Mickey's Hotel Room for the next week

Ken stopped by tonight and they heckled each other for a few minutes.

...just want you guys to see that he is looking pretty good, considering.
I'm totally exhausted and off to bed. More tomorrow.

What a difference a day makes!

Welllllll...long story, short....We got to the ER last night at @ 8:30. Mickey spent the next 8 hours getting poked, prodded and tested (xrays, Cat Scan and fluid draws) that finally narrowed the worry to an infection in the fluids surrounding his right hip. He was in significant pain even with the many hits of powerful painkillers they administered through the night. (The 2 pics are in the emergency area at Harrison-- in his room a few minutes after ahit of drugs and then being wheeled to radiology). We got to a room in the hospital at 4am with the news he'd be going in for emergency surgery at 6:30. We settled in for a glorious 2-3 hours sleep that was foiled by them showing up an hour later for the move to pre-op prep. I really wanted to take a photo down there, but I restrained myself! I left him with a kiss and hug at 6:15 as they wheeled him into surgery.

The Walking Wounded

I would have preferred a photo from the ultrasound room at Dr Berni's office, but I doubt Mickey would have allowed it. The good news is that the test ruled out a possible blood clot in his vein. The technician reported he has BEAUTIFUL (big and fat and clear) veins. Then we headed to the medical supply store to buy some crutches, to the grocery store for food and finally home. Yogi is not quite sure what to make of this slow moving guy, but he is very happy we are both home. George will call tonight and recommend the next steps -- probably a referral to an orthopedic and Physical Therapy. Either way, it's going to take some healing time. He has less than 10 days to get well enough to be on a plane to Hawaii and then Mexico. (He says no problem; I'm not so sure). We'll see...

The Whistler Wounded

The boys are back from Whistler a little earlier than planned. When Mickey got out of the car, he could barely walk. He promises me there were no wild antics, no splits, no upside down tequila shots, no jitter-bugging on the dance floor. It may be that after three days of very hard skiing (with a bunch of guys that are 20-30 years younger!) he severly pulled or tore an inner thigh muscle. He looks like he's in a bunch of pain.
We called our neighbor, George Berni for a referral and instead he showed up at our door for a more thourough exam. Based on what Mickey relayed, George is suggesting an ultrasound to rule out a blood clot in the vein (highly unlikely, but worth confirming). Once that's ruled out, he 'll recommend an orthopedic buddy for a more specific recovery plan. We had dinner and he's on the couch until he limps to bed. More to follow....

Two left feet or two right feet??

My apologies for the blurry picture as our digital camera is in Whistler. Hailey is learning to put on her own shoes. As you can see, we still have a little work to do. She runs into her closet and tries on all of her shoes. I am quite impressed with the effort.

Westport

Last week, Hailey, Grandma Carolyn and I spent a few days in Westport. Westport is a small fishing town on the Washington coast. The bathroom in the cabin was remodeled to be a roll-in shower to accommodate my sister's wheelchair. We improvised on the bath with a bucket purchased at the local drugstore. With her bucket and shovel, Hailey didn't seem to mind.

A day at the park

Hailey and I spent an afternoon at Battlepoint Park on Bainbridge Island. It's a great park with a jogging path, great play area, ponds, ducks and wild bunnies!

Any thoughts on what he's trying to tell me?

It's just Yogi and me and I think he'd like to try conversing with me. I'm on the computer (in my old and ugly flannel sweats) and he is either at my feet or standing up and looking at me very, very intently -- about 2 feet from my face. Could it be that I have a salad WITH SOME JUICY CHICKEN sitting on the other side of me? or, does he just need to go outside for a pee.
Well, I think it's THE CHICKEN. We just went outside (brrrrr), and the chicken and salad are still at my side and he's back in my face.
I guess he can talk after all.

It's pretty boring around here

I'd been trying to think of something creative to post tonight, but it's all a little boring here.
I had a wild day at work, arriving home just before dark to a VERY happy dog (he gets a little scared staying outside after dark). Mickey called, sounding tired but happy after 2 hard days of skiing. My work laptop is set up on the dining room table, the Winter Olympics are on the TV and Yogi and Stubbs are co-existing quietly. (Actually, I think Yogi is dreaming as his tail occasionally thumps).

After a night with the Red-Headed Terrorist, we're all a little tired!

Hailey spends the night.......

Hailey is spending the night with me tonight because Dad is in Whistler and Mom is at a performance in Seattle. We've had a great time....here are a couple of photos that capture just some of the excitement!

After mom left, we took a walk up to the mailbox to get the mail. That was at least a 30 minute excursion, with Yogi spending most of the time wrestling and showing off with his leash. (no photos....due to no extra hands!)

Stubbs got a special feeding from Hailey. She knows where we store his food, so she kept going back for more to put in his bowl. He was a bit nervous with all the extra (and very close) attention, but this didn't stop him from eating everything (whether it made it into his bowl or not). You can see that Yogi is ON THE OUTSIDE during this exchange. He is not very happy about it!

Later Hailey redeems herself with Yogi by throwing parts (or most) of her dinner at him. He wonders if she might eventually grow to be an acceptable member of his family. Then we watched Finding Nemo; read some books; danced and ran around the kitchen island. Yogi found it all a bit boring and slightly confusing. At some point she decides that he is going to be her horse -- he accepts this fate with calm resignation.

Finally bed time with an hour of book reading, singing and general wiggling around until exhaustion hits. I expect to have a fitful night's sleep hanging off the edge of the bed!

Mom will come to pick her up in the morning at 7:30 as I have to head to Seattle for meetings. There is little hope I can clean her of all the dog and cat hair before Stephanie arrives. Oh well, I think she's had a good time.

Hailey & her buddy, Pooh

Stephanie just sent me this photo taken on her phone camera.

Hailey has become quite attached to Pooh. She lugs him around and gives him lots of kisses and he has become her sleeping buddy. At one point, Pooh was almost as big as Hailey, but while she keeps growing, his body needs to catch up with the size of his head!

Hailey is coming here for a sleep over tonight. I reminded her mom that Pooh was the second most important thing to remember to bring!

(Rumor has it that Pooh has started to see the inside of a washing machine on a regular basis. That's probably a good thing).

Another Day, Another Sunset

Yes, we know, it's just been a day since the last glorious Sunset picture ... but how could we resist? We decided tonight's sunset was even prettier than last night's! The water has been so flat that it looks like an ice rink. By day's end the eagles have finished harrassing the other birds and they relax and paddle around.
These wispy clouds forecast a change of weather and rains are predicted. Rain at sea level means snow in the mountains, so Mickey says "Bring on the rain!!!!!"

Emergency Supplies

Mickey and Ken head to Whistler tomorrow morning at "0-Dark-Thirty" (I would guess the alarm will go off early, early, early. Well before we've settled into that early morning deep REM sleep).

Mickey will be ready to go (will he sleep in his travel clothes?) and the car is packed with all the critical essentials required for the 5 hour trip. I hope these emergency supplies get them safely to their destination.

Is there a shortage of beer in Canada?

(Almost) One Month till Spring!

Living in the Northwest, any day that's full of sun and no rain makes us all VERY happy. This past weekend we had very cold, but sunny weather. Mickey snapped this picture last night just at Sunset, around 5:30. Seeing the sun set behind the Olympic mountains further and further North reminds us that Summer and warm weather and glorious days on the Canal are just around the corner.

The garden will bloom, the grass will green, and I'll declare war, once again, on the slugs.

A walk thru Yogiville

Mickey, Betsy and Yogi took a walk through our woods today. We think it might be Yogi's favorite thing to do (besides biscuit eating and sleeping). He loves to run ahead and then come back to see what we are doing and why we are so slow.

This is a true Yogi 'action' shot -- dog ears flopping and a grin on his face!

Wind, Rain & Washed Away!

We recently had a wild storm -- strong winds combined with an exceptionally high surf. Yogi and I walked down to the bulkhead and took a couple of photos of the water crashing into the bulkhead and starting to beat up the rocks around the stairs leading to the beach. It was COLD and WET. Yogi was NOT happy to be outside (I think he was a little scared!)...

Sunday Mornings at Ioka

All is quiet and everyone is in their corner on a cold Sunday morning....Mickey is at the table reading the Kitsap Sun and Seattle Times and drinking coffee; Betsy is at the computer -- reading and surfing and drinking coffee; Yogi is sleeping wherever he chooses; and, Stubbs has kicked Yogi off his bed and is down hard for the next 6+ hours. All is good at Ioka.