culdesac, our neighbors have a nice sized pond. With the warm weather, the bass have started biting, so Mr. Waddel invited Grayson over to try his hand with a rod and reel. At first Grayson just wanted to watch, but as of yesterday- his love for fishing was born. He “caught” three fish yesterday (or Mr. Wadell and Tim caught 3 fish and let Grayson pretend that he caught them)! When he woke up this morning, it was all he could think about. “Let’s go fissin!” “I got three fishes yesterday!” So tonight we went back over to the pond. Grayson has gotten pretty good an winding the line back in. Of ocurse he’s too slow to catch anything. I guess we’ll need to go purchase a little boy fishing rod now!
By the way, how cute is that picture???
Doctors Appointment:Another “perfect” check up. Everything is right on target. This time the baby’s heart rate was at 142 beats per minute. My sore throat has now gone away thank goodness. My only health concern has been some occasional pressure in my cervix area. The doctor checked and everything looks fine. I did have one serious Braxton-Hicks contraction this past month, but I guess that I am now entering into that territory. In three weeks I will have another ultrasound to make sure the placenta has moved upward in the uterus and I will also have to do the crappy diabetes screening. Wish me luck on the screening. I really do not want to take the three hour test!
Baby Development:
Our little boy is now almost 26 weeks old. The average baby at this point weighs about 1.75 pounds and measures about 14 inches long. His skin may still be translucent, but that should change soon, especially as he continues to gain fat over the next three months.. More hair is beginning to grow- and if we could see inside, we would be able to see his hair color and texture. The baby’s brain is growing quickly now, and all of his senses are getting stronger. His sense of movement is well developed and he can now feel when I roll over at night, or go for a walk. The network of nerves in his ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He is now be able to hear my voice, the voice of those around me, as well as any other loud noises like the vacuum, or Ozzy barking. His sense of taste and touch are also continuing to develop.
In the past month, the development of the lungs has taken off! The lungs have developed “branches” of the respiratory “tree” as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. He’s inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he’s born and takes that first gulp of air. Is it only 100 days away?
How I Feel:
Larger by the day! Those “regular” jeans that I referred to last month are officially not working anymore. I have even had to retire some of my smaller maternity clothes at this point. Yikes! I still have a little over three months to go! Not to sound as if I am upset about my obviously pregnant body. I absolutely love being pregnant and am excited to actually look that way now! For the most part, I feel great. Other changes this month has been the development of heart burn (thank God for Tums) and according to Tim I have now begun to snore. I do not think that this has become an “every night” thing yet, but it will only be a matter of time. I snored terribly when I was pregnant with Grayson!
Speaking of Grayson, he was finally able to feel the new baby kick. I didn’t think that Grayson really understood what he was feeling, but a few days later he randomly announced (unsolicited) to our neighbors that his baby “bruhder” was kicking him though his mommy’s tummy. Oh, I am sure that it is only the first of a few kicks that will be thrown in their lifetime together! The baby’s kicks have gotten much stronger this month- to the point that you can actually see my stomach move. It must really bother him when I roll over at night, as that is when he gives me the hardest kicks and punches. I guess I must not be the only one who is trying to get comfortable in bed.
It’s hard for me to believe that in a little over a week I will be in the third and final trimester. It is amazing how quickly the time has flown. There are still lots of things to do before his arrival- like setting up the nursery and purchasing all those “newborn’ must haves! It’s time to get busy on all those last details- since he will be here before we know it!