Sean, the girls and I took Elfie to her first doctor's appointment (with us) and she received flying colors for health! I had no doubt but it's nice to get the confirmation from someone with a degree. ;) She was given a deworming medication for precaution, an appointment to come back for her next round of shots and a stern warning to keep her away from other dogs until she is around 14 weeks (or safely vaccinated). So, no more harbor walks or dog parks for us for a few more weeks. That's OK. We have still been enjoying some nice long walks with her in our neighborhood. The vet was also happy to hear that we are feeding her a chicken stew every day (chicken, carrots, celery, garlic and chicken broth). We've given her a little bit of melon and will add pumpkin, cottage cheese and banana in the next few days. She gets kibble (Silver wolf and Natural Balance), as well, 4x per day. She eats a LOT!
She was approved to have a puppy play date with my mom's new Leo, Shilo, who is just one week older then Elfie. Shilo is HUGE. He comes from the Super 18 litter and was nicknamed "Mini Tank" because of his size. He towered over Elfie yesterday while the two of them romped, ate and napped together... and then romped some more! I lovingly referred to them as "Beauty and her Beast" since Elfie has such delicate, feminine features and Shilo is... well... ALL boy! :) I wish my mom lived closer so they could play more often. Sean got some great pictures I will upload later.
And, surprisingly, Elfie is still sleeping through the night! We take her outside just before we go to bed (she always does her business) and then crate her. She snuggles up with her toys and sleeps until around 6:30 or 7:00AM. In fact, she'd probably sleep even later if it weren't for her human sisters waking her up!
Dillen, Roxy and Piper are all doing really well with her. They love her so much and it brings such happiness to Sean and I watching them with their new furry friend/sister. It's fun for me to catch Sean snuggling and cooing with her, too.
It was back to traditions for us this year... and boy was it special. Christmas Eve was spent with my Dad and stepmom and my brother, sis-in-law, niece and nephew. We had been battling the flu all last week (and the week before) so it was nice to have the kids almost back to health for the holidays. Their energy was a little down but their spirits were up. Roxy and I spent the two hours prior to going to my Dad's at the Urgent Care center trying to lower her 103.5 fever - brought on my an ear infection. He put her on some antibiotics and I gave her some fever reducer that helped. My dad's home looked as beautiful as ever and the it was great to see everyone.
We woke up Christmas morning (bundled in our parkas since there is no heat in our home!) to gifts left by Santa. Roxy and Dillen got just what they asked for (a princess scooter and a toy shih tzu) and Piper got a fun little Disney ride-on toy. Their stockings were full and there was a special note to the girls left behind on Santa's empty cookie tray that instructed us to all go to the airport the next day (today!!) to collect one more gift from a helper of his - a gift that WOULD NOT go on his sleigh. Hmm. I wonder what Santa has up his sleeve. ;)
My mom and stepdad arrived soon after we went through our stockings and we all enjoyed a scrumptious little breakfast of french toast, an egg strada and some fruit. Then we tore into our gifts. The girls raked in some nice loot. But, truly, the real spirit of Christmas was felt in the hearts of all of us. It was the spirit of giving and seeing smiles on the girls' faces that brought one to mine.
After some serious play time, we headed to Sean's dad's house where we spent time with his family (dad, stepmom, brother and mom). We had a really nice time eating some great food, enjoying each other's company and opening some gifts. We left fairly early since the kids were wiped out. (Earlier in the day, Roxy had a fever of 105.2 - yikes! It was taken care of after a call to her pediatrician.) They all slept in their pajamas on the way home and then stayed up and watched a little television before hitting the zzzzs.
Soooo... now it's the day after Christmas and we are about to leave the house to follow Santa's instructions. We are all curious as to what the gift is. I imagine I will be posting again very soon... perhaps with some pictures. Heh.
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
... that's about the distance (if not farther) you should stay from our home today. ALL three girls have the flu. The f'n flu. Roxy woke up last night struggling to breathe - showing the all too obvious signs of croup. Sean bundled her up and took her outside and, when that didn't work, into the bathroom to sit in a steam-filled room. Last year, it was this same thing that brought the ambulance (and a truck-full of fireman) to our home in Solana Beach. I am so glad we didn't have to make that call again. She calmed down and her airways began to open up after about 10 minutes in the bathroom. Poor little Piper had a fever, chills (her little body was actually shaking) and she was puking. Dillen had a headache and felt sick but never got to the puking point. She woke up this morning looking like she got into a fight and lost. Her cheeks are so red. Anyway, all of them ended up in our bed last night - talk about "cozy."
Fun times.
Today, I have followed our tradition of pulling out all the handmade quilts and blankets ever made for the girls and moving the furniture in the living room to create a sea of blanket-love. It's a slumber/movie day.
Fingers crossed Sean and I miss this bullet.
