A day of firsts . . .

Zippety do dah . . . it's been a great day.

First of all, I woke this morning pain free after a BIG no-no yesterday. Weenie the Wonderdog is home from the hospital, but she still has little to no strength in her back half, so she tends to just lose control of her back legs. She also seems to want to be at my feet constantly, so when I went downstairs to work yesterday, I thought I had been careful to shut the door leading to the basement stairs. Evidently, I didn't shut it tight enough, because Weenie nudged it open and attempted to come downstairs to sleep on my feet. She made it about 3 steps, then lost her strength, and when I discovered her, she was perched and whining. What to do, what to do? She weighs 35 lbs, and my doctor warned me not to lift more than 10 lbs for the first 8 weeks after surgery.

At first, I thought that she might be able to make it back up on her own, but she had worn herself out trying. Then I thought she might allow my daughter to pick her up, but a growl and a little snap in my daughter's direction answered that. Finally, I thought about using a towel underneath her like a sling, and my daughter and I lifted her that way up each of the stairs. I thought that had distributed her weight enough not to hurt me, but I was mistaken. I was in some pain when we finally got her upstairs, and I was pacnicking, thinking I had ruptured something. I laid down for a couple of hours, and gingerly pressed on all the areas that I thought might have been hurt, but after the rest, I seemed better.

This morning, I felt fine, so I think I escaped without any injury. Wish I could say the same for Miss Weenie. I think we will have to get her a set of wheels if she is going to be able to stay with us - the doctor said she has at least 2 herniated disks in her back, and others look dicey. Poor girl . . . the part of her that is Daschund can't support the weight of the part of her that is a MUCH bigger dog, evidently. I wouldn't mind her rolling around the house at all, as long as she is not in any pain, but the alternative is a $5,000+ back surgery with no guarantees, and as much as I love her, I can't make that level of financial sacrifice from my family's budget for a pet, especially when there are no guaratees that she will benefit.

So, time will tell on that.

Other good things today . . . I added cooked veggies to my repertoire! Oh, how I have missed you green beans! You, too, pintos! At lunch today, I visited a restaurant that has a veggie buffet and I placed the tiniest of spoonfuls of veggies on my plate, carefully sampling and chewing each one, savoring the flavor and remaining hopeful that everything would be ok. My month-old tummy growled in happiness as I sampled the chicken and dumplings broth (no chicken or dumplings, just the broth-y goodness), a half-dozen or so green beans and an equal number of pinto beans. I completed the deliciousness with a few bites of mashed potatoes and gravy, and it was perfect. Not too much, no pain, no stomachache.

This Wednesday will be one month since my surgery. It's gone by really quickly. With nearly 40 lbs gone, I am beginning to notice changes in the way my clothes fit, and the way my back feels, and the way I feel inside my skin. I'm pretty happy already . . . it's hard to imagine what the next few months will hold. I have to keep reminding myself that this time, I will be successful. This time, I will be able to reach my goal. This time, I will get healthier and stay that way.

It's still pretty unbelieveable.