Tuesday, October 20, 2009

A Dog On My Head (And a Recipe)

Hello from Snowy World!

You all were so sweet to check in on him yesterday; in fact, my hit counter was the highest it's been since starting this blog. It's quite obvious that Snowy is a very popular Teacup Maltese Dog Person.

I also appreciate the words of advice you shared in helping us deal with all of the post-operative challenges; thanks so much for taking the time to sign in with a comment or e-mail us personally.

Last night was Sarah's night to be "on call" with Snowy; she slept with him in Nathan's bed since he gets very anxious if he's not close to one of us at all times. She was up with him at 2 am and then I got up with him at 5 am to take him outside.

He came back in and immediately wanted to go outside again.

At 5 am. When it was freezing cold. And I was
so tired.

After I had finally convinced him that he was done going to the bathroom and that he should stay inside for a while, I lay down the couch and tried to get him to settle in beside me. He flung himself up and down trying to find a comfortable spot, with his little cone getting caught on couch corners, pillows and me.

Finally, he found a spot he liked.

It was on my head.

I sighed. I said, "Snowy, I love you a lot, but you can
not sleep on my head."

When I reached up to adjust him to another area, he decided he had to go outside. Again. Where it was still
cold.

He came back in and went through the whole "running up and down the couch, bumping into corners" routine until he finally once again settled himself into a comfy spot.

On my left ear.

After about thirty minutes of going in and out, and various couch maneuverings, the two of us finally found sleeping positions that were mutually acceptable (which meant he was NOT on my head) and slept another two hours.

The swelling around the surgery area is really giving him fits in making him think he has to go to the bathroom when he really doesn't. So far, the only two places where he is happy is outside (tied up to the swing) where he assumes The Peeing Position about every 30 seconds or else inside, tucked up very close to Steve, Sarah or me. So we're all three taking turns doing "Sitting With Snowy" duty. (It's my turn now) Overnight, Steve will be "on call" while Sarah and I catch up on our sleep.

It's sure a good thing we love him so much!

Here are a couple pictures from Steve's Assigned Snuggle Time with him before bed last night. He was cold and shivering so we put a towel and a robe over him. He was quite happy with that scenario; warm coverings and a human being to hang with. Little spoiled doggy!





Yesterday, I also promised a few pictures of Nathan. Before I post those, though, the question was asked why he and Meagan were so dressed up in the picture I included yesterday; it was because their college group at church went to a dinner theater.

A cute couple, I must say!



Nathan. Being Nathan.


With college friends doing what college friends do.





And lastly, I have another recipe for you. (By the way, if you ever want to find any previous recipes included on this site, scroll down the right column to where all the subjects are listed and you'll find a recipe category there.)

This recipe is wonderful because you can have it ready for the oven in less than five minutes. You can either bake it at 300 degrees for several hours (3-4) or put it in the crockpot all day. I usually double it because it makes wonderful leftovers.

NO PEEK BEEF STEW

1 lb stew beef-one inch pieces (can add more or less beef according to what you have on hand)
1 envelope dried onion soup mix
1/2 C red wine or cooking wine (Note: any alcohol content burns off in the cooking, leaving just the flavor)
1 can cream of mushroom (or chicken) soup
four ounce can of mushrooms, drained (I leave this out since I'm not a lover of mushrooms)

  • NOTE: Some of my readers shared a few variations to this recipe: You can use real onion instead of Lipton soup, add cut carrots & potatos and cream of celery soup. Can use water or ginger ale instead of wine to dilute soup. The ginger ale seems to tenderize the meat.
Mix all ingredients. (Now wasn't that easy?)

Bake in an oven or put in a crock pot.

Serve over noodles or rice.

It's especially good for a cold October night OR it's good to put in the oven before church on Sunday morning. Come home and lunch is just about ready!

Alrighty then. Sarah is just finishing up school and then she and I are headed out to a thrift store to stock up on a few more winter basics. Steve will take over in the Sitting With Snowy Department until we get home.

9 Had Something To Say (Just click here!):

lesley said...

He is so cute! The dog, I mean.

Anonymous said...

I make a variation of this recipe that is delicious, too. I do everything the same, except I use one can of ginger ale instead of the wine. I think maybe it tenderizes the meat.

Anonymous said...

Snowy looks so cute all covered up but the cone...head. I just had to say it! :) I once had a 120 lb Gordon Setter that had to wear one because of a hotspot. That was always a fun walk around town! Hope the swelling goes down soon and the incision heals quickly so you can ALL sleep comfortably!

I, too, use a similar recipe but use real onion (not Lipton soup), add cut carrots & potatos and cream of celery soup, can use water instead of wine to dilute soup! (Will have to try the ginger ale, though.)I don't care for mushroom soup or shrooms in my stew! Perfect for a cold night's dinner! Ciao - Guerrina

bearie1 said...

What did the vet say about the swelling? Maybe he needs to be on a course of prednisone. He looks so cute all bundled up. But wish he felt better and didn't have to be bundled up. Elaine

Mamasita said...

So glad to read good news. I have been so scared to check in because I was afraid there would have been some tragedy that would have occurred when I wasn't "looking."

It sounds like he is well on the road to recovery.

LOVE the pics of Nathan.

I also loved the previous pictures of Sarah with Snowy, you could see the motherly concern in her eyes. It was very similar to the look in your eyes in the early days of Sarah's blog. I much prefer the smile that I see in both of your eyes now, as I'm sure you do.

Love to you all!

Anonymous said...

PUSHING THE COUNTER UP SOME MORE, AND CHECKING ON SNOWY.....
CAN'T WAIT TO TELL THE PRESCHOOLERS THAT HE'S HOME.

mrs pam

Richelle said...

A suggestion for dealing with the cone issue for Snowy. When our dog, Minnie (she's a miniature schnauzer/westie terriermix) had surgery (to be fixed) last winter, she did not deal well with the cone either and had a hard time resting, eating, etc. My husband decided to removed the cone and placed gauze over the stitches and then an ACE bandage around her mid section covering her stitches (the bandage was not placed too tightly though0. He then taped it in place. This appeared to be a much more comfortable solution for her. She left her stitches alone and was able to eat and drink without help. My husband would remove the bandage once a day at least for about 1/2 hour at a time, keeping a close eye her so she wouldn't lick at the stitches. This is something you may want to try with Snowy. By the way, he is absolutely adorable! We spoil our dog a lot too. She's a wonderful addition to our family. She brings so much joy and comfort to our family.

Ann Martin said...

Must try the recipe. Jim's church has a covered-dish dinner Thursday night for the seniors. I may try to make it and take it to that. I'll try the ginger ale instead of wine. Guess I will just mix the beef and rice to take it to church instead of having two dishes. Will that work? So glad Snowy is getting around. Hope he soon recovers completely so all can sleep well.

Anonymous said...

Made the No Peek Beef Stew recipe today in the crock pot and served it over noodles...everyone loved it! I followed the recipe just as Becky wrote it (without the mushrooms) except I used the golden mushroom soup instead of the regular cream of mushroom and it gave it a nice rich color (I am not fond of mushrooms either but it did not have a strong mushroom taste). We found it a little too salty I used cooking wine which has salt added so next time I am going to use "real" onion instead of the onion soup so it will be a little less salty. Everyone voted this recipe a "keeper"! Thanks for the great recipe! Linda in Pittsburgh