Bernie is bigger!

Yesterday we had our second vet appointment. He has doubled in size in the past month, up to around 15 pounds. Hard to get a precise weight yesterday because he was feisty on the scales.

We had to wait an hour after we arrived for our appointment because a woman came in with a dog in distress. She was giving birth and one of the puppies got stuck. The vet had to do an emergency C-section on the dog; fortunately, all five puppies were delivered safely, alive.

I was a little crushed when the doctor insisted on securing payment before agreeing to do the surgery. That was $400 -- an expense the owner wasn't expecting and could not have anticipated. She was able to call a friend and a sister who were able to help her scrape together what she didn't have on hand. Still, I wonder if the vet would have turned her away and let the dog and puppies die! The good news is everything turned out fine.

After our wait, the vet was still tied up with the momma dog so the assistant just scooped Bernie up and took him back to the surgery room for his shot, and returned with him in just a couple of minutes. He got to see the new puppies and the mom that he had been hearing. Too bad he couldn't tell me about his adventure!

Just before we left the house for his appointment, Bernie managed to pull a Houdini move and wiggled his way out of the back yard again. He was sitting on the front porch -- this is the second time he's pulled that and the third escape to date. The middle time he ran down the street a few houses. I'm starting to think he may have a "girlfriend" in the neighborhood. Even if he doesn't know exactly what they are for. So he was muddy and messy when we went to see the doctor. Great impression... good thing most of the dirt falls off his coat.

Bernie also got an antihistamine when we got home because he had a reaction to his first shots. I know he got a good nap in while I went to get my hair done.

I eased my trauma of the day with a mocha latte at the local bookstore/coffee bar and picked up a copy of a book I've been hunting for a while. The weather has turned dramatically colder, so I hope to stay home tonight, heat up some soup I made in the crockpot yesterday, and veg out with the book. One thing I will never run short of is reading material.

My goal for this season is to sort through all my magazines and recycle everything possible from the stacks and stashes in the house. They must go! But you know how you always fear throwing out that ONE magazine that might have incredibly important or useful information! I've got two weeks to flip through and make sure I didn't use a $20 as a bookmark in any of them. Santa won't come until the magazines are GONE.

I'm about ready to bundle up and head for the house. I'm supposed to stay for another 45 minutes but I somehow am not feeling so inclined to do so.

Hope you're all fairing well with winter and the stresses that come with December. Stay warm!