If ever I was feeling inclined to have another child, this week completely disillusioned me to the possibility – not that I was feeling that way. A better way to put it is that this week only confirmed my horror at the thought of another baby. Taking care of the puppy has been a brutal reminder of the fuss and bother, not to mention the sleepless nights. I am definitely anxious for this puppy phase to be over.
In hindsight, last weekend was probably not the best weekend to get a new dog. As adorable as she is, she is a lot of work. Unfortunately, Jim spent the majority of the week working off-shifts as the company performed its annual inventory count, something he was spearheading and in complete control. This meant almost every evening by myself. Adding to that was the fact that Jim got horribly ill towards the latter half of the week – fevers of 103, the shakes, complete exhaustion, no appetite. So, when he was home, he was in bed sleeping. I can’t begrudge him the fact that he was ill, but it did make it much more difficult on me. (He’s still recovering but is definitely doing better.)
To make matters worse, we ended up going into the ER Vet last Sunday night. We noticed something was wrong when she couldn’t go more than two steps without squatting and trying to pee. When she started whimpering non-stop, we knew we had to do something. So, after putting the kids to bed, Jim and I bundled her up and heading to the closest emergency pet care hospital in the area, thirty minutes away. That was a three-hour trip for a bladder infection. We also had the “pleasure” of watching two families grieve over the loss of their beloved pets. It was an interesting night.
So, the bladder infection did not help with the house-breaking. At all. She appears to be on the mend and is doing much better. I fear that the infection put us a week behind in training her that the backyard is her bathroom. Considering what she was doing to my carpet last Sunday, anything is an improvement. Still, I’ll feel better when I know I can trust her for longer than 30 minutes and know she can hold it while in her “house” for longer than two hours.
On top of semi-sleepless nights, half-listening for tell-tale whimpers that indicate she is up and needs to go outside, work keeps moving along. The official Day 1 with the new company is December 1st. Plans are in place, but I still cannot talk to anyone at the new company until after the papers are signed. There are definite benefits to having access to every single trade secret in the company, but there are drawbacks too, this being one of them. There is a ton of posturing and maneuvering as people try to make themselves more powerful, give themselves more responsibility than they actually have in order to give themselves a leg up with the new company. It is SO frustrating and enraging, but I am just biding my time and praying that the new owners realize the truth behind all of this. That is all I can hope for at this point in time.
Being half brain-dead this week made for a slow week on the blog. I did posit some more questions that have been pinging around my brain in a new edition of Inside Michelle’s Brain. I also posted reviews for the following:
- Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld (audiobook)
- The Tigress of Forli by Elizabeth Lev
- The Death Cure by James Dashner
I am winding my way down with review copies. It is not that I have read all of those I have received. It is more that I am ready to read my own books for a while. An occasional review book may pop up from time to time, but from now until the end of the calendar year, I plan to read what I want. I hope this helps me get through some of those books I’ve been wanting to read forever but have not gotten around to it. I also feel that the holiday season is too hectic enough to through in any more self-induced stress. So, that’s my plan for the rest of the year.
Jim and I had the exact same discussion; I didn't want a puppy and he did. He won, but I got the breed of my choice. The timing of this was absolutely terrible, but like kids, I wonder if there is ever a good time.
Thanks, Jenny!
Thanks, Florinda! I knew before the pup that I never wanted another child; this is just a brutal reminder of why I was done. The saving grace is exactly what you said – puppies grow out of this stage a LOT faster than babies. I can take the not speaking part. It means they can't sass back!
Thanks, Amy! Hectic seems to be status quo around here lately. As long as everyone stays healthy, at least it is manageable.
Thanks, Amy! That is exactly my fear. I have been harsher than normal on recent review copies, so I know I need to mix it up a bit more to remove any bias I may have towards anything that feels "required".
Thanks, Jenners! It's been an interesting ride so far. I can only pray it gets easier sooner rather than later!
Thanks, Megan!
I keep saying that I am going to get better about alternating between review copies and my own books, but I never do. The problem is I want to read review copies too. I want to read everything!!
A puppy was what cured me from wanting another baby, too :). On the one hand, puppies get out of this stage a lot faster than babies do. On the other, they'll never be able to speak your language and tell you what they want.
I'm getting here very late–hope this week has been better!
Sounds like a really hectic week, I hope that the next is a bit more relaxing for you. Best of luck with the puppy, glad to hear that the illnesses are being recovered from all around.
Oh boy, you sure had a rough week. I hope both Jim and puppy are on the mend and feeling 100% very, very soon. Your work situation sounds stressful at the moment, too. I hope everything calms down very soon!
I can relate to your plans to read your choice of books through the end of the year. I have a few review books to read but, for the most part I plan to read my choice of books, too. There are so many books on my shelves that I really want to read. It's getting to the point where I'm worried that my irritation at not getting to some books on my shelf that are gnawing at me is going to start impacting my opinion of the book I have to review…not good!
I hope this week is a better one for you!
My recent post Sunday Salon – A week off…sort of!
Puppies are hard … and potty training a puppy with a bladder infection has got to be really hard. And doing it all pretty much by yourself has got to be challenging beyond belief. It will get better eventually. Hang in there!
Sounds like you had quite a week! Glad to hear the hubby and the puppy are both on the mend, and I hope that makes for a better week to come. 🙂
I'm getting about ready to make a return to my own books, too. I'm planning to push through a few more review copies this month and then get back to being more balanced about making sure I'm reading from my own toppling stacks.
My recent post The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler