Where did the week go?

It was a busy one! First, on Tuesday, there was a day-trip to Kingston to see Luc and Antonio arrive in town while they were participating in the Friends for Life bike rally from Toronto to Montreal. We didn't get to see them for long, but they were tired, and wanted to take the opportunity to do their laundry and relax. We managed to squeeze in a visit with my parents after taking a drive past the house I grew up in and my old elementary school.  Thursday was my dentist appointment and then Friday was our 11th wedding anniversary. I didn't manage to get out shopping for a gift for Kevin, so I made a nice spaghetti dinner, complete with fresh baked rolls, salad and a banana cream pie. Today, I did the usual groceries, then Aidan and I took a walk to Walmart and picked up a smaller carrier for Patches to ride in on our trip to Derby Line next week.

Losing a Friend

It's the end of an era here. Tigger stopped eating properly earlier in the week, he had already stopped properly grooming himself(to the point of having huge mats build up in his hair) and then he stopped drinking water. Our regular vet is on vacation so we took Tigger to a vet that Dr Murray's staff takes their pets to when Dr Murray isn't available. We saw Dr McKenna, who wanted to take blood and urine samples and get us to an emergency animal hospital where they could admit Tigger and do some u/s work to see what was going on. We waited for about 2 hours at the hospital, only to find out that his test results from Liston Animal Hospital for kidney function were off the charts, and that the treatment they wanted him to have we couldn't afford. In the end, we decided to have them give him some subcutaneous fluids, abx, and some other med to help him pass a slightly more comfortable evening at home. The feeling of being judged by the vet for our decision was almost too much to bear. We brought him home and made him as comfortable as possible. Kevin wanted him to sleep up on the bed with me, so we made a safe little spot with an old t-shirt over a piddle pad just in case and that is where he spent the night until about quarter to 6, when he got off and threw up blood. I got him cleaned up and quietly took him outside to enjoy the fresh cool air, the grass, birdsong and the rising sunshine. Eventually everyone got up and came out with us.

Once Liston Animal Hospital opened, we called and got a time to bring Tigger out for his last ever visit to the vet. Everyone there was wonderful, understanding and compassionate. Much more so than the emergency hospital staff. I will most definitely be sending a thank you card to them this week. Next will be informing our regular vet's office of Tigger's passing.

Second Birthday Party

Brynna's birthday party was a success, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, despite the heat and humidity which forced us to change plans for an outdoor party to an indoor one. Fortunately, we had a bit of warning on that this year and were able to set up indoors from the start. Brynna's cake turned out very nicely, and she had a lot of fun with everyone. She's really starting to warm up to people now that she's a bit older, even letting our once scary neighbour feed her her cake and ice cream.

Visits, Construction, and Birthdays

First up, our visit with Lisa, Chris, Brendan and Gavin was really great, very busy, but we had a good time, and are talking about getting together again next summer, somewhere in between everyone's home areas. We saw lots of things around Ottawa, some that we'd been to before(Parliament Hill, Museum of Nature), and some we hadn't(Rideau Hall, Science and Tech museum) and then the last day of the visit was spent at the local splash pad just relaxing.

Kevin is now trying to finish the construction of the patio/walkway and has decided that the post for the gate needed to come out and be replaced with a longer one to make sure it doesn't heave out of position next winter. He's trying to get it done before Brynna's party, but that may not happen, nor will the moving of the pergola.

Speaking of parties, Brynna is now officially 2 years old!!! I cannot believe that our youngest has been with us for 2 years already. *sniff* Her party will be on Sunday, so that her aunt(and godmother) Jess will be able to attend.

One Step Closer

Just got a call this morning from our family doctor letting me know when my consultation appointment with the surgeon will be for my hands on August 30th. I've been diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. I've already had the nerve conduction testing done, confirming our doctor's suspicions, fortunately, I didn't need to have the second level of testing done(or maybe that will happen later on), which is the needle version. I'm hoping that if I do have to have the surgery, it can be scheduled at a time when the kids are back in school and Kevin will be available to help at home while I heal.

Summer Has Arrived

The kids are home(and that leads to lots of issues), the garden is growing, the patio is slowly coming together, the cherry harvest is in full swing, and we're starting to get ready for both Brynna's second birthday, and the arrival of Lisa, Chris, Brendan and Gavin for their visit.

We need to figure out what sorts of things our visitors would like to see. I was thinking maybe Upper Canada Village, maybe Almonte for the falls and the small-town main street. Or maybe Hogsback for it's falls and the surrounding park and beach area.

I've completed the C25K program, and am continuing to run 5K(actually getting to around 5.3K in 30 minutes), but have to decide whether or not I'll drop to 2 days a week or keep it at 3.

Caleigh and I made it down to Parliament Hill for Canada Day and the visit of Prince William and Catherine, but we didn't manage to see them on anything other than the big screens above the main stage(although I could see the top of her hat and his head), despite the fact that we had an excellent spot, right straight ahead of where they exited the landau. We ended up being blocked by a bunch of military photographers, who stood in just the wrong spot. We did, however, have a GREAT view of the military bands and the RCMP mounted escort for the landau, which exited from in front of Centre Block right past us. We may not have actually gotten to see them, but it was quite the experience, and we can say that we saw them during the first stop on their first official tour as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.