Where Did The Week Go?

Thursday, already?  Not sure where the rest of the week went but I knew I needed to get a blog post on before the craziness of the next few days takes place!  You see - my sisters baby shower is Saturday!  Both near-future grandma's are running around like maniacs and then there is the near-future 'Crazy Aunt' (that's ME) that has been overly busy at work and down and out not feeling well for a few days last week!  I haven't been as much help as I wanted the last couple of weeks!  Anyhow...today I will share with you some things I have been taking snapshots of over the past week and then I will blab about the shower next week!

First up is what I had for dinner last night.  It's the first photo you see in this post and it is LITERALLY something I threw together because I didn't want to fuss with anything special.  I found tortilla boats that happen to be vegan and I filled them with this chickpea mixture!

Smoked Russian Chickpeas:

1 Can of Chickpeas

4 T Vegan Mayo (I used Trader Joe's - see below)

2 to 3 T Ketchup

1/2 t Smoked Paprika

1/2 t Wildtree Memphis Dry Rub

3 Drops Organic Liquid Smoke

I cannot express how AWESOME this turned out!  I'm not going to lie - I kinda wanted to drink the 'dressing' which was a more smoked up version of my Vegan Russian Dressing I have done in the past.

This was the Vegan Spread and Dressing I used that I found at Trader Joe's the last time I went.  I'm partial to Just Mayo but this is pretty awesome on it's own.  It's not what I would call a straight-up vegan mayo but more like a dressing like it states - it seemed thicker and did have a different taste but the taste was pretty wonderful!

Another wrap I did within the last week was this one.  It doesn't look like much but it was a great comfort food!  I used a couple of potato patties, tomato slices, and vegan cheese sauce.  The vegan cheese sauce was the leftover vegan cheese powder I made not too long ago!  It worked well!

I had a huge salad this week, too, and I made this dressing.  It was supposed to resemble a vegan Ranch Dressing using Sunflower Seeds as the base but it totally missed the mark as a Vegan Ranch Dressing taste-alike.  The taste wasn't bad it just wasn't what I was going for.  

I'm grateful on a daily basis that Paco has been doing well the last several months!  A few months ago he wasn't able to do this!  He would barely move let alone look engaged in things!  

I still have to help him up on the sofa and recliner but the WANT and INTEREST is there!  I put him up on the recliner but he managed to get on the armrest all by himself and pose like this!  I couldn't tell you the last time he did that!  For about a year I freaked out when he did try to because his legs were so unstable!  How can these photos NOT put a smile on your face?

Life Has Been Moving Too Fast...

Life has been moving too fast the last month or more!  I wanted to check in before being offline again for another almost 2 weeks!  I have a LOT on tap over the next two weeks including the Warren County Fair.  

If you type in CONCERT in the search bar you will see that I not only enjoy going to concerts when I am able - I also help with the entertainment during our local county fair.  This year we have 3 solid acts!  Collin Raye on Tuesday, Home Free on Wednesday, and Little Texas on Thursday!  

After the fair is over I will surely update you on the shows and hopefully have some photos to go along with the stories.  Personally I am MOST excited about Home Free.  The first photo I posted was of Home Free, the Collin Raye, then Little Texas!

In other news - Paco is trucking along eventho he has ongoing health issues.  Once fair is over we will start tweaking his Predisone Meds because he's been on a high dosage for his ITP/IHMA Immune issues for close to 2 years it has now caused him to develop steroid induced Cushings. Next step is to do an extremely slow tappering of the steriods down to a lower mg per day.  The last time we did this it didn't work but that was nearly 2 years ago and it was an instant tweak in meds.  The vet - who has diagnosed him - and has been great since - has worked with us to make sure his blood levels are in check.  We will ALL be monitoring Paco's changes while trying to minimize the mg's of steroids per day over 6 month increments to make sure his immune system doesn't bottom out again while trying to also combat the Cushings issues.  I've said it before and I will say it again and again...Paco is more of a fighter than I will EVER be!  Every day we have him in our lives is a blessing!

Playing Catch Up!

I found this cute meme on Instagram the other day and reposted and commented...This is my Monday Face...and Tuesday Face...and Wednesday Face...lol...YEAH...it's been a rough few weeks or months but I am trying to kick the attitude and start a NEW!

Eventho it's been a very mild winter here in the snowbelt I'm looking forward to spring regardless!  So far today we had between a foot or two of snow fall.  I was shoveling my sidewalk and driveway and the city plow came thru and plowed me back in.  Nice!  I'm typing that with much sarcastically - I don't know if you picked up on that!

The furkids are doing well!  Cricket is a 'crazy lady' that is what we call her sometimes but she's also a sweet pea and darling girl!  She puts so much life into our home.  She has a devilish side, too!  She likes to torment her brothers.  Riley has a soft side for her most times whereas Paco is too polite to do anything to snap back and I usually have to stop Cricket from picking on Paco.  Paco is so funny - he actually waits in line to drink from the water bowl in the living room at night.  He lets Cricket and Riley go first and he waits until last to lap up the water!

Paco is doing really well considering all of his medical issues.  He's been on his same meds for over a year now and his blood work is consistently where it should be.  He pees a lot but I would rather him do that than not be with us.  He's still sweet as ever!  And he's so strong to deal with everything, too!  He's plumped up from the meds but just adds to his character.  

I took this photo on a sunnier day than today and just had not posted it yet.  I'm still wearing my glasses and most likely will just continue to.  I think it makes me look older but I don't really care.  I know in the past no one could believe I was 36 but maybe now I will start looking my age anyways.  It is what it is, right!?

Work has been rough but I'm still plugging along.  I've been fairly uninspired in the kitchen as of late and going back to some comfort foods, cheap foods, fast foods, and good old stand by's!

I've been throwing a lot of dishes together much like this veggie curry here.

I've been re-organizing my tea collection and re-visiting some old favorites.

I have been able to spend a good amount of time with my parents the last several months.  They went to Aruba last month.  They LOVED it.  My sister had a rough weekend because she lost one of her furkids to cancer.

I'm still VERY MUCH into the Essential Oils.  My parents have gotten into them, too!  My sister has been buying some stuff online at PipingRock.com so I thought we would try it at as well.  So my parents and I went in on it together and they bought an Essential Oil Starter Kit with about 14 different oils.  I had at least half of them so I didn't get one of the kits I opted for 4 individual oils instead.

I decided to try 2 of their blends.  The Mental Clarity and the Stress Relief blends and I have them at work.  I have tried and like both of them.

Then I grabbed some Grapefruit Oil and Pine Needle Oil.  Those were two of the ones on my results sheet I received before Christmas.  I really like both of these, too!  I will say that the Pine Needle surprised me.  I thought it was going to be way too 'manly' and pungent but it's 'just right'.

I really like Piping Rock so far!  Their prices are quite a bit lower than many other sites I have seen.  I've only gotten their oils but I intend to make a purchase down the road that contains some of their nuts, seeds, snacks, etc.

Weekend Round-Up & Raw Vegan Giveaway!

This past weekend it was my intention to start my weekend giveaways here but something went wrong so I will start them today instead.

But before we get to the prize at stake I thought I would tell you a little bit about this past weekend!  First up...one of the smoothies I forgot to post last week!  It was delicious!  It had Blackberries, Blueberries, Strawberries, Raspberries, Coconut Water, and Garden of Life Vanilla Organic Plant Protein.  I just LOVE the color of this...don't you?

No...this isn't a vegan ice cream...it's Balsamic Beet Hummus!  I made some over the weekend because I enjoyed the Beet Hummus I bought the weekend before from Trader Joe's!  In this there is...1 C Small Beets, 1 C Chickpeas, 1/3 T Tahini, 2 T Lemon Juice, 1 T Garlic Grapeseed Oil, 1 to 2 T Balsamic Vinegar.

Sunday I cleaned some of the kitchen and frig.  I concentrated on the stove and used one of the new products I got from Norwex and it worked really well.  I did 2 loads of dishes and dried some laundry.  I cleaned the dogs pens out and did some of their blankets.

I finally had time to roast some squash I had.  There were types the Kabocha Squash AND Spaghetti Squash.  I roasted them with Garlic Grapeseed Oil and 2 different kinds of pine nuts (standard and long).

I then took the Spaghetti Squash and used it in the base for the dish you will see in just a little bit and I cubed up the Kabocha Squash and used it as well.  I sampled a bit of each and they were tasty!  Below is the finished product.  It's a Thai Curry Squash with peas and pine nuts.

I ate a bowl as a soup and it was totally YUMMY.  Since I made a HUGE batch I decided to cook up some lentils and rice so I could pair it for meals this week.  For the base recipe I used...1 small spaghetti squash, 1 small kabocha squash, 1 T grapeseed oil and about 1/4 C Pine nuts - I roasted those ingredients at 380 degrees for about a half hour.  I then took 1 sweet onion and cooked it down then added half the pine nuts that were roasted and about 6 basil leaves that were dried and crumbled.  Added 1 can of coconut milk,  I added the spaghetti squash to it and simmered for a few then put in my blender to make a base.  I then added 4 T Wildtree Green Curry Paste/Sauce, the other half of the roasted pine nuts, 1 C Peas, and Black Sea Salt to taste.  It turned out great!

Saturday we sold our Wildtree products at a regional winery.  I'm thrilled because this winery doesn't use purifiers, clarifiers, or preservatives in their wine that tend to be fish or gelatin based!  Next to the door they had this crazy looking guy and they were all decked out for Halloween.  It made all sorts of weird noises and moved.  They had him on an operating table and it was fun to watch the people come in and freak out when the sensor went off!  It was a very windy day and driving home was a bit challenging at times because of the wicked wind!

Saturday night the dogs enjoyed snuggle time on the sofa.  Paco liked that I let him use my pillow, too.  He's doing well but his legs still have good days and bad days.  He's a trooper, tho, because he still trucks around the house in his own special way.  And of course he's still as cute as ever.  Sunday night the dogs seemed to enjoy family time, too!  We caught up on Grey's Anatomy and Reign which are two of the shows we enjoy during the week on Hulu.

Okay!  It's time!  It's time for the giveaway I intended for this past weekend!  All you have to do is be a US Resident and comment on this post with your email addy.  Garden of Life is letting me give away a TUB of their Chocolate Raw Meal!  It's vegan and RAW!  New packaging and everything!  Woot!  I will choose a winner sometime tomorrow and announce the winner on Wednesday!  Each weekend I will have a different giveaway, too, so stay tuned!

Meet Cricket!

Meet Cricket!

Well, the local shelter was calling her Layla.  Her name before that was Skye.  She doesn't respond to either name.  We were trying out names on her and she acknowledged Cricket.  I think her full name is going to be Cricket Chaka Khan Bliss.

Yup!  We are fostering her.  But I really think that that foster situation is going to turn into an adoption situation.  She's amazing!  And the other 2 dogs are getting a long with her well, too!

She's listed as a Chihuahua Mix.  I'm convinced she's mix with a tad of Rat Terrier...but...she has SO MANY Chi tendencies!  She looks way bigger than she actually IS in this photo.  She's only about 4 pounds.

I've taken her into work with me the last two mornings.  She LOVES riding in the car.  She also likes toys.  She's about a year and 7 months old.  She's been at the shelter for 7 months approximately.

Paco's old puppy vest fits her great!  She's very friendly, answers to just about anyone, and doesn't mind crate time for bedtime.

I'm hoping everything continues to go well because I'm already falling in love with her - she's AMAZING!

On Sunday I took her over to my parents house and they have a nicer neighborhood to go for walks in.  The drivers in the area are more cautious and slow.  Where I live they treat the street like a race track.  I felt safer there not knowing how she would react quite yet.

Check out this photo!  That's Lexi - my parents dog - on the left and Cricket on the right.  Lexi is a Border Collie/Rat Terrier Mix.  We were calling Cricket - Lexi's Mini-Me because of the marking.  They got along GREAT, too!

With Paco's health issues I can't really take him on walks.  Riley is VERY choosy when it comes to men...he only likes my husband and his brother.  So it will be great to have a walking buddy!

Isn't she the CUTEST?

Past Happy Mail, Local Eats with Vegan Options, Paco Update

Hello everyone!  Thanks for all of the kind words, thoughts, emails, notes on Instagram, etc...I appreciate it!  I have so much to share with everyone but so little time! 

I hope to be doing updates more this week to try and catch up!  I have lots of products to share with you - I have reviews I need to catch up on - I have lots of articles and recipes to cross promote and link to over at TRFW and much, MUCH More!  In the meantime...here's a sneak peak at some of the things that have been exciting me lately!  My shipment from last month, actually!


In this first photo you can see Sun Warrior Immune Shield, a new Skin Brush, salted Sacha Inchi Seeds, Kelp Noodles, Shea Butter, and Nutritional Yeast.  Yup!  Had to stock up on some nutritional yeast...I was getting low.  I did get the Kelp Noodles but because of the horribly cold winter weather we have had for MONTHS now they froze.  I contacted the lovely customer service people over at TRFW and they said they could send me another one or credit my account because Kelp Noodles change texture if frozen.  I thought that was pretty amazing that they offered to do that - I mean - it wasn't their fault they froze,  you know?  It's not like THEY control the weather! LOL - but I thought that was wonderful!  I decided to opt for the credit and will re-order in the more fair weathered months since it's still really cold here.

In this photo you will see I stocked up on some snacks!  I couldn't resist!  The prices were awesome when I ordered them!  Plus I LOVE Foods Alive products!  I got two of their Flax Crackers.  I also grabbed a pound of cashews, a few salad boosters, some raisins, pro-biotic almonds, Organic Cayenne Powder, and some Khorasan Wheatgrass Juice Powder (Kamut).

I have to say all of the powders that I have been getting from TRFW have been AMAZINGLY fresh!  The colors and aromas are so VERY vibrant!

I've still been building my Raw/Living Foods and Vegan cookbook area in my house and this was one of the books I grabbed with my last order. 

I have a slew more on order again and hope to get them before the end of this week.  I'm also visiting my local library again since it has been a while.  If anyone is on GoodReads let me know - I have been posting on that app for a while now, too!

Have you gotten any new books as of late?  I'd love to hear about them! 

A couple of weekends ago Hubby and I went to our new favorite place in Erie...Mad Mex...mainly because there are a lot of vegan options there for me!  Here is what I had...it's the Chickpea Chili Burrito.  You can opt for the Daiya Cheese and Tofutti Sour Cream like I did.  We also got a few of their amazing dips!  2 out of the 3 of them were vegan.  Now hubby wants me to try and make Pepita Hummus and Tomatillo Avocado Dip...and I hope to do that soon!  I'm already trying to come up with a few other things I want to try at this place the next time we go!  They have 'home made' vegan salad dressings, too, including a RANCH.

Now...this past weekend we visited a local gem of a place that has been around for decades - and generations!  My husband loves it - always have - of course - he's no where near being a vegetarian - so yes - we are a mixed diet household - anyhow - they had a special salad for March - and I had them do it without what ever meat they had on the menu.  They came up with this for me and it was FABULOUS!  I asked them to add it to their menu full time!  Not sure if they will but it was great!  It was iceberg lettuce and mixed greens, pineapple, green peppers, tomatoes, almonds, roasted coconut, and I choose the grape balsamic dressing made with local grapes!  It was WONDERFUL!

Now for a quick PACO update!

His ITP has been under control for at least 3 months while he's been on a LOT of medication.  While I hate putting all the pills in his body - it's what he needs to stay 'normal' - we tried to take him to a lower dosage with the approval of our vet - he ended up relapsing - so she told us we had to get back on the dosages he was on prior to trying to take him down.  It seems to be working, so that is good.

However, it's been about a week and he had an unrelated issue...he basically threw his kneecap out of place.  This has happened once before about 3 years ago.  But this time was pretty bad.  He's been trying to 'walk it off' and has found some work arounds.  The first two days was rough but he's been getting better since then.  The vet told us she didn't think he was in pain - and she thought he just noticed a 'difference' or it felt 'weird' and it was something that he would have to work out himself.  He hasn't been acting like it's been bothering him but he will pull up on it every once and a while...I think he's trying to pop it back in. All-in-All he's been doing fairly well with it and we do have pain pills but he's only really needed one on that first day.  I hope to have more posts very soon!  There are LOTS of things going on!  It's been CRAZY in my whole lately! How about you!?

Paco ~ Update ~ ITP Sucks!

I know I have been hit and miss lately but things have been crazy at home with losing Suzie and a few other things as well as at work.  Today's post is an update about Paco who is still battling with ITP.  Yup!  ITP Sucks!  We lost Suzie on Saturday and Monday we had a scheduled vet appt for Paco and after his blood work the vet told us he was relapsing.  They wanted to see him again today.  After doing more blood tests - the results were still a little 'weird looking' but with his white blood cell and platelet counts being where they should be they said to keep doing what we have been doing.  This is technically GOOD NEWS at the moment that I am VERY grateful for as I don't think I could have dealt with the loss of 2 furkids in a matter of days.  We have to take him back AGAIN next Wednesday.  We we learned from all of this - this past week - is that he will have to be on some sort of medication for his immune system for the rest of his life.  However, because the steroid he's on right now causes him to have stomach/GI ulcers - we will probably have to change the med he is on at some point but because of the issues we will have to do that over time and carefully.  In addition to that med - he's been taking a med to coat his tummy to prevent ulcers - which apparently wasn't working on it's own.  We added over the counter Pepcid as well as a liquid twice/day - twice/week (Tuesday/Friday).  

Outside of the ITP issues he has developed what looks like small bruises in a few spots - near his hip - and now on his tummy - which I thought was part of the ITP - but his vet thinks its separate - and a skin issue.  So tomorrow he starts a pill for that, too.  This poor little guy is on SO MANY pills at the moment!  Eventho he's dealing with all of this - he's dealing with it VERY WELL.  His spirits are up, he's vocal, he's playing, etc.  Eventho we did get some GOOD NEWS today - it's going to be an ongoing struggle from here on out.  Some days better than others, I guess.  I'm just grateful to still have him in my life.

I was reading that "Chia" means "Strength".  Since he's a Chihuahua we've often called him "Chia" as one of his many nicknames.  Now that I know it means "strength" it just seems even more fitting.

Thank you for all of the kind words about my last post on Suzie.  It really means a lot.  Thanks again!  Ongoing positive vibes for Paco - always appreciated, too!

Household Updates

Last week was crazy.  I wanted to hold off on posting this until I knew more.  I'm happy with my choice to wait because I think there has been some improvement.  Here's what's up...Last week...Paco developed another spot near his hip.  He also stopped taking his meds - which was never a problem up to about Wednesday Night.  PLUS...Wednesday and Thursday he was getting sick.  Thursday Night even more so.  I called the vet that had been with him thru his whole ITP Diagnosis and she wanted me to bring him in again on Friday so I did.  They did all the blood work all over again and said the good news was that his levels and counts were the best they have been since this whole thing started.  The bad news was they are pretty sure that he has an ulcer somewhere in his body.

So we took him off of the steroids and added an additional medication to coat his stomach and help with this ulcers.  This seemed to help a LOT.  Because it was an intense steroid that he was on - they asked me to start giving it to him yesterday so I did. 

Time will tell what we will do next but I have a feeling they will have to adjust the steroid(s) that he IS on because that is the problem.  

Thankfully all else seems to be ok.  What I will say - without any hesitation is that ITP SUCKS!!!!  I wouldn't wish it on ANYONE...human or animal! 

In other news...Suzie has been rapidly aging.  We've had her for 12 years and she was 2 when we adopted her.  She's the Queen Bee - always has been - always will be - but - she's been making some noises the last few months that we are chalking up to arthritis.  She's always been a picky eater but the last week or so we've had to coax her to eat more than usual.  She's not in pain because she's still running around and playing.  I have been adding water to her food and yesterday I picked up some soft food to mix in with what she usually eats...I know she wasn't crazy about the food we just ran out of so that could be part of it too!  BUT...I have to say she is LOVING the wet food that we bought for her.  She's been eating it up without much nudging from us.  Disclaimer...our furkids are NOT vegetarian/vegan neither is my hubby.  Anyhow...I hope this new special mixture of wet and dry food will be the trick for her.


Aside from 'furkids' it was a weekend of CLEANING in our house!  WOWZA!  I started on Tuesday of last week going thru my clothes and ended up trashing a bag and donating 3 large garbage bags full of clothes.  THEN...this weekend I was able to toss 2 more bags and donate 4 more bags of clothes to Goodwill, too!  I still have more to go thru but this is a great start!  We went thru the upstairs hallway, the bathroom, the bedroom, the down stairs living room, and front room, and Paco's Palace (as we call it) and cleaned, too! 

Another thing we chatted about this past weekend was possibly opening up a YouTube Channel or two.  We thought it would be a good thing to do this winter since we tend to be hermits when the snow flies...which brings me to my next tidbit...SNOW...blah...YEAH...we saw our first snow fall of the season...a dusting...thankfully it didn't last the whole day on Saturday. 

Furkids Updates, Feathered Friends, & Finders-Keepers

Thanks to everyone who has been asking about our dear Paco!  For a timeline of posts about his medical issues visit these posts:

No!  My Dear Paco! Posted Aug 26th

Furkids/Family Medical Updates & Timeline Posted Aug 27th
Paco Update Posted Sept 3rd

Now for the NEWEST Update on Paco and some info about Suzie as well.  This photo above I took this past weekend!  Suzie - on the right - has lost about 3 pounds in the past several months.  I took her in for some required shots and prep for her stay with a very nice guy we have locally that her and Riley will stay with next week.  He truly LOVES animals and is a great guy.  Anyways...we are to keep an eye on her - she's NOT eating less and she IS acting completely normal otherwise.  They have her down as 12 but I know that is NOT true...we've had her for that long.  And she was 2 when we adopted her.  However, the vet did say that now she is within her ideal weight - where as before she was a little bit on the heavy side for her size.  She's our "Queen Bee" of the house that is for sure!

As for Paco - he continues to IMPROVE!  On Friday his Platelet Count was 698!!!  He will remain on all of his meds for the next 5 months and we will be doing monthly checks in the meantime.  He has another round of Antibiotics but once he's done with those he will be down to 2 meds and a low dose tummy tamer for the lining of his stomach because of the steroids he's on.

In other news I have been making some new friends lately!  Check these 'guys' out!  I went over to my parents Sunday night and across the street these two were hanging out.  I had to take a few photos because these aren't birds I usually see in our area.  They aren't the best photos because I was trying to use my ZOOM on my iPhone before they walked away.

They were short and fat but super cool!  After asking a few people and doing some research we DID establish that they were a type of Heron.  My husband thought they were young Black Crowned Night Herons but I think they look more like the Green Heron photos I have seen.  Regardless I was super fortunate to spot these 'guys' because they are concerned 'least concern' by the conservation department...it's not endangered but it could get to that point.  My mom said she's seen this charming pair of birds around their house and two of the neighbors properties in the last week to week and a half.  They are wondering if they are living in a nearby tree.

Also over the weekend...I was cleaning and found a package of Incense from Wild Berry.  I opened it up and decided to burn a half of a stick and they were still potent!  I remember when I was in college I used to buy Incense were ever I could find some but NOT for the reasons people may think!  Many of my college friends were NOT allowed to burn candles in their dorms or apartments so they burned these instead AND they were nice to put on window sills - they sun would hit them and release the oils, too, without having to burn them.  They were also CHEAP and the perfect price for college students on a budget!  So...yeah...I found a few sticks and was really shocked at the aroma in them still because I bet I have had these for at least 15 years because I don't remember buying them myself.  I'm thinking my father gave them to me because he gets samples at work for purchasing for a chain of C-Stores here.

 

OH!!!!!  And...I will have multiple posts again today so please check back AND if you haven't entered to WIN the Garden of Life Chocolate Cacao RAW PROTEIN Powder...there is STILL TIME...I will draw a winner tomorrow morning at 8am EST.  Check out THIS POST for more details and to enter!

Paying It Forward

One story I didn't share with you from last week was this...in the middle of everything going on with Riley's removal on his neck and then the MAJOR health issue Paco had been dealing with for a few weeks PLUS hubby's Crohn's being confirmed by a 2nd doctor...I was having a HELL of a week.  Before getting to work the one morning I decided to go to a local drive-thru where they have a few (vegan) bagel choices I sometimes go for when I'm short on time.  I decided to go thru their drive-thru.  I usually have them toast it but no butter or cheese.  I opt for a slice of tomato instead.  They are VERY accommodating!  ANYWAYS...I get up to pay and the girl told me my 'bill' was taken care of my the person in front of me.  I know this concept is nothing new but it's never happened to me.  That day my emotions couldn't handle everything and I was overwhelmed by the  kindness of a stranger I sort of FROZE - thanked the girl - drove away - and proceeded to BAWL my eyes out.  This simple act - with everything I had going on - I just couldn't BELIEVE it.  I was so thankful.  It's was so much that someone PAID for my breakfast that day but moreso that I had an angel of sorts that made me feel like someone out there understood I was having an emotional few weeks and I was at 'wits end'.  Regardless I was so taken back by it.  Less than a week later I decided to also Pay If Forward and go back to the same drive thru and do the same thing for someone behind me.  It felt good.  I'm going to continue to do that at least once a month in that same place.  I love doing nice things and try and do them often but it makes you really want to do more, too, when you aren't the only one who seems to care if you know what I mean.

Paco Update!

I have a lot to cover today at My Blissful Journey.  First off - I'm happy to report that Paco is improving!  Last week I mention he was diagnosed with IMHA which stands for Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia.  BUT...in fact he's been diagnosed with ITP instead.  ITP stands for Immune Mediated Thrombocytopenia.

They are similar diseases being that they both attack their own systems and that they are both immune diseases.  The difference being - in short - is that IMHA - is when the Red Blood Cells are being attacked and ITP is when the Platelets are being attacked.

When we took him in last Tuesday his Platelet count was at 9.  Thursday the count was at 3.  This is VERY bad.  Anything under 200 is bad.  We took him in for blood test again yesterday after him being on VERY limited activity for the long weekend while at home with us.  He was at the vet for 3 days prior to that.  His Platelet Count yesterday was 468.  YAY!!!!  Eventho he's 'out of the woods' he's still not up to par.  With ITP there is a long recovery time.  Right now they are shooting for 4 months on meds.  Maybe even 6 months.  OR...maybe even the rest of his life.  BUT we are VERY pleased that his counts jumped that much over the long weekend.  We could be more happy!  Thank you everyone for their positive vibes, prayers, thoughts, etc.  I believe they helped make a difference!  Thanks again!

Furkids/Family Medical Updates & Timeline

If you read my post yesterday you will see that Paco is not doing well.  He was diagnosed with IMHA.  We are very worried.  He's currently at the vet hospital getting aggressive steroids and fluids.  I've been doing a lot of reading and research on the disease and it's NOT good.  Even if he pulls thru - it will be a long and tricky recovery.  It's so frustrating because other than the rash on his stomach he was NOT showing any other symptoms of the disease.  Perhaps that is a positive thing - meaning we caught it early - and he will do better than the majority of other cases I have been reading about.  Right now it's a waiting game and I almost can't handle that.

Last night I went thru the last 8 months in my head and put it all together...I can't believe (the following) all happened in the last 8 months with all 5 of our furkids...Suzie had two fatty tumors removed - her stitches popped and it set her back for a few weeks.  We lost our precious Gabby to Liver Cancer and that was totally unexpected.  Charlie had a wound that would not heal on his tail and he had to have his tail amputated.  Riley - just last week - had to have a large portion of skin removed from his neck and has a double ear infection that we are still treating.  6 days later - this has happened with Paco...I took him in for what I thought was a rash and it ended up being IMHA.  All this in 8 months.

In addition...my  husband has been having stomach issues for about a year and a half.  Yesterday (while everything was going on with Paco) he was out of town for more tests and procedures and it was confirmed a 2nd time - but by a specialist this time - that he does, in fact, have Crohn's Disease.

Yesterday completely sucked.  BUT...it's NOT a home without Fur-Kids.  And at least my husband now knows that it IS Crohn's Disease.  It's something he will have for the rest of his life but it's manageable.  Now if we can just get some more answers on what to do next for him.

No! My Dear Paco!

This morning I took Paco into the vet for what I thought was a rash and instead he was diagnosed with Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia.  He's at the vet until Thursday to be monitored closely.  It's critical that he doesn't get injured in any way.  He's platelets are currently at 9...which is REALLY low...near nil.  This is terrifying me!  He's only 3 years old!  He's been acting completely fine.  No other symptoms other than the red dots on his hips.  From what I have read 20 to 40 percent of IMHA dogs either die from the disease or the treatments that may or may not cause clotting.  I'm in complete shock about this.  I feel like I got hit with a mack truck.  I just want him to be home on my lap.  PLEASE send any prayers/thoughts/vibes my way!  I would appreciate it.

Foods, Fiats, & Furkids

Where to begin?  LOTS to blog about today!  Some recaps from the weekend as well as some other stuff!  I guess I will start with food!  Yesterday I had a light food day.  Not only because I was busy but because I wasn't overly hungry.  I had a Raw Day - which was nice!  But it was VERY simple.  I had a mini meal of Coconut Water and Aloe Chunks and a whole grapefruit.  Last night I had a MASSIVE Salad.  Lettuce(s), Tomatoes, Radishes, Cashews, Sprouts, etc.  I topped it with a salad dressing that I will post below about along with some Nutritional Yeast.  The sprouts I sprouted myself and blogged about that previously as well.  In addition - I added a few raw sprouted chickpeas that I also did myself - in my kitchen.  A few days ago I started sprouting some Radish Sprouts that aren't quite ready yet.  Speaking of Radishes, tho, I found some at the Erie Whole Foods Co-Op that were semi-local and gorgeous!  I could resist and HAD to pick them up for $1.99 per bunch.  They were HUGE and featured 4 different colors.  I used one of the Red ones in this salad.

This is a photo of the Homemade Raw Vegan Salad Dressing I made that you can also see on the salad in the photo above!  This was incredibly flavorful and SO EASY to make!  Here's what's in this Creamy Orange Dressing:
3 Mandarin Oranges
1 Avocado
1/4 C Lemon Juice
3 T Grapeseed Oil
1/4 C Water
2 T Basil

And speaking of EASY food and beverage prep...I discovered a neat way to make a glass of Lemonade!

8 to 10 ounces of water
1 T Lemon Juice
A few drops of NuNaturals Lemon Flavored Stevia

So easy and so tasty!

I've also been focusing on 'waste-not-want-not' type things in the house - especially in the kitchen!  After making the dressing above I saved the peels of the mandarins and put them in boiling water.  The aroma filled my kitchen and it was wonderful!  I also added a pinch of cinnamon.

I also made a few lunches a head of time last night.  This was one of them.  A simple Veggie and Rice Noodle Teriyaki Stir Fry.  I used frozen veggies - here - because there isn't much to choose from in the area of fresh right now.  I used Wildtree Teriyaki Sauce to taste.  I really like their sauce because it's not very salty at all - and - of course - it's vegan!

Multi-color peppers, peas, asparagus, corn, carrots, etc.  I even topped it with more sprouts!

Saturday - hubby and I took a drive in HIS new Fiat.  Yes...that's right...we now have TWO Fiat's!  They are even the same year but his didn't have a previous owner where as mine did.  His is a 'stick' where as mine is an 'automatic'.  We found out that his gets about 4 miles more HIGHWAY than mine does...which is kind of cool!  So...I average about 40 and he goes between 40 and 44 highway.  It was a fun drive!  We swung by the shop in Erie to have them check his breaks and it wasn't a big deal - they fixed a slight noise - and they chalked it up from it sitting on the lot previous to us buying it.  After that we were on a mission to find a good Indian Restaurant.  You see...my husband hasn't been a fan of Indian Foods and I am.  BUT...this place...he really liked so I was so happy!  We ended up in Niles, OH, and went to Bombay Curry & Grill.  Everyone was so nice and there were many vegetarian and vegan things to try!  We ended up both getting the buffet so he could try anything he wanted for a nice variety and I could see exactly what it was before eating it!  For the two of us - this bill was only $17.  AWESOME!

The 'furkids' have been doing well!  I woke up yesterday to this photo op!  Lately I have had to put this green blanket on top of my pillow and he will either sleep by my head or burrow underneath the blanket but on top of the pillow.  In this photo he wedged himself in between the pillow and the sofa arm rest and under the blanket!  So silly!

 And as I was getting ready for work the other day - the other two pups were 'cheek to cheek' and I don't mean the ones on their faces - in this photo - ready to lounge for the day while I went to work.

Charlie's doing real well!  It looks like the sore on his tail is getting better and he's been fairly nice.  As many of you may know - he's a pretty feral.  We are still missing Gabby and always will - but she's with Sammy now!  One day - we will be reunited!