RIP Rebel Jedi Knight

My handsome boy Rebel Jedi Knight has passed over the rainbow bridge.  He will be greatly missed by all of us here at From Huskies to Husbands.  He was truly a magnificent creature.  We all are still just devastated by our loss. 

He was born November 20, 2000 and died on September 11, 2012.  He was in my life from January 27, 2001 and showed me the kind of unconditional love only a dog is capable every day.

Suzy Kissing Rebel

Rebel had been acting a little off but kept bouncing back for a few weeks.  On Saturday morning, he took a serious downward turn and we rushed him in to the vet clinic.  They did some initial blood work and he was found to be having a diabetic episode resulting in ketoacidosis along with elevated liver and kidney enzymes.  The vet kept him and started an IV and treatment.  I kept in close contact with the vet over the weekend.  She thought he seemed to be improving with treatment.  However, on Tuesday morning the vet informed us that he had taken a turn for the worse overnight.  He was no longer able to get up or stand on his own and the vet was quite concerned.  We rushed in to the vet clinic.  Rebel tried to show us that he was happy to see us; however, it was evident that the spark was gone from his eyes.  We were devastated by the fact that not only could he not stand on his own and needed to be carried as he could not walk, but he could not even wag his tale.  My beautiful boy was beyond miserable, yet he tried to show us how much he loved us and had missed us.  We spent some time just loving him, petting him and talking to him.  After speaking with the vet concerning his prognosis and possible treatments, we learned that his health had dramatically deteriorated and the vet felt he would not recover.  We then made the very difficult decision to say goodbye to our much beloved Rebel.  We just could not ask him to continue suffering simply because we could not bear to say goodbye because we knew Rebel would do anything in his power to stay with us no matter how that made him suffer.  It was not a decision made or taken lightly.  We were with him at his passing over the rainbow bridge and he showed nothing but unconditional love until the very end. 

I miss my special majestic boy.  He had so much personality and love to share.  I miss him more than words can ever truly say...

Latest Medical Update - Hospitalization

I am so happy to be home.  I went to the ER on Saturday morning because the pain in my abdomen had changed.  I only put up with a months worth of horrific nausea, vomiting, constipation, and pain before breaking down and going in.
I had a horrible experience in the ER and then the hospital proper.  They ended up overdosing me on medications which led to me becoming basically unresponsive with a severely low heart rate.  This led to them having to give me narcan which gained me an admission to the hospital.  I was there from about 10 am Saturday until about 8 pm Tuesday when I had reached my breaking point.  I received great nursing care; however, the lack of care and desire to help from the doctors was just too much to bear.  It felt like they did not know about Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and were not willing to listen to what I do know about my illness.  They did not want to consider anything other than common reasons for my horrific abdominal pain.  Besides they were not helping me feel any better so why should I continue to stay.  They were monitoring my heart rate and besides that the only thing that was really being accomplished was hydration via IV.  Because of the earlier issue in the ER they would only give me tylenol for the excruciating pain I was in.  I felt like I had to fight to get the tests done that I felt were necessary.  I had a CT scan, chest x-ray, enema, upper endoscopy, colonoscopy, echo cardiogram, and a multitude of blood work.  I don't feel like I was given the whole story as to the results of some of the tests and blood work.  The only diagnosis given during my stay was gastritis.  I actually had a breakdown which resulted in the echo cardiogram and some vital information, yet still no treatment plan and no referrals...
We still don't really know what is wrong or how to fix it, but I am back at home finally and feeling worse than when I left to go to the ER.

Lack of Posts

I just can't seem to get into the swing of this blog anymore.  My focus has switched to my cooking blog at the Dairy Free Diva.  I hope that you will come visit me there if you haven't already.

Flu, Crud or Something

Whatever it is it has struck our family... Miserable stuff with fever, chills, headache, body aches, and extreme gastrointestinal issues (to put it nicely). I have been fighting it for about a week or so now.  My husband succumbed to it today.  My FIL started with symptoms on Friday while driving to California with my SIL and her two kids.  FIL ended up in the hospital due to complications on Saturday and was kept overnight!  The SIL and two kids have been fighting it since Friday as well.  I can't begin to imagine how miserable that trip was for them all :(

We have heard that this can last for 3 weeks.  I really hope that isn't true!  I can't imagine flying feeling like this :(

Winter Weather

It seems that Winter is here to stay at least here in my little corner of the world.  It has snowed more days than not so far this month.  At least it seems that way...

Although the snow is beautiful along with the cold weather comes increasing pain and problems for me.  I have an appointment with a new Rheumatologist PA the first part of December.  I am hopefully but trying not to get my hopes up concerning what she can do to help me.

I also have my travel details for going home for the holidays.  I will be flying to Florida to be with my parents for Christmas and New Years.  Since I will be there for 3 weeks, I am trying to make plans to see friends also.  Mostly though I am going to be trying to keep myself busy which shouldn't be hard with the HUGE freelance project I am working on.  I have mixed feelings about going home.  I am excited to go; however, I am sad that my husband will not be able to go with me.  This will be the first Christmas that we will have spent apart since we met. 

First Snow

Today we had the first snow of the season... I can not believe that it is already that time of year!!  The snow has been falling all day and through the night with very crazy winds.  It seems like it went from the lovely Fall weather that we had been having to the dreary cold and miserableness of Winter overnight here.  I keep hoping that this really is not the start of Winter here in earnest, but I think that it most likely is indeed.  My garden is most likely done for too :(  I was hoping that the carrots, beets, and onions might have made something... I guess once the snow melts - if the snow melts in the next few days I will go and check.  I just hope that the ground isn't frozen solid!  If it is then there is no hope of me pulling anything up to check!

Just Not Feeling Well

I can't seem to put my finger on what is wrong; however, I have not been feeling well at all for the last few weeks.  I know that it is most likely something related to my Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome but what exactly is going on eludes me.  I have been experiencing a big increase in the horrible muscle and joint aches along with the bouts of inability to think straight and extreme dizziness.  I also am having an increase in GI issues and the literally mind numbing headaches.  I don't think any of it is food related as I have been hyper vigilant as always with ensuring that I don't have any of my off limits foods.  The one thing that I am sure about is that I am very very tired of being unwell.  I want off this merry go round and can't seem to find a successful way to achieve that desire.

In other news, I have fired my Rheumatologist only she doesn't know it yet.  They called a month of so to let me know that she was unable to keep my last appointment and I just have not rescheduled it.  I honestly do not have any plans to reschedule... I finally was able to obtain a copy of a fairly serious and expensive lab test that she had done almost a year ago.  It is called an ANA panel if any of you are familiar with the blood test.  She had told me that everything was fine on the results.  She lied.  Well when I finally got a copy I found out that it was anything but fine.  I currently am trying to find a doctor that really can interpret the results and what they mean.  However, even a layperson knows that it isn't good when things read positive and are listed in the abnormal range.  Based on my research I am trying very hard not to jump to any conclusions as there are a list of things that are possible with the results I have.  Lets all just hope that it is the EDS showing up and not something more in addition which appears to be highly probable. 

Just in case someone actually knows how to interpret the test results... The test was a ANA 12 Plus Profile.
Here are my out of tolerance numbers (There is a lot more data on the results).
Anti-Nuclear AB = Abnormal - Positive & Normal Range - Negative
ANA Titer = Abnormal - 1:40
ANA Pattern = Speckled
ANA Titer = Abnormal - 1:40
ANA Pattern = Nucleolar
Complement C3 = 206

The Vet Visit Adventure

I took the dogs to the vet yesterday.  Wow, I had forgotten how difficult taking them in to see the vet could be!!  I definitely could not have handled both dogs without help.  I was glad to have my FIL along for a helping hand since DH had to work. 

Both dogs got good reports overall, thankfully!!  Rebel was due for 2 shots and a nail clipping plus his well dog check.  The good news with him is that the little growth on his lower eye lid isn't especially dangerous and is typically totally benign so we didn't even need to biopsy it!  We will just need to watch to make sure it does not grow or begin to bother him.  Also, Rebel had lost about 16 lbs since his last visit down to 80 pounds and almost a healthy weight for him.  Suzy had also lost a little weight which was good for her as well.  I guess all that cooking for them has helped with their weight as well as the seizure prevention.  Suzy was just due for 1 shot and a nail clipping plus her well dog check.  The good news with her is that her occasional limp should not require surgery unless it progresses to an all the time thing.  The vet thinks that it is a possible ACL injury which isn't great news though. 

Because Suzy was badly abused before we adopted her she went first with Rebel there to help keep her calm.  I muzzled her for the nail clipping more for her safety than anything.  She was so good for it and didn't even paw at the muzzle!  I was so proud of her!

I had my FIL take Suzy out while the vet took care of Rebel as she is very protective of him.  Rebel was a little baby about the nail clipping as expected and whined and acted like he was being killed when he really wasn't at all.  So it was a good decision to have removed Suzy from the equation. 

Turned on the Heat :(

Winter has come at least overnights here in Wyoming.  We have had to turn on the heat already!  The turning on of the heat is a sad event for me.  It means that Summer truly is gone and I must face the reality of snow soon to fly.  The season of mourning has begun...

Frost!

It has frost here more than a few times now.  My poor little garden is definitely worse for wear.  However, everything isn't dead just yet!  We are still enjoying the lettuce at least :) 
Enjoy your weekend everyone!!

The Anti-Haircut

I went in to town with DH on Friday.  We had plans to go on a date after he got off of work.  The date was fun :)  We ate a late lunch, caught a 4 pm movie (The Expendables), and walked around the farmers market in Laramie.  It was so nice to get to spend some quality time just he and I!

Now you are probably wondering about the title - The Anti-Haircut... Well while I was in town and waiting for DH to get off of work I planned on running a few errands which included going to get my hair cut.  I had a VERY SHORT hair style last winter and had finally grown it out enough to go get a different style.  I did indeed go and get a haircut.  However, you can barely can tell and it still has no style!!  I went to Great Clips which in hindsight that was my error.  I asked for a simple chin length forward bob with an undercut and emphasized that I wanted to be able to pull the front up still.  What I walked out with was a slight trim and some light layers... Ugh!  Nowhere near what I asked for :(  I even let her have a second shot at attempting what I asked for.  I didn't ask for another re-cut for fear of her chopping out a chunk of hair or something.  So now I have to deal with this haircut until I get back into town again.  Hopefully that will be Thursday... Looking on the positive side is that DH said that due to my hair trauma I can get a little something more than just a cut.  Thinking that some highlights or color are in my future :)  Let's just hope that my normal stylist at Smart Style can fix this mess and still give me what I want!

Pickles

Can't wait to try these in 4 to 6 weeks!!

My Little Garden Plots

I thought that I would show off a few pictures of my two little garden plots.  I love that I was indeed able to grow things with my own two hands!

Front Porch View

This is my view from on my front porch... Wide open spaces and bright blue skies!!

Those Darn Deer!

Well they did it!  They jumped the fence and ate my garden!!  Thankfully not the entire garden.  However, they did eat most of the pea and green bean plants.  They also chomped on a good portion of the swiss chard too.  Ugh it is so frustrating!!  All that time planting, watering, and waiting for it to grow... Only for the deer and antelope to dine on the fruits of my labor.  Hopefully the deer netting that we layered on top of the fence works to keep them out.  If it doesn't I believe we will have a deer or antelope stuck in the netting!  The frustrating part is that the nights have already begun to turn cold so my garden doesn't have long to go.  Why oh why did you silly animals find my garden only now!!  I guess on the upside they did eat the peas and green beans and not some of the other plants.  I highly doubt that they would have produced anything anyhow!

A New Look!

Since I was just blogging about how it was time for a new beginning in other aspects of my life.  I decided that it probably was time for a new beginning of sorts for the blog too.  So, I updated the look of the blog.  I would love to hear what you have to say about it!  Please let me know what you like and what you don't.  I also would love to hear your suggestions!

A New Beginning?

Last month and the beginning of this month have been so insanely busy and crazy.  I am hoping that now that the visitors have left that things can slow down a little and I can find a sense of normalcy.  The next few days will be spent slowly and leisurely putting the house back in order among other things.  I don't want to push myself too hard as I know I really just need to try to let my body rest and recoup a little. 

Our house is also going back on a healthy eating plan.  No more junk like has been floating around for the last month or so.  It has to happen for the simple fact that I feel better when we eat that way.  So, wish us luck as we begin this journey again...

Long July

July was a long month... Oh I had a lot of fun!  But over a month is a long time to have family visiting.  My parents are here for a few more day still too.  We went to Denver to the antique shops and to Deadwood to meet up with my cousin and her family.  For the most part though we have just been at my house, 60 miles from anywhere. 

My garden is growing!  However, I don't know how much I am going to get to pick before the snow and cold begins again.  I have a few strawberry blossoms that are promising to produce a few berries.  I definitely will get some lettuces and spinach.  I hope to get some radishes but am not holding out as much hope for the carrots and beets.  There will be arugula and maybe swiss chard too.  The green beans, snap peas and cucumbers are all trying to grow but so far no blossoms.  The cilantro is doing the best out of the herbs.  The parsley and basil didn't even come up though.  The dill is growing ever so slowly along with the bunching onions too.  Seeing how this was my first Wyoming garden I definitely have learned a few things.  Starting seeds indoors early for a lot of items is going to be necessary.  I also need to plant earlier!!  It has been fun to have a garden again though even if it is only a small one in my front "flower" beds!

Baking for a Living?

I am baking from home for money.  LOL.  Just 2 coffee cakes a month... Hey a girl has to do what a girl has to do to earn some money in these economic times!!  I figure every dollar counts.  After all the coffee cakes are from a multiple blue ribbon winning recipe.

Still doing the freelancing when I get hired too.  I still can't get over how cheaply some people work though.  I can't work for $2.50 an hour so how do they??

My parents are still here visiting so it is nice not to have too much freelance work right now in some ways.  We are heading to Denver on Friday and Saturday to hit the big antique show and go to the antique shops.  Later this month we are trying to meet up in Deadwood with my cousin and her family that are stationed in Minot.  I guess that all means that the rest of my month is going to be busy busy!

Oh the Agony!

Well the 4th of July weekend didn't go exactly as planned around the Huskies to Husbands household.  We had a little visitor that was not invited and very unwelcome come to stay.  The stomach flu hit us hard on Saturday afternoon while out at the BBQ at our friends ranch.  Ugh, me and the bushes became fast friends sadly.  Kevin started in a few hours later.  Needless to say it was a long long long night.  Flat Coca-Cola and the restroom became our new best friends.  Thank goodness we have two bathrooms!  Sunday morning led to us still not feeling well with my temperature topping out at about 102.  However, being sick didn't mean we didn't have to work.  The fireman's 4th of July celebration required our attention.  We made it through Sunday, I still don't quite know how.  The BBQ and fireworks were a huge success.  Monday we attempted to recuperate from our illness more, but it seems like it is a long hard road back to feeling well still.  I am sure that all the extra exertion didn't help with the healing process though.