Sweet Ali

We adopted a scared mutt name Jitterbug over ten years ago. Although we weren’t sure how old she was at the time (we guessed around a year old) or even exactly what breed she was (although we thought maybe a cross between a Papillion and a dachshund) we knew one thing was sure – this dog had been abused. She would cower at the slightest motion in her direction (any kind of motion). Our hearts were saddened by the thought that someone would hurt any dog, but especially this one.

The name Jitterbug didn’t fit this small, shy dog, so we renamed her Ali. She became the best dog I’ve ever known, and not just because she was our dog. She was tough, but sweet; protective, but kind. She was also loving and precious.

About four years ago, after being out for a while, we came home and noticed that Ali wasn’t acting right. She acted like she was sick, but also very scared (she was shaking a lot). It was very late at night, so we decided we’d wait till the morning to see how she was doing to decide if we needed to take her to the vet. When we woke up that morning, Ali couldn’t move her back legs (she had been able to the night before). The vet diagnosed her with intervertebral disk disease. She had emergency surgery in hopes of restoring activity to her legs, but she remained paralyzed from her mid-back down the rest of her life. Despite her paralysis, Ali was able to get around quite well. She earned the nickname “Scooter” and was very fast scooting around. Her paralysis definitely presented many challenges, but Ali was worth handling those challenges.

Sadly, we had to put Ali down a little less than two weeks ago. I was sad, very sad, but her health was deteriorating quickly, and we didn’t want to see her suffer anymore. I’m so thankful for having Ali in our lives.

Wordless Wednesday

I Heart Faces: Pets!

I couldn't resist the opportunity to show off my precious pups. Ali is the brown mutt, and Reeses is the black/white/brown half-mutt/half-corgi. They just love bath time, can't you tell? :)

Be sure to check out all the great pets at I Heart Faces this week!

Ella and Reeses

Ella absolutely loves our dogs, and I finally captured her playing with Reeses on video. They are so funny together!

Babyproofing and Dogs

Kind of an odd title considering my baby is about to be a toddler, but . . . I don't want to think about that just now! Until recently, rather than babyproofing my entire house (or even my entire living room), we just "pinned" Ella in our living room area by arranging couches and putting up a gate. It was the safe (read easy) way to babyproof the area where she was playing. Then it became not so easy . . . when she learned how to move my blockades. At first she wasn't obsessed with moving the barriers, but then it became a game. She knew how to escape, and as soon as I put her down she'd make a run (crawl) for it.

Now, we've removed the blockades, and I'm letting her roam a bit more freely. This is actually less stressful than constantly moving her back inside the blockades, and putting the blockades back up. However, I still need to completely babyproof the area (something I really needed to do a long time ago). I've put plug covers on all the outlets, and I've removed dangerous items out of the area where I'm letting her crawl. We have an open floor plan, and part of the open space includes the kitchen. I'm not planning on locking her out of all the cabinets and drawers, but there are definitely some I want to keep her out of.  I'm having difficulty finding  drawer and cabinet locks to use, mostly because I'm being really picky. Our cabinets are new, and I really don't want to drill into them. It is hard to find cabinet locks that you don't screw into the cabinets. I found these, but they are very expensive compared to the ones that you drill into cabinets. Do you have any suggestions for other cabinet locks?

I know these photos have nothing to do with babyproofing, but Ella has been SO cute with our dogs lately. She's really been having fun interacting with them, and she is learning to be gentle enough that they are starting to enjoy her too (at least I think so anyway).

The Dogs

We have two dogs, Ali and Reeses, who have taken the new addition to our family in stride. They love to lick her (especially Reeses) and investigating everything she does. I think they are about to have a newfound love for Ella though.

Ali and Reeses (especially Reeses) have just been dying for Ella to start eating something other than formula. I have a feeling they are going to like the fact that I have decided to attempt to make my own baby food rather than buying it. Why? Because they will be begging for all the leftovers from my various trials (and probably even begging when I get it right!).