It is not easy getting a dog drunk!

At this point in time, I think it's finally safe to tell this story. I'm a bit of a superstitious person so I haven't wanted to write this out just in case something went wrong, but I think we're ok now.

So, Monday night, Brian was working on the Saab out in the backyard and letting the dogs wander around as he worked. He'd emptied the antifreeze from the car into a bucket and set the bucket to the side of the car. He really didn't think about it again until he was under the car and heard Buick take about three laps of antifreeze. Brian yelled and scared Buick off and later said to me, "Sorry if you have a dead dog in the morning." We both knew that antifreeze was toxic for dogs, but we didn't know how much was toxic. So, I went to the internet to do some research and then called the Pet Urgent Care to see what they recommended.

At ten o' clock on Monday night, we rushed Buick over the the Urgent Care. We walked in, sat down, and immediately a vet technician came out and asked, "Is that the antifreeze dog?" We said yes, and he rushed Buick back to the exam rooms.

A little while later, the vet comes into a room that they'd moved us to and told us that they made Buick puke and were giving him charcoal to absorb the leftover antifreeze, but he'd need the antidote to save his kidneys. If we didn't treat his kidneys, they would fail and we'd have to put him to sleep. She brought in the estimate for all the procedures and the total was almost $2000. Naturally, I freaked out because we don't have that kind of money, especially with Autumn coming any day now. But on the other hand, we weren't ready to put him to sleep either. Whether we care to admit it or not, he's now part of the family and only a year and a half old, so we didn't know what to do.

Anyway (sorry this is a long story), so the vet explained that they have a test to see how much antifreeze a dog has in it's system but she isn't very confident in the test because pet owners will come in and say that they think their animals have gotten into antifreeze, but the test will come back negative and then they treat the animals anyway. We decided to just have the test done and make a decision from there. I prayed the whole time that there would be antifreeze in his system, but not enough to kill him. If the test read that there was antifreeze in his system, then we knew we could trust the test. Well, as luck and prayers would have it, it did come back positive for antifreeze, but at a low enough level that we knew Buick would have some kidney damage done, but it wouldn't be enough to kill him.

The vet explained to us that the poor man's remedy for antifreeze poisoning is to keep a dog drunk on grain alcohol (80 proof) for 72 hours after exposure. For those who don't know, this is basically vodka! She told us we could do this to help lessen the amount of damage done to Buick's kidneys. She didn't have enough alcohol in the clinic to help him, so she told us good luck and that we just might have to wait until the morning to get him a drink.

Brian and I decided to try the State Liquor Store, but it was closed. Because we live in Utah, no grocery store sells hard liquor. So, we'd just about given up when Brian decided to head down to Provo Center Street to hit the bars and see what we could get.

The first bar didn't sell hard liquor. They sent us down the street to another bar that did. Brian approached one of the bar tenders who'd gone outside to smoke. I watched while he talked to her and then watched him walk back to the truck. He opened the door and I said, "So, what did she say?" Brian said, "She can't let us take alcohol off the premises, but she asked me if I had the dog with me and when I told her I did, she told me that he can come into the bar and get a drink." So, at 12:40 in the morning, Brian and Buick walk into a bar to get the dog a drink!

Buick didn't love the vodka cause I guess it burns really bad (that's what the bar tender told Brian). But we got enough into him to get him buzzed decently and brought him home. He staggered up the front steps and ran right into the front door. It was so hilarious and so sad all at the same time.

Tuesday morning, Brian ran to the State Liquor Store and bought some vodka for the dog and we've kept him nice and drunk since. We tried many different ways to make the vodka more appealing, kool-aid and vodka (smelled like vomit), soup and vodka (worked the first time then Buick remembered on the second time that this soup makes him not feel good), ice cream and vodka (still not sweet enough), milk and vodka (the vodka made the milk curdle). So, we ended up just forcing it down his throat with a turkey baster.

It's been a long week. It's not easy having a 95lb drunk dog wandering around the house. I've been super protective of him this whole time too. I've been making sure he's still drinking water and watching to make sure he pees when he goes outside. Like I said, it's been a long week. Hopefully, all is well now!

Calling all mothers!!!

When in need of advice and opinion, I don't make phone calls, I go directly to my blog and hope that my favorite mothers out in blog world happen to stop by and comment on my blog!

Here's the deal: I need advice and opinion. All opinions will be considered with much thought and I hope to be able to make a decision using your collective wisdom! (P.S. Even if you're not a mother, but you have some feelings one way or the other, please don't hesitate to help me out!!! You're opinion is valued and appreciated too!)

The Problem: I am 98% positive that I can't breastfeed. My doctors have almost all decided that they would rather I not come off my medication to breastfeed, not to mention that even if I did come off my medication, I may not even make breast milk. (For those who don't know, I'm on a medication that keeps a small, but potent, brain tumor from growing and causing problems. If you'd like more details, let me know!)

So, I'm trying to decide what to do with my baby, meaning, do I still have her sleep in a cradle in my room, or since I have to get up and go to the kitchen anyway, do I just start her sleeping in her own room, in her own crib? That's all I'm going to ask and I look forward to your inspiration!

35 Weeks!!!

So, today I'm officially 35 weeks along! I thought it was kind of cool that this is occurring on the day that marks 35 days to the due date. Why am I so excited about today? Talking with my doctor, he told me that after 35 weeks, if she starts coming, they won't stop her. We are hoping for her sake that she'll hang in there at least two more weeks, but it's finally that time when we can say, "It could be any time now!!!"

Isn't it funny...

I happened to be looking at my friend Dan Kim's blog a moment ago and I had to jump on to post my thoughts. Isn't it funny how each of our individual lives are so different from one another? I think it's fascinating to see what time does for people (notice I said "for" not "to"). Situations change and experiences differ, but neither one way or the other is bad or good. My dear friends Dan Kim and Jason McGee are spending the next three weeks traveling around Europe. Being a visual person, I started picturing walking around different countries day after day and seeing all that those places have to offer. Then, of course, my knees start to hurt as I realize not only how nice it would be to walk around and explore the world, but I'd be satisfied if a trip in Brian's truck didn't plunge me into the abyss of discomfort.

Dan, Jason, Brian and I might be about the same age, but boy are our lives different. Do I envy them for getting to travel? Absolutely! But I get to be a mom soon and that's incredibly awesome too! We're just different is all. Everyone's lives have so much in store and no two paths seem to go exactly the same and I think it's better that way. I love to see my friends grow and develop in the different stages we're all in. I love listening to Nicole tell stories about her two girls. I love running into a high school friend who is on his fourth kid. I love living vicariously through my unattached friends as they move not only through the country, but through the world effortlessly. I won't be able to head out to the store without quite a bit of effort soon!

What am I really trying to say? Isn't it funny how wonderful and diverse our lives are. I'm grateful for everyone and getting to experience a little of their lives vicariously through stories and pictures. What a wonderful blessing from God to have so many different people to know and love and watch and learn from.

Pregnancy Pondering...

If pregnancy is supposed to be a sign of youth and vitality, why do my knees hurt; my hips ache; I no longer tolerate some of my favorite foods and I waddle?

Pregnancy Recipes

If you're interested in trying something new, pregnant or not, I've discovered some interesting combinations of foods that are really good. (No, you will not see any recipes for pickles and ice cream--I'm not CRAZY)

First, maybe not original but definitely yummy: Peanut Butter and Jam Tortillas. I don't eat cheese, even pregnant I haven't been able to get myself to eat it, but you take tortillas and cook them up in a pan until they are a little brown and crispy. Spread peanut butter and jam on immediately (it will melt and be gooey goodness!) and fold in half. This is like a quesadilla, but no queso!

Second: Sprite and Root Beer. Brian has agreed that this is really good. Recipe is so simple, half a glass full of Sprite, half of Root Beer. It almost tastes like cream soda, but is has a zing to it! The brand of Root Beer doesn't matter so much, but you have to use Sprite. 7-Up is not going to work!

Third: This one is a little tricky and may not appeal to the masses, but it's Olives and Tortilla Chips. Mash up olives and dip tortilla chips. I like it, Brian kinda likes it, but it's new and different!

That's it for now! If anyone does try any of these, I'd love to hear what you think!

I'm Not Dead Yet

But, the internet is. I've been having all these wonderful post ideas, but our internet has been down for the last, hmm, almost two weeks now. So, I find myself at my parents home today and needing, thirsting, and aching to blog!!!

We've been busy this last little while. Brian has spent the last day and a half getting a swamp cooler installed in our home which will make this current heat wave a lot more bearable! I've been sleeping completely uncovered with a fan blowing on me cause our house is almost 85 degrees inside. Yuck, how did summer hit so fast?

I planted a garden a couple of weeks ago and it's sprouting!! Well, not everything is sprouting, but I have been so happy to get even a little green poking through the soil.

I'm getting huge and feeling so ready to have this baby. Last night, I was sitting on a chair in the family room and looking at my belly as Autumn was moving around and just had this overwhelming desire to hold and kiss her. Nine weeks seems like eternity. I've been slowly buying things for her and have a lot of the major stuff. I sure hope she doesn't come too early cause so far I only have five oneies for her to wear and I know that she can easily go through that many in a single day. I noticed my stretch marks for the first time about a month ago and was so surprised because I bought the expensive belly butter crap! Oh well. I'm willing to pay almost any price to get her here safely. Other than heartburn, which, yes Shallee can (and does) make you vomit, the only other notable discomfort is the fact that Autumn has finally learned exactly where to stick her feet so that not only can I not breathe, but I can't bend forward either! It's been so fun and such a miracle to experience all this. Is it easy? Not really. Am I comfortable? Not really. But do I love my baby already? Absolutely!

I'll post more sometime soon! Hope everyone in the blog world is fabulous!