I double your yipee!!! I am set to see my onc Thurs. All the good docs are booked out a month. Don't know why the surgeons don't get the referrals started day after surgery. I was going to ask but onc offices said they could get me in quickly depending on urgency. The one I am seeing managed to get me in quickly, kinda held the spot for me. You really do attract more bees with honey than lemon. My dh is going to ask the top doc where he works what he thinks about my case and my onc's recommendations. I will also get a second opinion too. I also know a head onc nurse who I will ask about my second opinion doc. All the docs I am looking at were awarded Top Docs by their peers in recent years. It really helps to ask around. Also, my dh has come up with some really great things to discuss with my docs. Because my dh is also a microbiologist he sees things from a biological prospective also, not just as a treater. He combed my pathology report way closer than my surgeon did. That could be because only certain parts applied to her and my onc will go over the rest, but it would have been important stuff to point out to a patient not fortunate enough to have a dh like mine. Once again, advice to others "go over everthing and ask what everthing means." Coordinating care is so hard. At work we use nurse case managers. When I had a guy who could not see his doc for a month, my nurse got him in the next day. But when I need to set my own appt it takes forever. My dh is my designated hitter when I have problems. It helps. I ran into issues with my insurance. They sent my referral to a facility which my doc does not even work at. My surgeon gave them mis information but they never bothered to make sure they were sending it to the right place. We immediately called ins (dh had to interceed) and explain to them how they did it wrong. That was Friday. This morning my doc still did not have my referral. Talk about a pain. I had to have my surgeon's scheduler (the problem person) redo the referral. Luckily she is on the ball this time so I should be set to go. I have been checking out some sites to see what I am really heading into. A chemo port, yuck but supposedly best way to go, will leave yet another scar on my chest. Guess I won't be going topless this year! lol! I don't like going into things blindly so I research and ask lots of questions. Surprises are no fun for me. My family is great so far. Well at least the ones I can always count on. My oldest sis lives 6miles away and even came to my son's scounting events recently. My mid sis is in So Cal but calls often and is planning to come up and help clean or just hang out cooking/freezing food for later. My bro is distant. I sent him a card telling him my diagnosis and he sent this really weird mushy letter. (For those who don't recall, he and I had an issue 3.5yrs ago and since then he has done several very cruel and hurtfull things to myself, my sisters and their kids. I have not tried to patch things us and my mom pretends like he is a god. She will not tell him he was mean because she actually likes conflict, sick I know. I planned on sending him a letter telling him it was time to get over it and make up, then this happened to me and I don't have the energy right now to fix all this). He mentioned wanting to see me, not because of my cancer, but because he loves me. I emailed him my info and surgery date. He has not replied nor contacted me. My dad is so sweet. I plan to go see him next chance I get as he goes to my oldest sis' house weekly. My mom, well, she is who she is. I told my oldest sis that if I were on my deathbed mom would expect me to call her and let her know. Mom would not call me. When I updated her on my surgery she was really happy about my being home but had to go because she was cooking a burger. I know she loves me but just does not know how to show it. I have another sis that we have been forbidden to speak to, mom and her have issues and mom demanded we ignore her for last 20 or so years. I have contacted her here and there. My mid sis defies mom and does have a relationship with her. I think I will start pen-paling her. She is really hard to deal with, very emotional and dependent. I think an email start would be good for her. We can chat without having to deal with her emotional issues. She really is sweet and was really touched that I reached out to her about my condition. DH is hanging in there but I can tell this is starting to take it's toll. He deals with dialysis patients all day long. To have him sit with me during my chemo is going to be so hard on him. He keeps saying he wishes he could take this all away from me but can't. I read a blog on a guy who would take his wife out for a lunch date after each treatment. I guess he felt pretty good right afterwards and took advantage of the moment. My coworker's husband had to go on prozac to manage his depression from his wife's treatment. Hopefully spring will be here soon and sunshine will make my dh feel better. I think before I start my treatment we will go get his new kayak. He loves being on the water, gives him time to be at peace and in such beautiful surroundings. I know I should not worry about him but I do. I know he feels guilty leaving me at home but I keep telling him that he has to do it FOR ME to know he is ok so I can be ok.

It may have to be their assessment of adoptability. The one-eyed dog I mentioned above -- when I finally found the owner, they ended up dumping him at the pound because his eye was grossing them out. I was talking with the pound and they told me no one would want him and they wanted to just euthanize him. Well, he went to live on a beautiful horse farm with lots of buds. Living my dream!! I was just over on the link. It looks like actually sponsoring a dog means you'll pick up whatever expenses are associated with readying him for adoption -- the spaying, shots, etc. That makes him easy for take out. Either to a real home or to a foster or rescue group. Those groups spend a fortune saving animals, they need all the help they can get. They rely on donations to keep going. Taking in another animal is a financial consideration as well. I wouldn't worry about that part. The money is needed to move the dog along in the direction of a forever home. I would think that the more money they've invested in an animal, the less likely he would be put down, over one that still needs expensive work done. It actually looks like Bruce isn't at the front of the line. There are dogs there in the 600s, longer than him. So if they think he's adoptable, he may have more time than some of the others. So many sweet looking dogs there. So many irresponsible owners : ( (Sorry I'm too beat to proof : )

What a pretty puppy. Good luck with her and please be patient. Training a puppy is not easy, but it is rewarding. An 18 week puppy is still a tiny baby, and one who was separated from her mom at 7 weeks if I read your post correctly. That is a bit earlier than most would recommend. 18 week old pups are still babies so potty 101 is ongoing. She may not be fully reliable for several more weeks if not months. Physically she really may not be able to hold it as long as you would like. She is still a baby with a tiny bladder. Potty 101 requires taking the pup out every 2 hours minimally, and certainly immediately after every meal and whenever she wakes after a nap. It is best to have her on leash for potty training. Walk her until she performs. Give her a verbal cue to potty and give her huge praise when she does so. You will soon have her going on command. I agree with the potty before play recommendation above. Never scold for accidents indoors, just clean them up thoroughly with an enzyme cleaner. Why? Because the accident was not her mistake. It is yours. You have not anticipated her needs. Scolding her will likely have her not wanting to potty in front of you anywhere and hiding out of your sight to go potty indoors. You don't want that. Really. The smaller the crate environment the less likely the pup will soil it, but she should still be going out every couple of hours during the day. Tethering to you also works. Rush her outdoors if she even seems about to squat. Always praise for pottying outside.

Well, I went to my dental appointment yesterday, that I had scheduled back in December. Here’s how it went down: 3 weeks ago, they called to confirm my appointment, we assured each other we had not had symptoms of, been diagnosed with, or been in contact with someone diagnosed, with Covid. They told me all their new procedures. 2 days before, they sent me an electronic confirmation and form to fill out about my Covid status like they did 3 weeks ago. 1 day before, because I hadn’t really read the email and filled out the form, they called to remind me and to get my credit card number to pay in advance, if I wanted. I did, and I filled out the form. 6 hours before, they sent me the digital form again to fill out. 0 hour, per their instructions, I entered the empty waiting room not a moment before or after my scheduled time. The hygienist was waiting, masked. In the chair, I rinsed 30 seconds with a hydrogen peroxide and water solution, spit into a cup that was promptly disposed of in hazardous waste. Didn’t spit into the little chair-side sink. I took off my glasses (as I usually do) and she gave me goggles. She took my temperature. The hygienist put on her face shield. She also wore glasses, and needed flip-up goggles with “loupes” on them for close work. Poor thing, there were at least 5 layers between her eyes and mine. She positioned a “pressure machine” that I guess worked like a shop vac (sounded like one) to suck up any droplets. The instruments were...I can’t remember, they told me three weeks ago, but some were disposable and some went through an intense process with days between uses. The rest of the appointment went as normal. When I left, the receptionist slipped me my receipt under the plexiglass shield at the desk. I felt comfortable. One thing I noticed: no magazines in the waiting room, since no one will be waiting in there for a good while. This will probably kill the print magazine industry, which was already struggling, and which was recently hurting from the drop in advertising. And for those of us who still get print magazines, where will we take them when we finish with them? I often left a magazine behind when I would go to an appointment.