Fourth of July, One Sick Puppy, & Bowling

Once the sun went down we brought Savannah over to meet all of her new family. About 8:00pm she had gotten sick and we thought it was just because of the heat and all the new people who were holding her. We watched the fireworks and headed home because we were all so tired. Savannah kept dry heaving and would not eat or drink. Justin and I chalked the illness up to eating grass, traveling a lot that day, etc. But when she kept dry heaving at midnight and seemed very lethargic I began to worry. Yes being the paranoid mother I am I called the vet emergency line. Of course on the 4th all the vets beepers were off due to the holiday, but we had a scheduled appointment for today (Monday) so we decided to keep her comfortable for the night and we would just call and see if we could move our appointment up in the morning.

Originally our schedule appointment was supposed to be for her first round of vaccinations, but obviously they had to run a couple of tests to see what was wrong with her first. Once the vet came in he explained she had the Parvo virus which is something that is contracted 10-14 days out before any symptoms come into play aka she received the virus at the breeders home. Parvo virus basically cuts the villi in the intestines off so Savannah could not absorb any of the nutrients which equals a dehydrated dog + throwing up + diarrhea = on sick puppy. I don't know if it was because I was soo pissed off at the breeder, worried for Savannah, and the lack of sleep but I started bawling when the vet was explaining the treatment plan for her. Yes, I was that girl. Parvo virus has to run its course but Savannah has to be hooked up to an IV in order to hydrate her, give antibiotics to prevent a secondary infection, and stay at the vet between 48-72 hours all awhile the vet explains this type of treatment runs between $500-$600. The vet also mentioned we could talk to the breeder and get a different puppy if we didn't want to aquire the costs. NO THANKS! We wanted Savannah and why would I risk getting another dog from that breeder when it could have picked up the same virus.

When we left the vet's office, I called and gave the breeder an earful! At first she was really defensive and didn't believe me until she talked to our vet. Luckily, she called me back apologized and offered to pay for half the bill which at this point I am fine with. The thing that sucks is she cannot afford to pay us her half until she sells another puppy which she can't do for another 2 weeks due to our puppy contracting the virus at her home; the remaining puppies have to be quarantined for 2 weeks to see if any of them develop any symptoms of the Parvo virus.

In order to stop being pissed off at the breeder and sad for Savannah, we decided to take Kathryn bowling. I suck at bowling but love doing it! I haven't bowled in probably 5 years so I was exceptionally awful today, but the three of us had a great time.

July 3rd

Last night was a great little Saturday filled with friends and family! We headed over to Justin's Aunt Lisa & Uncle Bob's house for a cookout, swimming, cornhole, etc. We had a blast and it was soo great spending time with everyone. We were going to go get on the boat at Lake Santee for their fireworks but we were both exhausted and we had to come home and take care of our baby. We figured Savannah was going to be wide awake when we got home (since she slept all day) so we would take her for a little walk and get some of the energy out of her even though it was 10pm and all I wanted to do was go to bed. Since it was late we decided to try out her collar and leash. We took three steps out the door Savannah got soo sassy and just laid on the ground and would not take another step; she would not budge at all. As soon as we took the leash off she was on our heels the whole time we walked.

Saturday night the crying continued but was not as bad as the first night. We still had to get up at 12am, 3:00am, and 6:00am to take her outside but this house training schedule is working because she did not have an accident all night. Justin and I can't see straight because we are soo exhausted but we don't have to clean up any accidents so I guess it is all worth it!

Today we are going to a cookout at Rick's house at noon and then we are coming back to enjoy some swimming and a fireworks this evening at Tom & Linda's with Ms. Savannah in tote :)

Happy Birthday America! I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable 4th!

So this is what it is like to have a newborn

Last night we were soo happy to have Savannah home with us, but my oh my were we not prepared for the situation. Savannah was wonderful when we came home, but when it was time to go to bed she just cried and cried all night. We were up at 12am, 3am, and 6am taking her out to go to the bathroom (we are house training) but still did not sleep much since she cried all night long. I have been told this only lasts about a week at most. She did not stop crying until we got up for good and picked her up. If we put her down she just started crying again, so needless to say we took turns running errands and holding Savannah this morning. I feel like we have a newborn on our hands! Finally around lunchtime she started to let us put her down so she could explore her new home and follow us everywhere we went. She has been sleeping most of the day today.....she must be tired from all of that adorable crying she did last night :)

Our New Addition

Everyone please meet the newest member of the Howard family.....

Savannah

Okay I know most of my family and friends that are reading this are in complete disbelief and shock that I would own a dog; I am an animal lover but as everyone knows I do not like animals in my house. After doing some research for a couple of weeks on what type of dog we would like I was convinced this dog was for me. She is little, has hair versus fur ( which means little shedding and the hair is easier to vaccuum/sweep up), and she is soo cute, sweet, and sassy.

We picked her up tonight from a breeder in Terre Haute! She is an "imperial" shitzu which means she will stay pretty small (between 6-8lbs). She'll be 9 weeks this Sunday and we are over the moon excited she has made us a family of 3 :) After a list of about 20 different names, Justin and I decided on Savannah since that was our favorite city to travel to when we lived down south.

~I know I have a picture of the three of us somewhere and once I find it I'll be sure to post it!~

Hello July

Today is Friday and I am soo excited it is 4th of July weekend. I love going to the lake, swimming, going to cookouts, watching fireworks, etc. I LOVE IT ALL and can't wait to have some R&R this weekend! I hope you all have a great 4th!

~Thank you to the men and women who have served and those who our currently serving our country~

~Sweet Summer Time~

So its been awhile (3 months) since I've posted on our blog and I'm soo disappointed in myself. I have decided that I am going to use this blog as our "scrapbook" if you will. I'm horrible at actually scrapbooking our photos so instead I have decided that I will just post everything on our blog!

He had a great week last week! Kathryn, McKenzie (her best friend), and my mom all came down this week to visit. We had a great time visiting and spending time with my baby sister. On Wednesday we went to King's Island. Unfortunately, Justin had to work but my bestie Brooke decided to meet us later that day. It was really hot and the waterpark was amazing. We only stayed at the waterpark until 4:00ish and then took the train over to the park for the "big" rides and to meet Brooke. Let's back track for a minute. When I was younger I used to sprint from deathride to deathride without hesitation and would not think twice about standing in line for 90 minutes to ride a roller coaster. My how times have changed. Luckily, we did not have any lines to stand in, but I felt nauseous after every single ride; these are the same rides I loved and would ride over and over again. Brooke and I literally had to sit down for a good 20 minutes at one point because we felt soo sick. I don't know if the symptoms were due to being older, the heat, or maybe a combination of both. Overall, we had a great time!

Thursday, the girls and I just laid by the pool for a couple of hours. Later that evening Justin, the girls, and I walked up to the big Rush County Fair. The girls had a good time and it was fun to see a lot of people we don't get to see very often.

Friday night we went to the Foreigner, Styx, and Kansas concert at Verizon. Justin and Janel decided to get the tickets for Tom for Father's Day. We had a really good time! There is nothing better than that "old time rock n'roll" :)

This Really Makes You Think

I saw this video on Kelly's Korner and it really hit me hard. Please watch it as it has such a good message.




After I watch this video, I just cried. This man is amazing and a huge inspiration to me! This teacher has such a huge heart and has touched soo many lives. You never know what a quick note, letter, or phone call can do to those in your life. I do believe that God uses all of us to give messages to those in our life.