TGIF!

As we finish up one heck of a hectic week, it's no surprise that we're moving into an even crazier weekend. For some strange reason this always happens when we're gearing up to go out of town.

Here are the fragments of what's been happening...

Sheridan had two field trips this week ~ the first to a police station, the second to a doctor's office where they had an organized lesson on first aid. She was awfully confused why she never saw any fire trucks at the police station... and the only thing she could tell me she learned in first aid is to take medicine if she has a headache. Um... okay. Some things here are not worth explaining.

Riley had her karate belt exam on Tuesday, though I have no idea why she's testing after such a short amount of time. In fact, we missed three lessons while in Thailand. We should find out later this afternoon if she passed.

Libby the Lab has taken up a majority of my free time this week as I had to take her twice to the vet for issues with her hind leg. As you may remember, two weeks ago she had an infection, then last week she had to have her leg bandaged and wear the Elizabethan Collar, and this past weekend she stopped putting weight down on her left leg. On Wednesday I took her and he did an exam to see if there was any soft tissue damage. As he couldn't feel anything wrong with her leg, we had to come back today so he could take two x-rays... though she had to fast for the x-rays because he wasn't sure if he was going to need to sedate her. As I wasn't allowed to be in there while pregnant, my driver had to help the vet hold Libby down during the x-ray. They were able to take them un-sedated, so Velan held her front legs and the other assistant held her back ones.

The end result? It is very clear from the x-rays that Libby has ... Osteoarthritis. We're lucky to see that she has no hip dysplasia or any of the other signs of issues. The x-rays solidified our suspicions and now we can move into managing the pain. Medical Management of Osteoarthritis is the same in dogs as it is in humans... from weight management and exercise to disease modifying agents like Glucosamine and Chondroitin. Starting today she'll be on daily meds to control her arthritis, Glucosamine and Chondroitin, and if in the future she needs to have surgery to help relieve the bone on bone pain, we'll have it done. Here. For a quarter of the price in the States. Today's office visit - including x-rays and a month supply of liquid pain medication? $17.

Libby isn't the only one who's been going to the doctor. For the past few weeks I've been going to physical therapy for my sciatica. Why I never thought about going before is beyond me. It's been fantastic... once I got over the initial smell in the office. After 5 visits, the pain is minimal. And the cost? $10 / visit.

The girls and Matt have their third and final rabies shot today. I took Riley to get hers before school, and Matt will meet Sheridan in the health unit this afternoon to have theirs done together. Many people asked why we're having these shots done. With the amount of stray animals here... feral cats, dogs, cows, goats... it's much better to be on the safe side should something accidentally bite or scratch you.

This weekend we have parties, dinners, brunches, and soccer matches. Lots to do and so little time...

I'm not usually surprised anymore by anything I see around here. However, this definitely caught my eye. The guy is riding his motor scooter with 5 turkeys. Two of them are hanging by their feet on either side, and one is sitting on the seat with him. The girls thought this was the funniest thing they've seen in a long time.

Poor Libby getting her x-ray. While I wasn't allowed in the room, they certainly didn't take any additional precautions by closing the door... or having my driver wear one of the lead aprons. Go figure!