Family focus

Before heading to the hospital today I took Toby and Meg on a walk.  Toby was wagging his tail after I showered and got ready because he knows that after this usually comes a walk. He's still not that strong, but how could I say no to a happy tail wag?  I brought Meg along because she walks much better with Toby.  He gives her a reference point and helps with direction just by being there so she can smell him.  We went down the block and I wanted to turn around so Toby wouldn't over do it, but he wanted to go further.  So we went down the end of that street, and he still didn't want to turn around.  Eventually he did so, reluctantly.  To me that was a good sign, he still wants to go for his walks, albeit slowly, at his new relaxed pace.

I dropped Toby off around 10:45 this morning for his daily cyclosporin infusion.  I brought Meg in the car with me so that on our way back home we could have some quality one-on-one time.   There's a big park a couple blocks away from our house, and Meg and Toby like to run around off leash in one of the empty baseball fields there.  I like it because it's fenced almost all the way around, so they can't get too far, and Meg likes the textures.  Being blind, it helps Meg tremendously to be able to feel where the grass ends and the dirt begins, that way she knows to slow down because the fence isn't too far behind.  Since Toby has gotten sick and his energy level crashed, we haven't gone.  And Meg is still nuts about Pepper intruding in her house, so lately she doesn't like to leave the house to go on walks.  But the park, she knows the park, and she knows that field.  And she was lovin it today!  There was no one around so she had the whole space to herself. She got to sniff whatever she wanted, dig her head in the gopher holes in hopes of finding a treat, and roll around in smelly patches of grass.

When we got home, it was Pepper's turn. Meg doesn't like to stay home alone, so I got the stroller ready for her and off we went, Meg in the stroller and Pepper walking on a leash.  Pepper certainly has her habits either from how she was raised or as evidence by her being a stray for so long.  She likes to poop on concrete.  You can be crossing the street and if she's gotta go, she's gonna go right there in the middle of the road.  It's funny.  And as sweet as she is, she likes to bark at strangers (people that is).  She already feels protective of her pack.  We didn't walk too far or for too long because it was getting pretty warm out, but she got to sniff and bark at things.  We're not the most strict parents.  I know some folks take their dogs on walks to do just that, walk.  No sniffing, stopping, marking of any kind allowed.  Toby is known as Mr. Marker.  He thinks this whole neighborhood is his and I don't mind that he stops all the time to pee on things.  And Meg can't see, so sniffing is like reading the newspaper to her.  I enjoy letting our kids do these things.

I just got back from visiting Toby. His infusion was in progress.  His PCV wasn't done yet, so we'll see what it shows when I go pick him up in a couple hours.  If we can get a couple PCV readings in the 30's, he'll be able to stop his cyclosporin infusions.  Toby will be happy about that.  As much as he knows the nurses at the hospital and gives them kisses, he would much rather be home.  I go visit him and all he wants to do is be held in my arms.  And I just tell him to be patient, and he'll be back home before he knows it.  It's pretty quient in the ward he's in now, so I advised him to take a nap to help time go by faster.

In the meantime, Meg and Pepper are sitting on separate couches, tolerating one another (moreso for Meg than Pepper).  And we're waiting for the rest of our pack to come home. It's our 3 year wedding anniversary today, so I'm hoping John can come home early too.  I wouldn't want to go away for our anniversary really.  Our wedding was the happy start to the family and lifetyle we currently have, and I couldn't imagine a better place to celebrate than at home, with our family.