My dad and I drove separately to the vet, since he had business to attend to when we were done, so I led the way. Thankfully, the drive there is super easy. You drive straight down one street for 60+ blocks, make a right, and then just a few blocks later you're there. Et voila!
We went in and I told the receptionist we were there to see Pepper. She called back and Dad and I waited in the lobby. This was the longest we'd had to wait yet, but there seemed to be a pretty good reason. Instead of us going back to see Pepper, they brought Pepper out to us.
When Hubby and I had visited the night before, we took Pepper outside on a walk. (OK, we just wandered around the lawn, but still.) He was fairly stable, but still a little wobbly, so I was pretty excited when the vet tech walked my little man out to us on a leash!
They had us go into a room with a big leather sofa and lots of boxes of tissues (I'm guessing it doubles as the bad news room, or maybe even the euthanasia room...). My biggest surprise of the day came when I sat on the couch and my little man jumped right up after me. What?! This dog couldn't even stand long enough to eat less than 48 hours ago, and now he's jumping up on the couch like it's nothing! Is this the right dog?
We waited for the vet for awhile. She popped her head in to let us know it would be another 5 minutes, and we waited some more. My dad never sat. He just stood there, ready to take on whatever or whomever he had to. I'm so thankful he was there.
Anywhoozles, the vet finally came in and started talking to us. If I had written this sooner, I could tell you more about the conversation, but here's what I remember.
She told us that since they had started him back on the thyroid medication the night before, he had had 2 doses and already she could see a difference in him. Why hadn't we seen it before? Possibly because of the heart meds he had been on at the time. According to this vet (who we'll call Dr. L), everyone was so worried about his heart disease and murmur that we kind of let the thyroid issue take a back seat. But in her opinion, the hypothyroidism is the more pressing of the two issues and should be the focus of our medical attention.
My other surprise of the day was when Dr. L asked what I wanted to do. Did I want to keep him there or take him home. She said if it was her dog, she'd be taking him home. My first reaction was to ask if he was in any pain. If he was in pain and needed more medical attention, then that would have been a factor in my decision. But she said no (YAY!), so I told her I wanted to take him home. She told us she'd have his IV taken out and he'd be cleaned up (hospital policy that all pets get a bath before leaving).
That's when my dad stepped in. As I said, he didn't sit the whole time we were there. He asked a few questions, made a few comments, but was mostly just this presence in the room that gave vibes of "don't mess with my daughter" (or maybe that was just my imagination). At this point he asked about the money, because the figured he had heard were "shocking" for a dog toward the end of his lifetime. Dr. L went to check, and as it turned out we were still within the original estimate. I don't know if the $2700 was a misunderstanding or what, but I was incredibly relieved to see a number under $2k.
The best part of that day was walking my little man to the car, having him hop into the backseat (by himself!), and driving him home. My family had been incomplete while he was gone. Even Maxine could feel it and wasn't 100% herself. Bringing him home made everything right again.
Showing posts with label home. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home. Show all posts
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Friday, November 16, 2012
Our House.
Nov. 15 - Yesterday, I was thankful for...
My house.
It's certainly nothing fancy, and paying mortgage sucks, but I am so thankful for our house. When Hubby and I moved in together (early 2008), the apartment we shared never felt much like home. It was the first place I lived aside from my childhood home, school, or camp, so it was kind of a big deal for me. And while the apartment was nice and we were glad to be living together, it just never really clicked.
In 2009, Hubby started talking about wanting a house, and how it was a good time to buy. I wasn't sure I was ready for all of that, and had to do a lot of thinking. While on a trip with my sisters in August of that year, I decided that we should give it a shot. I bought Hubby a sign for the garage our house would have and gave that to him to show I was ready.
We found probably 60 houses online that were contenders. Research got rid of some and others were off the market before we could blink. Of those left, we drove past at least half, which whittled the list down some more. We visited probably 10-15 houses and had it narrowed down to two. The other one we were considering was a lot like the house I grew up in; ranch style, 3-4 bedrooms, hallways, a big yard... It really was a great house, and I hope whoever bought it is just as thankful for it as we are for this house.
This house won out for a whole lot of reasons (and also fell short for a few reasons, too; 1 tiny bathroom without an exhaust fan... 'nuff said), but there are 3 reasons I know pushed it over the top.
First, the garage. Hubby works on cars, and having a garage was a big reason for buying a house. Our garage is 2.5 cars and has all sorts of room for stuff. There's even this crazy attic thing! We don't use it, but it's kind of cool.
Next, the kitchen. Like most apartments, ours had a galley kitchen; it was small and narrow and hard to maneuver. Our kitchen in the house is really open, with lots of space to move around and store things (though, I can always use more storage space). There wasn't a dishwasher, but my parents got us a portable one that works just fine. And my dad installed a garbage disposal for us, which is awesome.
The third reason is two floors (plus a basement). The upstairs is small, since it's just an attic space that got converted into bedrooms, but that's enough. I knew that if I was going to be studying and working at home, I would need to be able to send Hubby somewhere in the house where he wasn't a distraction. So, my workspace is here on the main floor, and his computer room is upstairs where he can game and drool over cars without me having to give him an evil glare. It works out best for us both.
I love a lot of other things about the house, too. I mean, without it, we couldn't have gotten Maxine (our apartment didn't allow dogs). And though it's split into two parts, we have a long backyard with a couple spots for gardens. And I love our big, open living room (which is also my workspace and our dining area).
We closed on the house on Oct. 2, 2009 and have been living here since mid-October of that year. It's hard to believe we've been here for 3 years, but we always agree that it's also hard to remember a time before this. The apartment feels like a distant memory, and forget about when we both used to live at home! This is where Hubby proposed to me, and where our married life began; it's where we became a family, just us and Maxi. It's our home. And for that, I'm thankful.
My house.
It's certainly nothing fancy, and paying mortgage sucks, but I am so thankful for our house. When Hubby and I moved in together (early 2008), the apartment we shared never felt much like home. It was the first place I lived aside from my childhood home, school, or camp, so it was kind of a big deal for me. And while the apartment was nice and we were glad to be living together, it just never really clicked.
In 2009, Hubby started talking about wanting a house, and how it was a good time to buy. I wasn't sure I was ready for all of that, and had to do a lot of thinking. While on a trip with my sisters in August of that year, I decided that we should give it a shot. I bought Hubby a sign for the garage our house would have and gave that to him to show I was ready.
We found probably 60 houses online that were contenders. Research got rid of some and others were off the market before we could blink. Of those left, we drove past at least half, which whittled the list down some more. We visited probably 10-15 houses and had it narrowed down to two. The other one we were considering was a lot like the house I grew up in; ranch style, 3-4 bedrooms, hallways, a big yard... It really was a great house, and I hope whoever bought it is just as thankful for it as we are for this house.
This house won out for a whole lot of reasons (and also fell short for a few reasons, too; 1 tiny bathroom without an exhaust fan... 'nuff said), but there are 3 reasons I know pushed it over the top.
First, the garage. Hubby works on cars, and having a garage was a big reason for buying a house. Our garage is 2.5 cars and has all sorts of room for stuff. There's even this crazy attic thing! We don't use it, but it's kind of cool.
Next, the kitchen. Like most apartments, ours had a galley kitchen; it was small and narrow and hard to maneuver. Our kitchen in the house is really open, with lots of space to move around and store things (though, I can always use more storage space). There wasn't a dishwasher, but my parents got us a portable one that works just fine. And my dad installed a garbage disposal for us, which is awesome.
The third reason is two floors (plus a basement). The upstairs is small, since it's just an attic space that got converted into bedrooms, but that's enough. I knew that if I was going to be studying and working at home, I would need to be able to send Hubby somewhere in the house where he wasn't a distraction. So, my workspace is here on the main floor, and his computer room is upstairs where he can game and drool over cars without me having to give him an evil glare. It works out best for us both.
I love a lot of other things about the house, too. I mean, without it, we couldn't have gotten Maxine (our apartment didn't allow dogs). And though it's split into two parts, we have a long backyard with a couple spots for gardens. And I love our big, open living room (which is also my workspace and our dining area).
We closed on the house on Oct. 2, 2009 and have been living here since mid-October of that year. It's hard to believe we've been here for 3 years, but we always agree that it's also hard to remember a time before this. The apartment feels like a distant memory, and forget about when we both used to live at home! This is where Hubby proposed to me, and where our married life began; it's where we became a family, just us and Maxi. It's our home. And for that, I'm thankful.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)