Archive for ‘May, 2013’

Roast Veg

The weekend post had a photo of things I was cooking/baking/roasting on Saturday afternoon which included a dish labeled “Greek Potatoes”. I don’t know if the Greek Potato Recipe is actually a Greek recipe. According to the source blog and several commenters, the dish is served in many U.S. Greek restaurants. What motivated me to make it was the lemon-olive oil-oregano marinade that went over all.

I’ve made 4 variations since seeing the recipe last week. I made it as written with russet potatoes twice (1/3 the quantity), but in between I made it with a combination of sweet potatoes and beets.

And this morning…

From left to right: russet potato, sweet potato, fennel, cabbage, beets and carrots.

Good golly – good!!

And the bit of herby oil left in the baking dish makes a wonderful “dip” to mop up with a piece(s) of crusty bread or even a drizzle for some fresh pasta with the veg and maybe some roast mushrooms.

Surprising, to me – my favorite of the veg were the cabbage and fennel.

Roast veg over quinoa = one excellent lunch.

It’s Friday and we are all still alive

Mr. Bob has had a rough week.

Two vet visits and then he had a bad reaction to the first antibiotic – nausea after a bit of throwing up. He was a sad sack on Wednesday.

Bear and I made a run back to the vet and traded meds. Bob got a reprieve from all until Thursday afternoon.

He perked up yesterday and has been fine on the new stuff which is a once a day liquid so happier for both of us!

I am moving easier and more comfortable each night. Ribs tend to be a bit of a long haul but I’d rather deal with that, than a problem with a moving joint like ankle, wrist, shoulder or hip. Thankfully, the soreness in my left wrist/arm was slight. I wear ankle supporting light hiking boots in the woods and for trail walking and often carry ski poles used as hiking poles. I am ever grateful that all of me works well so that I can enjoy being outside and I’d like to keep it that way.

And speaking of things working well…the Bear boy is doing so well. He is a week off leash and doing more running and jumping every day. He has had no signs of soreness from increased activity. He has shifted easily back to our pre-op/pre-injury routine. Yea, Bear!

Yep, seems like old times :) !!

Everything is as it was.

And, per typical mid-May we are having a Montana heat wave: upper 70’s daytime, upper 40’s night time, i.e. darn near perfect.

Happy Friday.

Bob and the Vet, Part 2

We are home. Bob survived another vet visit. His ears are clean. Once they got the gook out and looked in with their mini-ear things – no polyps – YEA! But the right ear has a middle ear infection and his poor ear drum is ruptured – it can heal, though. I’m told it may take several rounds of antibiotics. The good news is after the first round of pills, we can switch to injections (under the skin – like the insulin) if we want. We’ll see how things go.

Bob was pretty cranky and hissing at everyone so I was asked to move him from kennel to carrier. It is not the first time, I’ve been asked to do this. He quieted at my voice. I opened the carrier into the kennel and he scooted in.

I cannot repeat his parting comments.

He and Bear touched noses in the Jeep and we came home quietly.

I am relieved. The polyps are not serious but once a cat has them, they tend to keep getting them – blech. Hopefully, once we clear this infection (4-8 weeks) and the ear drum heals AND we are more vigilant about ear cleaning…this is done.

To add to the general household fun, last evening I was running with Bear…in the woods…and I fell. I really fell. It happened so fast, I’m not sure what happened except that it was a full body slam into the ground broken by my left arm (a little) and my rib cage. OW! I lay there for a full minute getting my wind and kind of doing inventory. Nothing broken, I got my breath, a few light scratches on my shin…but ribs where I hit and the left wrist are pretty sore. Sore ribs make for very tough sleeping. Don’t even think about coughing or sneezing or laughing. I’m moving pretty slow today but this afternoon feel a lot better than I anticipated -just very tired. Early to bed tonight and hopefully a better night’s sleep.

Bob will have no complaints about heading to bed early. Bear picks up when I am not feeling well and he typically settles also.

Is it only Tuesday???

Bob’s turn at the vet, Part 1

Yes, Part 1…RATS!

Bob’s hemotoma got high praise for being fully healed but still a lot of gook in his ears. Slightly less and enough less that they can now see a 2nd problem: polyps. It is often seen in older cats per Dr. Clark and easily taken care of but does require a bit of sedation. There was time today but because of Bob’s diabetes and age – after some discussion – it was decided that it would be better to do it tomorrow after his insulin and with just a small amount of food. Hence, today is only Part 1 of Bob’s turn at the vet.

It is a quick procedure with small instruments, probably no incisions and the sedation is primarily required to keep Bob quiet and still. As he did fine with the recent dental, this should be easy and he should be very much more comfortable after…after we are home. Me, too.

On a brighter note, it was a gorgeous day. It was 75F when we arrived home and even Bob chose shade and the porch floor vs his fleecy bed.

Bear chose shade also and enjoyed a roll in the grass. The Bear boy is doing wonderfully off leash again. He may be getting his ‘woods legs’ back, but he is currently staying close to me. We’ve been practicing the off leash commands and all is remembered. Even better, he is not seeming sore or tired after the weekend’s extra exercise which has included some running and jumping. YEA!

Now, to get Bob back to 100%, although on the plus side, his glucose has been very good and he is active and moving well and has lost a wee bit of weight since starting Dr. Clark’s diabetes regimen.

New days

It has been 5 months since Bear’s first TPLO surgery.

Three months before that things changed as we tried to resolve his lameness with rest.

And now, in what feels like a sudden change, we are resuming ‘normal’ activity.

I had been keeping the blinds drawn in all but the kitchen and the sliding door in the office so as to keep Bear from being tempted to jump up and see out windows.

This morning I opened everything.

The bedroom had been closed to Bear during the day. Now, it is open.

It feels like we have a new house. And it is larger and brighter!

The day cooperated by being beautiful, sunny and warm. The light, the vivid colors – everything seemed fresh and new.

We spent hours outside today. Bear had his first off leash time in 5 months. He followed me around as I did some yard work and then dug a cool spot in the dirt under a tree when I took a break and sat on the front porch.

All of that fresh air, a little more activity, a long nap and then the light of the late afternoon.

All day, it was different.

The 5 months were good months of healing and working together. It is an incredible bonding experience. I am happy we are at this point. If is surprising how it feels, though. I have been so focused on doing what we needed to do every day to progress that I never thought about what it would be like when we got here.

It is good.

New Days.