Bailey and Friends

Please....don't send us back to 2!!! We only started breathing a bit more relaxed once she arrived @3.:eek:;):D

Hi! I would just like to let you know that today I saw two things that make me think Spring is not far away!

1) Daffodils :D
2) Lambs :D

No doubt about it now, the days are slowly getting longer YAY!!

I will have Bailey, she is too cute for her own good!! She can move in and be Flynny's new girlfriend! Have a good weekend! xxx

Happy Friday and have a good weekend, Trish! Hmmmm -do Lambs go away for the winter? Where do they go?
Daffodils....now that's a sure sign of spring. Universally.
Now-in prior years, I would be bemoaning your spring, as it would mean a close is coming to my summer. I have already noticed the shorter days. But NOW I am super lucky and get to look forward to returning to the sunny, warm state of Florida for 4 - 5 months.
Bailey and Bob are out for a walk, but I will tell Bailey of Flynn's offer when she returns. Bailey has not had a boyfriend thus far. ;)
It is an absolutely gorgeous day here. 79-ish, blue skies, a light breeze. This is heaven.
Hugs!
Sus

I was out killing weeds......the mosquitoes FOUND me!~!! :eek:

I figured they would eventually:D:D:D:D:

Summer is flying by, don't blink, you will miss it. Guess who was looking at condos in Florida on line last night? It was fun though I had no idea what I was looking at it.:rolleyes:

Any wedding bells ringing yet? I hope Ryan and Ellen are doing well.

And little miss. I still cannot believe how quickly time has gone by, Sus and that Bailey is 3 1/2. Does not seem possible.

I sure hope tomorrow is Wednesday!!!

wow, before I know it you'll be down in Florida with Koko for the winters too Addy! You and Susan and Bailey and Koko, having a grand ole time!
It is going to be really tempting when that time comes and we're up here still freezing our butts off, while Susan is talking about green grass, birds on the lawn and how much everyone loves Bailey! :) :)

Run Susan! Those mosquitoes are persistent buggers!

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

Addy!! Say it's so!!! Come on DOWN!!!!! I can put you in touch with a very nice real estate agent. He's no pressure and will send you as much or as little info as you'd like. (I know you were probably just cruising the web, but it's fun to think, as Sharlene says, of Koko and Bailey playing and us laughing!) :D:)

Addy-Ryan and Ellen will come here 8/1 for a weekend visit. Ryan tells me it will be an accomplished deed by then. (the proposal.) Ellen has moved back from Winchester and has moved in with Ryan. He has a very small two bedroom condo-apartment to him-so I'm sure combining their stuff is a major challenge. She has already asked me if she can store some books in our attic.:)

Sharlene-you can come visit us in FL. Bring Molly. We'll make it a party!!:):)

Love,
Sus

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bailey's Mom

Hmmmm -do Lambs go away for the winter? Where do they go?

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Our lambs are born at the end of winter, so they are nice and plump for Christmas dinner :eek::eek: So we usually see them skipping about the paddocks for spring!

My tulips are poking up already too, I only planted them a month or so back, love them and hope they flower well. How exciting getting a new DIL!! Hope he is not too nervous doing the proposing! Have a good weekend Sus! x

Ryan & Ellen are engaged (to be married!) :):D:D:):):D:D:):)

CONGRATS

:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D


What a happy time for your family:):):):):):)

We just started considering looking at condos in FL. Hubby lived in Sanibel for a few years before coming to Wisconsin. He is worried the heat and humidity will not be good for my asthma and allergies. I cant imagine retiring and staying in Wisconsin, especially after last winter. So we are trying to sort things out. From what I may read so far, Sarasota has a lot to offer.

Yippeeeee!!!!!!

How awesome and exciting! So when will the wedding be? Next year?

This will be such a great time in all your lives

Hugs
Sharlene and Molly muffin

[QUOTE From what I may read so far, Sarasota has a lot to offer.[/QUOTE]

Oh yes it does!!! Now I've not spent a summer there, so I can't speak to the summers. I do notice every time I check the weather there it seems to be chance of thunderstorms and a high in the low 90s.

There is a very active community events/theater/arts shows. Bob had to visit the ER while we were there last winter, and it was fine. PLUS.....Bailey and I are there!!!!!!!:D:D:D

No details as to wedding plans yet. It will not be very formal. I don't know when, where or how big. They will visit us next weekend and maybe we'll get a glimpse into what they think they'd like. I told Ryan just to tell me when and where to show up and I'd be there!!

We spoke with her mother this evening-we called to introduce ourselves and to share our joy at the announcement. She thinks they should just get married in two months and "get it over with." She thinks Ellen won't want the pressures of a big wedding. Ryan says he thinks he will be the one pushing for some bit of "stuff."

It is indeed very exciting. Ryan and I have been working on a ring for 6 weeks or more now. I gave him a family heirloom diamond to use as the center stone. Ellen had picked out an antique looking setting that she liked, so he went with that. I've seen pictures, but I'm anxious to see the real thing. The ring arrived Thursday one week ago. We've been looking for the phone call since then. They both seem very happy and we feel they are a great match for one another. Ellen is just lovely and very upbeat. I love her laugh.

"More will be revealed........."
Hugs,
Sus

We're off to the vet....one sac drained and one question about Apoquel. :confused:

Ohhh, can't wait to the hear the details! :)

We're going to be in a similar position soon I think. ;)

What does the vet have to say about the Apoquel? It seems to working for Flynn

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

Sacs drained. They were full...one more so than the other. I asked about Apoquel. I also did some online research about it. I think we should all buy stock in the company that makes it. It works, hands down. The demand has been too great to keep up with. They now say they think by April 2015, it will be available to all. Right now the very limited supply is being given to those who were already on it.....and in some of those cases, there is not enough. Vet office told me there is a 2 year wait list....but I don't know that that is exact.

There is another drug, Atopica, which is being used by many. But if you read about the possible side effects and long term issues involved with it, unless you're in a much worse situation than Bailey, I don't think I'd take the risks.

All in all, with what I read, I've decided that thankfully Bailey has a very mild condition at this time. We have medicated shampoo and an antihistamine prescription which seem to be working pretty well. It's just when you go to scratch Bailey's back, he legs go madly. I can't tell if the scratching feels good or not. She doesn't pull away, but she really goes crazy with one leg....at a time.

We got out of there with a $34 dollar bill this time. I would NOT want to drains those sacs, myself, for $34!!!!

Hugs,
Susan

This Apoquel really is the dogs bark. (I was gonna say cats meow, but didn't seem as appropriate on a dog forum haha)

I was just reading that the company that makes it had the largest IPO offering since Facebook, which it beat, and a lot of that is due to this drug being such a hot commodity, it works and doesn't have short or long range bad side effects.

Anyway. That was just a little note to throw in there. LOL

So, how does one go about with this meeting of the parents thing. :) We're thinking that we'll be doing this one day soon too. LOL I'll need pointers!!

Hope you're having a good summer

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

Hey Sus~~ Ohhh congrats you going to be a MIL!! How exciting! We will be wanting to help pick out your dress you know!! Elegant and tasteful, a little hat hmmm and fantastic shoes!! What colour?? A nice pastel or are you a bright person?? I love fancy dress shopping!!

Honestly I am not squeamish at all but it makes me shiver anytime someone mentions anal glands on here. In all of Flynny's 13 years we have not had to go there! They must clear themselves, so a big hallelujah to that one!

Yes shares in apoquel may well be the way to go!! I still have a supply from samples that were given to Flynny's vet so I must check with him how many he has as I do not want to go back to how he was before. He does itch, but only occasionally much like a normal dog not incessantly like before so I am very pleased with it.

I am trying not to give him the flea treatments and according to my spreadsheet he has not had anything since April 14th and so far no fleas. He was on comfortis, but iMS said he does not recommend that due to the amount of dogs he has seen that have had seizures on it. I know Mike wants Flynn on something, but if I can keep them at bay naturally it is all good. So he is getting a weekly shower in anti flea bar and drops on his collar. Mind you, it is winter here so spring might see them return. Hope not. I have not used atopica, not researched it either but have seen a few on here mention it.

Flynny sounds like Bailey in the scratch department, like if you itch his back his legs go to town too... down by his tail on lower back is his sweet spot and if you go to pet his back he repositions himself so that spot is always under your hand.... he likes to make sure I have easy access :D:D

Exciting times in your household! xxx

One meets the i-ls by their coming to VA to visit the kids and also to meet us. They are coming for 4 days, I think. We will have dinner with them on a Friday and do something together all day Saturday. That's all I know for now.

"The kids" are here and I don't know a lot more than I did before, except that their type of planning would drive me NUTS!!! It will not be a church wedding. I did not know my son is an atheist. Ellen has no church ties, either. What seems to be gelling is a ceremony of some sort in Colorado, where her family lives. Later on a gathering in VA for the East Coast guests. Size of group to be less than 100. April, if they can plan it that fast. We would go to CO and she thinks her parents would come here for any party here.

I gave Bailey her Frontline yesterday, early afternoon, and for the first time I noticed a REAL change in her after the medication. She became very subdued, almost depressed. She was sluggish for the rest of the day. She had not been eating much for the past two days and I think I will be sure she has eaten before she gets it next month. I know it doesn't go directly to her stomach, but I want to minimize any effect.

Then, today.......it was awful. :( I was sitting in a recliner and unbeknown to me, Bailey had crawled underneath the front of it. I went to get up and felt some resistance and could hear her madly clawing at the carpet. :confused: I had Ryan come very quickly and help me raise the bottom back up. She doesn't seem to be physically hurt in any way, but she sure was traumatized by it. :( She was shaking later and she was depressed. She was very subdued. :( She is just now starting to bounce back just a little. I'm hoping that will cure her of going under there again. I think we will for sure try to keep her out of there. She likes being in enclosed spaces, but not that enclosed! :eek::(

Susan

Our oldest got married at the country club and it was a lovely out door wedding. We'll have to see what the youngest and her (to be fiancee, we're in wait mode for that to happen, just like you were with Ryan for a bit) want to do as far as venue goes. I know they have "talked" about wedding and how they want it but we're still waiting for the "proposal". LOL It is now gone from she would like a big wedding to she thinks they would want a smaller wedding, more intimate. What I do know is she would like for this to all start happening soon and get things in gear as she wants to get started on a family. She turned 30 this year and wants to get things rolling. :) So, we'll see how things go, they are currently in Europe on vacation.

Oh my god! That is one of my fears with Molly, that she'll get under the foot of the recliner when it's up and no one will know she is there and squish her. How is Bailey today? Hopefully past the fear and just will not go in there again. You must have been so freaked out when that happened. I would have been.

Hope you are having a good weekend
hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

I was badly freaked out, Sharlene. That's my baby and it was just awful when I realized she was under there. I had trouble getting the footrest back up-that's why I had to call for help. I for sure did not want it going down any further than it was.....it was most of the way down already.

Today I am very happy to report that she is back to her silly self again. She is currently doing battle with a chew toy and it's taking the longest time on record for her to get the treat out. This is one of those Starmark Bentoballs. I must have really gotten the treat seated well in there. She's been working on this for about an hour.

It's a gray day here, but it seems to be brightening up. I know it's gorgeous in DC so, hopefully, that will get here before the day is over.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend.

Hugs,

Susan

Oh very happy that she is. Back to herself today. Hubs and I had a little chat last night about making sure he checks each time when he gets up.

Weekend has turned a bit rainy

Hugs
Sharlene and Molly muffin

Hope all is well at BB and Bailey is back to her cute, sweet self.

Cant wait to hear more about the wedding bells and the plans.

Hi Addy-the wedding plans are in the developmental stage. They were here for the weekend and we discussed the wedding some. They leave tomorrow for a day in Chicago and then one week or so in Colorado with her folks. They will query them as well and then perhaps better know what they want to do. At the very least, there will be an east coast reception. No church wedding. Not sure about if to get married in CO plus then have a reception on the east. The CO folks/family she feels will come to an East coast shindig either way.....so does it really make sense to have the wedding out there, or should all of it just be here? That's where they are.

It was a delight to have them. Ellen is a very laid back, easy person. Not like "company" at all. We played mini golf on Saturday and had fun.

Belly rubs to Koko and hugs to you!

Love,
Sus

Happy Weekend Sus!

It is a beautiful Friday here in ole WI:):):):) I hope BB has the same wonderful weather,low humidity,no rain, mid 70's.

Just wanted to stop by and let you know I am thinking of you. Koko and I have been out exploring this week. I hope you and Bailey got some exploring in too:):):):)

Oh CRIKEY, stuck under the chair, must have near given you heart failure. I worry about that too as Mum and Dad have those types of chairs. When Flynn was at his itchiest he used to line up the metal mechanism when the footrest was up as it was at just the right height to scratch his own back! I had Mum and Dad trained to check he was not under there when putting it down but there been a few close calls, he also got a fright once when the garage roller door went down and nearly got him, he keeps a real wide berth around that now!! :eek: Glad no harm done to Bailey.

Hope your weekend is going well Sus, hopefully next weekend my tulips will be blooming and I will share you a pic!! With Flynny starring next to the flowers of course!! xx

Hi Trish & Addy-
TULIPS??!!! It would be so confusing if I moved to New Zealand.
Addy the weekend has been gorgeous. Low 80's, low humidity, lots of sunshine. We even went down to the beach to sun some. I followed that up with some hot tub (94 degrees) time. A perfect day.

We finally agreed on a wallpaper for the master bathroom. Tomorrow we go and pick out a paint color for the trim and I hope to get it painted this week. 2 doors, 2 windows and some floor moulding. Shouldn't take long.

Plan after that tomorrow is to go to the nearby gym and sign up. I've got stuff that needs to be firmed up.....ALL OVER!!!! I figure if I start now then by the time the wedding takes place, I'll be looking slim and divine! ;) They will freeze the gym membership for when we are in FL. Can't beat that.

Boy I would sure love to have a dark chocolate covered caramel. Mmmmm.

I hope youse guys have had a fun weekend.

Love,
Sus

Feel the burn at the gym:D:D:D I'm sure you will be svelt and beautiful for the wedding. I have put on so much weight since my arm accident and Zoe's death:eek::eek: Walking Koko twice a day has not done anything.:rolleyes:


It is hard to believe summer is winding down already. Sus, hubby says the bugs are really big in Florida, is that true? My neighbor has a heart condition and has a condo in Hollywood (Atlantic side) she said she cannot handle the heat and humitdty after March so now hubby is worried I wont be able to handle the heat and humidty.:(

I hope you enjoy your weekend. It is beautiful this morning though showers are expected this aft.

Hi Addy-great to hear from you. Gym is going well.....but I need to get over there now.

Why don't you plan a week in FL in June or July? Then you can see for yourself how it affects you. As far as bugs go, fortunately, I've not seen any inside and the ones outside only bothered me one day.....and they weren't big, just plentiful. :(

I just ordered a ton of bulbs. I need to get myself off some of these email lists! I have to remember to check the blooming times, since we won't be back until May.

Best get to the gym or they'll close on me! Yes-I feel the burn.....I also felt the "klunk" when I fell off the last piece on Saturday. If I don't quit hitting my head like this, I'll be eligible for the NFL concussion settlement!~ :p:(:eek:

Love,
Sus

Gym, great idea. I actually have a gym setup at home and really just need to use it.
Might want to try to limit those head knocks though. :) That doesn't sound fun at all.

It does get warm down in Florida in the summers and some nasty storms too at times. The whole tornado and hurricane season, not sure if I'd want to be around for those. Winter however, sounds perfect to be there.

Oh lovely tulips in the spring. I always enjoy seeing them come up as it finally means spring is here and nasty old man winter is going away.

hugs,
Sharlene and molly muffin

Hi all-just checking in. I've been busy avoiding my computer....I don't like the time it consumes. Bailey and I are very well.

I went to see my former foot doc last week. I'm considering having a procedure done this fall. The reason would be to better my chances at wearing a nice pair of heels for the wedding next spring.....and not have to change to sneakers after an hour or so. Plus I'd like to be ready and able to DANCE!!!

There are still no concrete plans for the wedding. Going to see the former foot doc meant I was in VA....and I wound up spending an evening with Ellen and Ryan, just visiting. I asked if Ryan had narrowed down his best man choice any.....he said he needed to think more about that. (The KING of procrastination!!) I then asked Ellen if she had chosen her maid of honor....I was pretty sure it would be her sister. She answered that it would be her sister then she realized she had just assumed her sister knew/would be her matron of honor. I suggested she might not want to assume that. She got on the phone and called her sister right then and, of course, she accepted.

In 4 weeks, her parents come for a visit and we go over to meet them. Perhaps by then, more will be revealed!

Hugs,
Susan

Sounds exciting and such fun - to plan a wedding!!! I always wanted to have a wedding in our back yard, I thought the bride and groom could recite their vows on the bridge, alas no one left for that, either too young or too old:rolleyes::rolleyes:


Good luck with the foot doctor. Dont't people take off their shoes to dance anymore when their feet start to hurt????:o:o:confused::confused::confused:

Anyway, I hope the procedure is not a big deal for you but I always feel like we have to haul out the pink bubble wrap for you so I get a wee bit worried!!!:o:o:o:o

Hi Sus

Popping in to say Hi and see what you have been up to! When are we off back to Florida?? I like it there, apart from the alligators!! :) Ouch, foot procedures do not sound much fun, apart from pedicures, you will need nice nails if you are taking your shoes off like Addy suggests, we sure heck do that if they pinch when we are dancing!

Hope Bailey is behaving, and all going well in your neck of the woods! xx

Hey Sus,

Tell us what is happening in BB:):):):):)

We need to get caught up on any new wedding plans, upcoming surgeries, do I need to send bubble wrap? Did you plant your bulbs? How's the weather? It was 37 degrees here Saturday morning, no more swims for us:(:(:(:(:(


Inquiring minds want to know what is going on;);):D:D:D:D:D:D

Hi Trish and Addy...how nice to hear from both of you!! :D

So many questions, Addy!!!

It's past my bedtime so I can't fill you in now, but I will for sure in the next few days.

We're well. It's nice to feel missed.:) Talk to you soon.

Love,
Sus

Of course you are missed!!!!!

And you know we want details when you have a chance.

Hugs
Sharlene and Molly muffin.

Geez.....thanks guys!:D
Okay-before I get involved in anything further today, here comes an update.
Ryan and Ellen are engaged. They were here 10 days ago for the weekend. We sat down on Sunday and tried to guide them in some wedding planning. They were both very stressed out. Each of us had been chatting with one other person, when the opportunity arose, so it seemed to make sense to just have a "group conscience" meeting. They seemed somewhat relieved after that.
The problem they are having is contending with how expensive all of this is. They don't want to spend more than a certain amount on the day. They feel it's too much money to spend, in general principles, beyond that. They are finding it very difficult to make that happen. That means cuts have to be made...either in guests or food or dance, etc. They are trying to keep the guests to under 100. Bob has a very big family, his father was one of six and his mother was one of four. And they have long life spans! And they've been "productive!";)
Anyway-that's where we are right now. They have decided to have both ceremony and reception in the Washington area. Now they have to zone in on specific venues. This weekend, her parents and we are going to stay in Arlington 3 - 4 days-so the parents can meet. It's supposed to be mostly a "social" occasion....not wedding planning strategy's.

After that, we leave from DC to go to Sarasota for a week....and we're flying down....and Bailey will have to go to camp. :( It seemed like a relaxing thing to do and it will give us a chance to make sure the place is as we left it. Only bad thing about that is we won't have any TV. It's shut off until the end of December and I can't get it turned on for just a week. The clubhouse, however, has several TVs, so we should at least be able to see our Nat's in their pennant race.:D It's my hope to just spend the days on the beach or in the Gulf and ride bikes and exercise. Hopefully by the time we get back, the guest list should be solidified and the venue selected. I think that will ease a lot of the perceived pressure.

Then the other piece of news is it looks like I will be having foot surgery (.....yes, AGAIN):( on Nov 7th. I have a large bone spur and a very wayward big toe, so I hope to get that corrected in time to be able to participate in the first dance, if there is one, wearing something other than Crocs!!:eek::eek: (Time to check on the pink bubble wrap to make sure we have some if we need it!!;):):D)

Bailey is very well, other than itching. The antihistamines seem to help a lot and more frequent bathing is necessary. I saw Don Sullivan on TV and have purchased his cds and training supplies. When we get back, the priority will be to retry training Bailey. I know how smart she is and I know we can do this, if we just try hard enough, long enough. She's much better than she ever was, but there is still too much barking and some jumping on people going on. :(

I hope everyone is enjoying fall. I think summer bowed out too soon. Several people have told us "It's supposed to be a brutal winter." That's according to the almanac or signs in nature or the fact that it's so cool already. Even though I don't get time to post here, I do regularly read the posts and am trying to keep up with all my friends.:)

See you sooner, and shorter!
Love,
Sus

I heard that too about winter and hope that they're wrong.
Summer did just fizzle out it seems.

Gads I heard the same thing Susan about the winter and I sure hope not. You'll be basking in some Florida sun at least, so that's a good thing.

What a great idea, escaping the mayhem for Florida for a week. We're escaping to California for a bit, really looking forward to that!!

Our kids are crazy, organized nuts up here. They got engaged what a month ago and I think they have almost the entire thing planned. I'm sure they did some pre planning to be able to wrap this all up so quickly. Wedding cost are in general it seems are expensive though. J found her wedding gown in one trip and I think tried on 7 dresses and ordered it. Done deal, then they found the bridesmaid dresses they liked, then went online and found the same dresses cheaper so ordered them. (that is something for your gang to think about) some of the venues provide dj's for music as a package deal.
I'm sure they are very creative and will think of options once they sit back and not to stress over it too terribly much. I know that is hard though. :(

Foot surgery! Well I hope they get it all figured out and that toe stop being wayward. A toe with a mind of it's own, imagine that!

hmm, Molly is getting very contrary in her old age, she didn't want to stand for the groomer today. Just decided she'd lay down instead. LOL Maybe she needs training refresher courses. or beginner courses. LOL

hugs
sharlene and molly muffin

Thanks Sharlene for the suggestion about dresses. I'll pass that along to Ellen.
I forgot to mention one thing in my catch up piece. I had a blood clot in my leg about 10 days ago. Scared the beejeepers out of me. Went to the hospital at 11PM and returned home around 5AM. I'm seeing my cardiologist on Thursday just to be sure it's not something I need to be concerned about. It just very suddenly popped up on my shin. Wasn't there, then all of a sudden there was sharp leg pain and when I looked down, here was this golf ball size lump. :eek::eek::confused:
Did anyone check on the pink bubble wrap?

Valerie-it looks like Friday may be kind of a summer day. Don't miss it! :D

Hugs,
Sus