Fashion show

Grandma bought a t-shirt for Snow White and I decided the time had come to try it on.




The shirt actually fit okay. It was a bit snug putting it on and taking it off, but while on there were no size problems. Snow White was a good girl and didn't fuss at all when I was dressing and undressing her, but I don't think she liked the whole ordeal.

I confess I laughed a little bit. I just kept thinking, "I like big butts and I cannot lie..." It's amazing how much fur is on such a little dog!

Motion Sickness

One of the greatest contributions I have made to the world is the contents of my stomach during travel. I have blessed so many states and several countries with signs of motion sickness that it must be an accomplishment. As it turns out, I have a case of "like mother like daughter" on my hands. Snow White gets car sick!

I noticed when I took her in the car before that she drooled so much it soaked the fur on her neck (we're talking about a 7 minute drive). That was odd. I had never seen a dog drool that much before in such a short time! She did it pretty consistently whenever we went in the car, so I thought it was just something she did when she got upset, since she really doesn't seem to like being confined to her car seat.

She actually threw up when we got to the vet's office today and I mentioned something about how she doesn't like going in the car. The vet asked about drool and then said that's a sign of motion sickness. Mommy understands how her baby feels and can be more sympathetic to her now! The solution is to give the dog children's Benadryl 30 minutes before getting in the car and trying to increase the trips she takes in the car to get her more accustomed to the motion.

In other Snow White news, we've made a lot of crate progress. Mommy decided that the crate was probably uncomfortable with just a blanket in it, so Mommy found a dog bed that looked about the right size for the crate. It fits perfectly. Since then, Snow White has actually voluntarily gone in her crate (not when it's time for bed, of course) to nap. That's where she was after she got home from the vet today and apparently was in there for a good hour or so (I went shopping after I dropped her off since it was much too warm to leave her in the car, so I heard this from an eye witness). I have seen her in there a few times myself, so I am happy about that. She has also done a really good job of sleeping through the night and not waking Mommy up and hasn't had any accidents in the crate since the first week.

Speaking of accidents, she's doing a lot better about going potty in acceptable places. She's decided that the screened in patio is the place to do her business. It is carpeted, but it's the closest thing we have to a yard, so it's an okay place. It does require a lot of picking up, but Mommy bought a pooper scooper (rake & pan variety) so that isn't as laborious and disgusting as it could be.

Snow White weighed in at one pound more than she did on her first vet visit and is now 7.2 pounds. That's pretty significant weight gain for a little girl like her, but it's healthy. I've been seeing growth in her and noticed that she felt heavier. She won't be growing quickly for much longer and it still looks like she's in no danger of breaking the 10 pound mark.

She has a few milestones coming up that I'll briefly explain! Next Monday she's going to get her first real haircut. She got a little bit of a trim the last time, but the fact that she looks like she's never seen a brush within minutes of being brushed and also (and ultimately more importantly) because her back end tends to smell like potty. The fur is too long on her back legs and ends up in the puddle she's making. The weather is starting to warm up (finally - hasn't hit 70 in weeks up here), so I think she'll like a cooler style anyway. It will make her look different, so I'm apprehensive about that. She is so cute with her current 50% hair/50% dog look that I worry that I won't like the short look.

The next milestones are her 5 month birthday on June 6 and then her next set of shots at 23 weeks (she's 20 weeks right now), which I think should be her last puppy boosters. The really big milestone is going to be at 25 weeks or so. That's when she's going to be spayed. They are going to microchip her as well when she's out for the surgery. Mommy is, of course, not looking forward to the surgery. I am hoping she will recover very quickly. That is something that I will deal with in 5 weeks, however, and will continue to enjoy my baby while she's a baby. :)

Puppy Love

Our first webcam photo:

Let us go!

I rejoiced with those who said to me,
"Let us go to the house of the LORD."
~Psalm 122:1

Some Sundays going to church is just what one does on Sunday morning. This Sunday I was really looking forward to going, and I was not disappointed. It was wonderful to be with God's people, singing songs of worship to Him and hearing His word preached. Church isn't an obligation or ritual. The meeting together of believers in the name of Jesus is a blessing to those who gather.

I have been going to a different church lately than I was going to in the past (still going back to the other from time to time). It's a Free Methodist church that has very contemporary music (not charismatic, certainly not pentecostal, but the kind of church where people actually move and might raise hands or clap) and a pastor who preaches topically rather than through a book of the Bible (but still very no nonsense, preach the word of God as it is written) and doesn't wear a suit and tie every week. I feel more welcomed there and the laid back atmosphere is definitely more to my liking. After more than 2 years at the church I was going to, I felt like I still didn't connect with the people there. This church has several small groups that meet throughout the week, and though I am not in one yet, that's something that drew me there.

I was thinking earlier this week about how we approach our lives as Christians and how faulty our thinking can be. We are no better Christians if we do the things we are supposed to do and don't do the things we aren't supposed to do if we are acting in our own power than those Christians who continually fail while acting in their own power. In reality, how long can we do the right stuff in our own power before we start to fail? The better Christian walks in the power of Jesus Christ given to us through His indwelling Spirit, and when the better Christian falls (because he will still fall as long as he is bound to the flesh), he falls on Jesus. Sometimes it just seems easier to do it ourselves, but we don't have to anymore.

Now I know all of you are really here to find out more about the dog, so I'll give the update on her. She is doing a good job sleeping at night. She doesn't cry when she's put in the crate anymore and doesn't ask to be let out often. Housebreaking is still...in progress. She is starting to get her adult fur now. It's still kind of short, but the thicker, brighter white, curlier fur is growing now. That means she's getting matted quickly. And I can't find her brush! It's somewhere in the living room, but hiding. I need to find it before she gets any worse. Above all, she's still darn cute!

Photo of the day

Groomed!

Snow White went to the groomer today. She got washed and conditioned and brushed. They got rid of her ear hair, trimmed her nails and brushed her teeth, too. The groomer said she was perfect and gave her no trouble at all. That makes Mommy happy!

Her she is in all of her beauty:

Pictures

Snow White asleep...
...and Snow White awake!
She sometimes sleeps in the funniest positions :)

Snow in May?

There is snow falling in May in a number of states today, and there's snow in my apartment, too!

Snow White is currently crying pretty much all night. Last night was better, however. Mostly it was better because she started the night out knocked out by her rabies shot. She woke up around midnight, and Mommy wasn't thinking clearly. I figured since she had been sleeping for a long time, she'd probably need to go potty. I was right about that. I got her out and then put her on my bed while I grabbed my sweatshirt. She wet the bed. Mommy put her back in the cage, treated the sheet and mattress pad (didn't get through to the mattress, thankfully), and went to sleep on the couch. From what I could tell when I took out my earplugs to listen for her from time to time is that she did not cry as much last night. She at least seemed to take breaks, and actually wasn't crying when I woke up this morning. She's either still tuckered from the shot or might be figuring out that she's wasting her breath. Mommy hopes she's figured out the latter. Mommy's job in the nighttime crying is to try to figure out how to get her to go potty before bed and try to avoid accidents in the crate. I know she gets upset if her crate is wet.

During the day I'm going to try leaving her in the bathroom with the gate over the door, with her food, water, bed and potty pad with her. It seemed to work well on Tuesday, although the food was all over the floor when I got home. We'll see how she does today. She cried a little bit when I was about to leave, but not like she did in the past. Maybe if she associates the crate with bed and the bathroom with being left alone she'll take more kindly to the crate.

Yesterday I took her to the vet for a check-up and some vaccinations. She's going to get a new set of boosters that she already had because what she got didn't include something that the formula the vet uses has in it. She got the rabies shot because she has to have that to be licensed. The groomer also just asked me about whether or not she had it yet, so I am wondering if they require that as well. Basically what the vet said is that she had an eye infection (that seemed to just start yesterday, so the vet visit was timed well), so I get to put antibiotic cream in her eyes twice a day, but otherwise seems like a healthy little girl with a good heart and good lungs. She is 6.2 pounds right now and the vet said she most likely won't top 10. Because of her age, however, she only got one month of flea treatment since there is a 10 pound cut-off and she didn't want to give me a 4 month supply on the chance that Snow White gets bigger than anticipated. She's on heartworm medication, too. All this for a little ball of fur!

That ball of fur will be cleaner on Monday, since Mommy's going to take her to the groomer. Vet said she's got a LOT of hair in her ears, so that will need to get pulled out soon to avoid problems with the ears. Puppy grooming package (doesn't include hair cut since she's under 5 months) is only $15, so she won't break the bank this month in beauty salon fees.

I will try to take more pictures of her today. It may prove difficult because her favorite place to be is behind people on the couch (up on the back)!