It's been a crazy few weeks and I apologize for allowing communication with many of you to lapse.
Benny had it pretty rough for about 5 weeks. He had corrective surgery on every toe on his 2 front toes to fix a botched declaw procedure he had 8 years ago. Just as he was recovering from that, I noticed a tiny little bump on his neck, which soon grew and became purple. After the vet removed it (requiring him to undergo anesthesia 2 times in 2 weeks), she sent it for a biopsy. It was malignant, but we caught it early enough such that it probably didn't metastasize. The prognosis is good. We spent about $850 on that kitty in just a few weeks. Oh well.
Tuesday, May 20
Just as things were beginning to calm down, Brian's grandma ended up in the hospital this past Tuesday with a bedsore, blood clot, and infection, which will likely spread to the rest of her body, causing her to become septic. She's too old and frail for surgery and other treatments. The doctors have given her 1 week. Yes, to live....
Update: We saw Grandma on Tuesay, at which time the doctor told our family that she had 1 day to 1 week to live. She was still holding on strong when we saw her this past Saturday. Today (Monday) we got a call from my sister-in-law, saying the doctor told the family she would pass today. We rushed over to the hospital and stayed for about 3 hours. She was still holding on when we left at 6PM. She will likely pass tomorrow. The infection has become worse, spreading to her kidneys. She isn't on life support or anything...she had a steady morphine drip for the pain. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers....
Wednesday & Thursday, May 21 &22
Long story short, I ended up buying a 2008 VW Rabbit on Wednesday. Little bro works for a VW dealership and got me all the hook-ups. My trusty, rusty (literally) ol' 2001 Corolla was at that point--run it into the ground or trade it in while it's still worth something decent. It all happened so fast...not my usual M.O. of reasearching, analyzing, thinking it over, etc. But, I think we made the right decision and I haven't had "Buyer's Remorse" yet.
Friday, May 23
Friay, all was going well until about 2PM. My mom called me from work and asked me to pick her up. She was suddenly hit with severe dizziness and nausea. She has high blood pressure so I was thinking heart attack or stroke. Steven and I got her to the ER. Turns out it's vertigo and they're not sure what the onset was. She just needs to rest and has some anti-nausea and vertigo meds.
Saturday, May 24
We had to go back to the VW dealership for a couple more signatures and for them to do a little reprogramming for my VW. The DRL (daytime running lights) weren't working. After we were done a VW, we had to go to Waialua High & Intermideiate School to help my father-in-law out with some computer stuff for this classroom. As Brian helped out Dad, I shot some photos around the campus. I'll post a few later on. We took the Rabbit out there and I must say that it handled the drive quite nicely. I'm also pleased to report that I did all the driving on Saturday. I can't believe I made it to and from Waialua in one piece. :P Of course, Brian was with me to make sure I was safe. :)
Sunday, May 25
We bummed around on Sunday. We were super tired, probably from all the excitement from the week. We caught up on all of our DVR'd Conan O'Brien shows.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Benny: Biopsy Results
The vet called yesterday afternoon. It was a blur, which is why I hate discussing important things over the phone. It always takes a while to process the info and I've already hung up by the time the real questions start to form.
Basically, she said the growth was a "skin cancer with low grade malignancy" and that the amount of skin they excised is "likely curative". She said Benny may develop more growths since he's white. She didn't sound too concerned and didn't offer any other next steps.
Benny has another appointment this Thursday (his 5th visit in 6 weeks) to have his sutures removed (he's got a bald patch on his neck with an incision about 1" long). I'm developing a list of questions for her:
- Can she tell if the cancer has spread to other parts of his body besides just the skin?
- Is there anything we can do to prevent the spread?
- Are there any signs to watch out for?
- Should we try to keep them out of the sun (they're indoors, but they love to sit on the window sill)?
- Would tinted windows help? We thought about tinting our windows when we bought our townhouse 2 years ago, but never did it due to cost and being lazy. :P We were quoted $870 to do a tint/security film for all of our windows 2 years ago. This may be the prime time to do it.
Anyway, just thought I'd give an update to all who may be wondering. It's definitely not the news I wanted to hear (i.e. "cancer" and "malignant"), but it could have been a lot worse. Benny and I thank you all for all of your thoughts and prayers.
Basically, she said the growth was a "skin cancer with low grade malignancy" and that the amount of skin they excised is "likely curative". She said Benny may develop more growths since he's white. She didn't sound too concerned and didn't offer any other next steps.
Benny has another appointment this Thursday (his 5th visit in 6 weeks) to have his sutures removed (he's got a bald patch on his neck with an incision about 1" long). I'm developing a list of questions for her:
- Can she tell if the cancer has spread to other parts of his body besides just the skin?
- Is there anything we can do to prevent the spread?
- Are there any signs to watch out for?
- Should we try to keep them out of the sun (they're indoors, but they love to sit on the window sill)?
- Would tinted windows help? We thought about tinting our windows when we bought our townhouse 2 years ago, but never did it due to cost and being lazy. :P We were quoted $870 to do a tint/security film for all of our windows 2 years ago. This may be the prime time to do it.
Anyway, just thought I'd give an update to all who may be wondering. It's definitely not the news I wanted to hear (i.e. "cancer" and "malignant"), but it could have been a lot worse. Benny and I thank you all for all of your thoughts and prayers.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Check out Dirty Thunder!!!
We went to another Dirty Thunder concert last night. It was awesome and we had a great time. They're playing Don Ho's @ Aloha Tower Marketplace next Saturday. Come out if you can. :)
Monday, May 5, 2008
Benny: Surgery Round 2
Benny ended up back in surgery today. :( Here's what happened....
1-1/2 weeks ago, Benny went back to the vet for his declaw surgery follow-up visit. He was finally given the all clear and rejoined society on April 25th. He was so happy to be out of our bedroom. He was getting cabin fever and confining a cat in our tiny bedroom was beginning to take its toll on us, as well.
During his follow-up, I asked the vet to take a look at a tiny growth I noticed on his neck. She said it didn't look like anything to be concerned about, but to bring him back if it got bigger. Okay, so I should also mention that she poked it with a small needle while we were there, thinking it may have been a whitehead that she could take care of it on the spot. Well, after she poked it, nothing came out. She put some antibiotic ointment on it and we were on our merry way. I'm now wondering if we'd be here today if she had just left it alone....
Well, over the course of 1-1/2 weeks, I would say it doubled in size and this past Friday, I noticed it was purple and crusty. The vet couldn't see Benny again until today. Brian took Benny in this morning and the vet decided to keep Benny for the day and perform surgery to remove the growth. Poor Benny had to undergo anesthesia for the 2nd time in just over 2 weeks!
I feel terrible because Benny doesn't have a clue what's going on or why he keeps having to go under the knife. :( He also has a couple of toes that are still trying to heal. The vet thinks he's over-grooming them and not allowing them to fully heal. Luckily, she sent him home with antibiotics, which should help the rest of his toes and his latest incision heal.
Benny is back home now, but I'm nervously awaiting the biopsy results. In 72 hours, we should know whether the growth is benign or the "other" kind...I can't bring myself to even mention that "other" kind. :( The vet said she wouldn't normally be too concerned, but because Benny is an older cat (8 years old) and because he's white (to quote Super Knottie & veterinarian mrspresley, "white cats have a higher incidence of squamous cell carcinomas...") she really wants to be sure everything is normal.
Lol, you should have seen my reaction when I was told how much today's surgery cost. To sum it up, we've spent about $850 on Benny's surgeries in the past 2 weeks. Thank God for the economic stimulus act and for our tax refunds this year!
I'll keep you all posted on the biopsy results. It's gonna be a long 3 days....
1-1/2 weeks ago, Benny went back to the vet for his declaw surgery follow-up visit. He was finally given the all clear and rejoined society on April 25th. He was so happy to be out of our bedroom. He was getting cabin fever and confining a cat in our tiny bedroom was beginning to take its toll on us, as well.
During his follow-up, I asked the vet to take a look at a tiny growth I noticed on his neck. She said it didn't look like anything to be concerned about, but to bring him back if it got bigger. Okay, so I should also mention that she poked it with a small needle while we were there, thinking it may have been a whitehead that she could take care of it on the spot. Well, after she poked it, nothing came out. She put some antibiotic ointment on it and we were on our merry way. I'm now wondering if we'd be here today if she had just left it alone....
Well, over the course of 1-1/2 weeks, I would say it doubled in size and this past Friday, I noticed it was purple and crusty. The vet couldn't see Benny again until today. Brian took Benny in this morning and the vet decided to keep Benny for the day and perform surgery to remove the growth. Poor Benny had to undergo anesthesia for the 2nd time in just over 2 weeks!
I feel terrible because Benny doesn't have a clue what's going on or why he keeps having to go under the knife. :( He also has a couple of toes that are still trying to heal. The vet thinks he's over-grooming them and not allowing them to fully heal. Luckily, she sent him home with antibiotics, which should help the rest of his toes and his latest incision heal.
Benny is back home now, but I'm nervously awaiting the biopsy results. In 72 hours, we should know whether the growth is benign or the "other" kind...I can't bring myself to even mention that "other" kind. :( The vet said she wouldn't normally be too concerned, but because Benny is an older cat (8 years old) and because he's white (to quote Super Knottie & veterinarian mrspresley, "white cats have a higher incidence of squamous cell carcinomas...") she really wants to be sure everything is normal.
Lol, you should have seen my reaction when I was told how much today's surgery cost. To sum it up, we've spent about $850 on Benny's surgeries in the past 2 weeks. Thank God for the economic stimulus act and for our tax refunds this year!
I'll keep you all posted on the biopsy results. It's gonna be a long 3 days....
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Weekend Update!
Gosh, I still need to finish my Ihilani Recap! I promise I'll get on that soon....
Friday, April 11
(Warning: Some of this may be TMI and somewhat of a buzzkill....)
I can't believe it, but I've found some fellow eczema-sufferers on The Knot! I don't know any other such people in "real" life, but I managed to meet TWO of them on a wedding planning site. Who'd have thought?!? Chika and Mel have been awesome. I've really enjoyed chatting and exchanging war stories with them.
During one of our chats, I mentioned that while we were at the Ihilani, Brian and I walked along the beach and waded in the ocean. I had some eczema patches on my feet and calves. The salt water "stung like a mother" (as I so eloquently put it to them), but I noticed the next day that it really dried out the eczema patches I had! After bringing this up with Chika and Mel, Chika mentioned that her sister periodically soaks in a warm epsom salt bath. After doing a lot of Google-ing on the subject, I read about many of the benefits of epsom salt baths, thought it made sense, and decided to try it out.
On Friday, I gave my tub a good scrubbing (we never take tub baths, only showers), bought a carton on epsom salt and tried it out. It was an interesting experience. I used 2 cups of epsom salts in a bathtub full of warm water and soaked for about 15 minutes. It kind of dried out some of the eczema patches I had and reduced some redness and bumpiness I had. I think I was expecting more dramatic results and tried it again on Sunday with slightly warmer water and more salt. The results were worse than Friday. I think I'll keep trying, though, until I find the right combo of salt concentration and water temperature. It seems promising.
So, why am I bothering with this epsom salt business? I've decided to try and find more natural ways to deal with this eczema problem I've had since I was a toddler. Reflecting back on the years, I think it has become progressively worse since I was in high school. The usual "remedy" I get from the dermotologist is topical corticosteroids, which usually work in the short term. However, I would like to get the eczema under control without these harmful and expensive drugs. We're thinking about starting a family in few years and I can't be on these steroids when that time comes. Also, over the years, I've noticed my skin has become thinner because of the steroids. Recently, I was appalled at the discovery of stretch marks on both inner-thighs. I freaked out, thinking I had gained weight, which made me feel terrible. I hadn't had any major weight fluctuations so it had to be something else. I came to the realization that it was the powerful steroids I was using to treat eczema flare-ups on my legs! I was shocked and actually felt devastated that this had happened. I was only trying to help myself get better, but in the process, I now have these permanent reminders of this horrible affliction.
Friday was my father-in-law's 58th Birthday! "Happy Birthday" to the other Mr. T!
Saturday, April 12
(BTW, "Congratulations!" if you're still with me after that sordid tale. :P)
On Saturday morning, I woke up with my skin feeling pretty good. :) Then, I met up with Jenn (a.k.a. Knottie kinibruin) and her FI (that's "fiancè" to all of you non-Knotties out there :P) at Pearlridge Starbuck's to give her some vases and marbles I had leftover from the wedding. Yes, over 1 year after the wedding, I still had 6 vases and 9 bags of marble cluttering up our place. I was so happy to pass it along to such a sweet, super cool Knottie like Jenn.
I don't normally go to Pearlridge because I'm an old fut and don't like traffic or crowds. I've been meaning to return a couple of things to Ann Taylor ever since the holidays and seized the opportunity to finally get my store credit! I walked in, intent on getting my store credit and then getting the heck out of there! As I was walking out, I realized that I was surrounded by chrysanthemums! Yep, Ann Taylor had so many cute items with chrysanthemum prints! I nearly passed out from excitement. So, I moseyed my way back into the depths of the store, just to admire all the "kiku" prints. Then, I thought I'd try on a few pieces, just for fun. Here's what I tried on and walked out with:
I got the cute blue jacket :)
On Saturday night, we went to Onstage Drinks & Grinds to see some band play 80s rock. One of Brian's co-workers knows one of the band members and invited us to come out. To be honest, I wasn't looking forward to it. I had no clue what to expect. Come to find out, the band is called Dirty Thunder and it was one of the best shows I've ever seen! Well, Onstage is a super tiny place in Kapahulu, but the band rocked! I really got into it and had a blast. Another coincidence is that 3 of the 5 band members went to Waialua High School and either had or know my father-in-law, who is a Science teacher there. Dirty Thunder plays at Onstage the 2nd Saturday of every month. You better believe we'll be back there next month!
I really had no clue what kind of place this was. Brian told me to wear my new blouse and jacket. Needless to say, I was a bit overdressed. :P
Sunday, April 13
Hmm, I can't even remember what we did on Sunday morning. I think we just bummed around for a bit and then headed out to Pet's Discount (something really bugs me about this place's management, but I've been going back there for years because they always carry what we're looking for) to buy some special recycled newspaper pellet cat litter for Benny. After that, we picked up some Leonard's Malasadas (Yumm...I hadn't had one in years!) and Kentucky Fried Chicken. We took it over to the in-laws for dinner to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday. It was fun, as usual. :)
Friday, April 11
(Warning: Some of this may be TMI and somewhat of a buzzkill....)
I can't believe it, but I've found some fellow eczema-sufferers on The Knot! I don't know any other such people in "real" life, but I managed to meet TWO of them on a wedding planning site. Who'd have thought?!? Chika and Mel have been awesome. I've really enjoyed chatting and exchanging war stories with them.
During one of our chats, I mentioned that while we were at the Ihilani, Brian and I walked along the beach and waded in the ocean. I had some eczema patches on my feet and calves. The salt water "stung like a mother" (as I so eloquently put it to them), but I noticed the next day that it really dried out the eczema patches I had! After bringing this up with Chika and Mel, Chika mentioned that her sister periodically soaks in a warm epsom salt bath. After doing a lot of Google-ing on the subject, I read about many of the benefits of epsom salt baths, thought it made sense, and decided to try it out.
On Friday, I gave my tub a good scrubbing (we never take tub baths, only showers), bought a carton on epsom salt and tried it out. It was an interesting experience. I used 2 cups of epsom salts in a bathtub full of warm water and soaked for about 15 minutes. It kind of dried out some of the eczema patches I had and reduced some redness and bumpiness I had. I think I was expecting more dramatic results and tried it again on Sunday with slightly warmer water and more salt. The results were worse than Friday. I think I'll keep trying, though, until I find the right combo of salt concentration and water temperature. It seems promising.
So, why am I bothering with this epsom salt business? I've decided to try and find more natural ways to deal with this eczema problem I've had since I was a toddler. Reflecting back on the years, I think it has become progressively worse since I was in high school. The usual "remedy" I get from the dermotologist is topical corticosteroids, which usually work in the short term. However, I would like to get the eczema under control without these harmful and expensive drugs. We're thinking about starting a family in few years and I can't be on these steroids when that time comes. Also, over the years, I've noticed my skin has become thinner because of the steroids. Recently, I was appalled at the discovery of stretch marks on both inner-thighs. I freaked out, thinking I had gained weight, which made me feel terrible. I hadn't had any major weight fluctuations so it had to be something else. I came to the realization that it was the powerful steroids I was using to treat eczema flare-ups on my legs! I was shocked and actually felt devastated that this had happened. I was only trying to help myself get better, but in the process, I now have these permanent reminders of this horrible affliction.
Friday was my father-in-law's 58th Birthday! "Happy Birthday" to the other Mr. T!
Saturday, April 12
(BTW, "Congratulations!" if you're still with me after that sordid tale. :P)
On Saturday morning, I woke up with my skin feeling pretty good. :) Then, I met up with Jenn (a.k.a. Knottie kinibruin) and her FI (that's "fiancè" to all of you non-Knotties out there :P) at Pearlridge Starbuck's to give her some vases and marbles I had leftover from the wedding. Yes, over 1 year after the wedding, I still had 6 vases and 9 bags of marble cluttering up our place. I was so happy to pass it along to such a sweet, super cool Knottie like Jenn.
I don't normally go to Pearlridge because I'm an old fut and don't like traffic or crowds. I've been meaning to return a couple of things to Ann Taylor ever since the holidays and seized the opportunity to finally get my store credit! I walked in, intent on getting my store credit and then getting the heck out of there! As I was walking out, I realized that I was surrounded by chrysanthemums! Yep, Ann Taylor had so many cute items with chrysanthemum prints! I nearly passed out from excitement. So, I moseyed my way back into the depths of the store, just to admire all the "kiku" prints. Then, I thought I'd try on a few pieces, just for fun. Here's what I tried on and walked out with:
I got the cute blue jacket :)On Saturday night, we went to Onstage Drinks & Grinds to see some band play 80s rock. One of Brian's co-workers knows one of the band members and invited us to come out. To be honest, I wasn't looking forward to it. I had no clue what to expect. Come to find out, the band is called Dirty Thunder and it was one of the best shows I've ever seen! Well, Onstage is a super tiny place in Kapahulu, but the band rocked! I really got into it and had a blast. Another coincidence is that 3 of the 5 band members went to Waialua High School and either had or know my father-in-law, who is a Science teacher there. Dirty Thunder plays at Onstage the 2nd Saturday of every month. You better believe we'll be back there next month!
I really had no clue what kind of place this was. Brian told me to wear my new blouse and jacket. Needless to say, I was a bit overdressed. :P
Sunday, April 13
Hmm, I can't even remember what we did on Sunday morning. I think we just bummed around for a bit and then headed out to Pet's Discount (something really bugs me about this place's management, but I've been going back there for years because they always carry what we're looking for) to buy some special recycled newspaper pellet cat litter for Benny. After that, we picked up some Leonard's Malasadas (Yumm...I hadn't had one in years!) and Kentucky Fried Chicken. We took it over to the in-laws for dinner to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday. It was fun, as usual. :)
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Custom Rubber Stamp?
I'm thinking of getting a custom rubber stamp that looks like this from Design your own card.com:
It would measure 1-1/2" long by 1/2" tall. It's $6.50 for the custom stamp and $4.60 USPS Priority Mail shipping.
I'm thinking of using it to stamp the backs of some of the dry embossed cards I make. I want to leave my "mark", but I also want it to be subtle. Creations Unlimited sells these VersaMark watermark ink pads.
I think this would be perfect as it will be subtle, yet visible even on some of the darker cardstocks I use.
If I actually had a company, I'd get one with my company name on it. However, since this is still just a hobby for now, I think I'll just stick with this.
It would measure 1-1/2" long by 1/2" tall. It's $6.50 for the custom stamp and $4.60 USPS Priority Mail shipping.
I'm thinking of using it to stamp the backs of some of the dry embossed cards I make. I want to leave my "mark", but I also want it to be subtle. Creations Unlimited sells these VersaMark watermark ink pads.
I think this would be perfect as it will be subtle, yet visible even on some of the darker cardstocks I use.
If I actually had a company, I'd get one with my company name on it. However, since this is still just a hobby for now, I think I'll just stick with this.
UPDATE: Benny
The vet contacted me today to schedule Benny's surgery for next Wednesday, April 16th. Thankfully, the antibiotics seem to be working. I took a look at his toe today and, although it still looks a little red, it looks like it's drying out and beginning to heal.
The estimated charges total $351.37! It includes the surgery, anesthesia, cardiac monitor, radiograph, pain meds, and overnight stay. Man, when it rains, it pours! We need to pay off our Ihilani weekend and our car insurance premiums are also due early next month! Sheesh! I wish we had pet health insurance or something. :P
Here's the "schedule":
- Tuesday, April 15th: No food after 6PM, no water after Midnight. Cats sometimes get sick if they don't have an empty stomach while under anesthesia. Since we can't really separate Benny and Chester, looks like Chester will be fasting, too. He is not going to be happy. :P
- Wednesday, April 16th: Drop Benny off at the vet at 7AM. Since Brian will be sleeping by then, I'll take Benny and go in to work a couple hours late. I wonder if "Care of a furbaby" (versus "Care of a Family Member") qualifies as sick leave? Benny will stay overnight so he can get some much-needed post-surgery rest without Chester terrorizing him. :P
(Dr. Furutani is so cool. She said they normally send declaw patients home the day of surgery, but she's going to let him stay overnight. According to our estimate, she's only charging us for "Cage Occupancy". Cage Occupancy is what they charge for the cage they keep the animals in, post-surgery, until their owners pick them up on the same day. When my dad had his stroke in 2006, it happened to coincide with the very same day we had to pick Chester up from the vet after having some procedures done for his urinary tract problems. When she called to let us know that Chester was ready to be picked up, I told her about my dad and she said not to worry about Chester and that they would keep him overnight. She didn't charge us for the stay.)
- Thursday, April 17th: Pick Benny up after 1PM.
In preparation for Benny's post-surgery recovery, we need to make some changes to their litter box situation. Benny can't use clay litter until his incisions heal. So, I need to find some Yesterday's News cat litter and replace their old litter with it. I'm going to hit up K-mart and Pet's Discount tomorrow after work. I'm not sure how they'll adjust to the new litter.
I'm wondering if we may need to lock Benny in our bedroom. The last time he had this surgery, the vet recommended he be confined so Chester doesn't bother him and also wanted to limit his physical activity, such as running and leaping, so that the incisions could heal. He was miserable being locked up in our room. :(
The estimated charges total $351.37! It includes the surgery, anesthesia, cardiac monitor, radiograph, pain meds, and overnight stay. Man, when it rains, it pours! We need to pay off our Ihilani weekend and our car insurance premiums are also due early next month! Sheesh! I wish we had pet health insurance or something. :P
Here's the "schedule":
- Tuesday, April 15th: No food after 6PM, no water after Midnight. Cats sometimes get sick if they don't have an empty stomach while under anesthesia. Since we can't really separate Benny and Chester, looks like Chester will be fasting, too. He is not going to be happy. :P
- Wednesday, April 16th: Drop Benny off at the vet at 7AM. Since Brian will be sleeping by then, I'll take Benny and go in to work a couple hours late. I wonder if "Care of a furbaby" (versus "Care of a Family Member") qualifies as sick leave? Benny will stay overnight so he can get some much-needed post-surgery rest without Chester terrorizing him. :P
(Dr. Furutani is so cool. She said they normally send declaw patients home the day of surgery, but she's going to let him stay overnight. According to our estimate, she's only charging us for "Cage Occupancy". Cage Occupancy is what they charge for the cage they keep the animals in, post-surgery, until their owners pick them up on the same day. When my dad had his stroke in 2006, it happened to coincide with the very same day we had to pick Chester up from the vet after having some procedures done for his urinary tract problems. When she called to let us know that Chester was ready to be picked up, I told her about my dad and she said not to worry about Chester and that they would keep him overnight. She didn't charge us for the stay.)
- Thursday, April 17th: Pick Benny up after 1PM.
In preparation for Benny's post-surgery recovery, we need to make some changes to their litter box situation. Benny can't use clay litter until his incisions heal. So, I need to find some Yesterday's News cat litter and replace their old litter with it. I'm going to hit up K-mart and Pet's Discount tomorrow after work. I'm not sure how they'll adjust to the new litter.
I'm wondering if we may need to lock Benny in our bedroom. The last time he had this surgery, the vet recommended he be confined so Chester doesn't bother him and also wanted to limit his physical activity, such as running and leaping, so that the incisions could heal. He was miserable being locked up in our room. :(
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Benny needs surgery :(
I'm so sad. Benny will need to have surgery to fix the front paw declawing he had 8 years ago.
4 years ago, he had to have surgery on a few of his toes on both front paws. Apparently, when the vet declawed him 8 years ago, she used the Resco Clipper Declaw Method. This entails using a guillotine-type nail trimmer to cut through the bone of the 3rd digit of the toe, from which the claw grows. Since the part of the bone from which the claw grows is removed, the idea is that the cat's claws no longer grow back (in most cases).
However, complications can arise from this method. In Benny's case, he had bone spurs in his toes as a result of the amputation of his 3rd digits. The bone spurs can cause quite a bit of discomfort and we later learned that Benny was licking, biting, and chewing at the affected toes in an effort to find relief. At the time, the solution was surgery on the infected toes to remove any bone spurs or debris. The vet didn't mention just performing a Disarticulation of all of his toes to completely remove the 3rd digit so there would be no recurrence of the bone spur problem. Had I known this was an option at the time, we would have done this.
Fast forward 4 years to today, Benny is having this problem again! On Sunday night, I noticed Benny was limping a little and would sit with his right paw in the air. I thought he was trying to be cute, but I noticed his paw looked funny. Brian grabbed him and I got a closer look. One of his toes was red, swollen and kind of purple and bruised looking. I knew exactly what was going on and called our new vet--not the same one from 4 years ago--first thing yesterday morning. Unfortunately, she was booked and couldn't see Benny until this afternoon.
We took Benny in and Dr. Furutani confirmed my suspicions. She got a close look at his toe and said it was infected and abscessed. She prescribed Benny some antibiotics to clear up the infection. She said we could either let it go and hope for the best once the infection cleared up, or go ahead and do the disarticulation on all of his toes to avoid another recurrence in the future. Benny is 8 years old now and I fear that if this problem comes up again in another 4 years, he'll just be too old and not recover as well from surgery. I really wish we had been presented with this option 4 years ago. We could have been done with all of this and Benny wouldn't have to suffer.
So, the plan is to wait until Benny's infection clears up and then go ahead with the disarticulation surgery for the rest of his toes.
I really feel terrible. Due to circumstances, I really had no control over the decision to declaw Benny and Chester 8 years ago. (BTW, Chester has never had problems with his toes...knock on wood. He was "blessed" with other problems--deafness and chronic urinary tract problems. I pray that Chester doesn't end up with this problem down the line. *sigh*) If we ever have another cat in the future, I REFUSE to declaw. We will find alternative ways to control unwanted scratching.
*** stepping down from my soap box ***
4 years ago, he had to have surgery on a few of his toes on both front paws. Apparently, when the vet declawed him 8 years ago, she used the Resco Clipper Declaw Method. This entails using a guillotine-type nail trimmer to cut through the bone of the 3rd digit of the toe, from which the claw grows. Since the part of the bone from which the claw grows is removed, the idea is that the cat's claws no longer grow back (in most cases).
However, complications can arise from this method. In Benny's case, he had bone spurs in his toes as a result of the amputation of his 3rd digits. The bone spurs can cause quite a bit of discomfort and we later learned that Benny was licking, biting, and chewing at the affected toes in an effort to find relief. At the time, the solution was surgery on the infected toes to remove any bone spurs or debris. The vet didn't mention just performing a Disarticulation of all of his toes to completely remove the 3rd digit so there would be no recurrence of the bone spur problem. Had I known this was an option at the time, we would have done this.
Fast forward 4 years to today, Benny is having this problem again! On Sunday night, I noticed Benny was limping a little and would sit with his right paw in the air. I thought he was trying to be cute, but I noticed his paw looked funny. Brian grabbed him and I got a closer look. One of his toes was red, swollen and kind of purple and bruised looking. I knew exactly what was going on and called our new vet--not the same one from 4 years ago--first thing yesterday morning. Unfortunately, she was booked and couldn't see Benny until this afternoon.
We took Benny in and Dr. Furutani confirmed my suspicions. She got a close look at his toe and said it was infected and abscessed. She prescribed Benny some antibiotics to clear up the infection. She said we could either let it go and hope for the best once the infection cleared up, or go ahead and do the disarticulation on all of his toes to avoid another recurrence in the future. Benny is 8 years old now and I fear that if this problem comes up again in another 4 years, he'll just be too old and not recover as well from surgery. I really wish we had been presented with this option 4 years ago. We could have been done with all of this and Benny wouldn't have to suffer.
So, the plan is to wait until Benny's infection clears up and then go ahead with the disarticulation surgery for the rest of his toes.
I really feel terrible. Due to circumstances, I really had no control over the decision to declaw Benny and Chester 8 years ago. (BTW, Chester has never had problems with his toes...knock on wood. He was "blessed" with other problems--deafness and chronic urinary tract problems. I pray that Chester doesn't end up with this problem down the line. *sigh*) If we ever have another cat in the future, I REFUSE to declaw. We will find alternative ways to control unwanted scratching.
*** stepping down from my soap box ***
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Recap of Our Weekend of "Heavenly Splendor"
Ihilani translates to "Heavenly Splendor". It certainly lives up to its name every time we go there.
Friday, March 28th
I was still feeling under the weather on Friday night, but we agreed that we should tidy up so that we return to a (somewhat) clean house come Monday. I somehow managed to do some chores, a bunch of laundry, and began packing before finally heading off to bed after midnight. I was dead tired and really should have gone to bed earlier.
Saturday, March 29th
Brian didn't get home until almost 5:30AM. When he got home, I woke up and had that darn sore throat/post-nasal drip thing again! Gaaah! Brian gave me some Benadryl and I knocked out until about 11:30AM. I had planned to wake up early to finish packing and put away the laundry. Oh well. I woke up feeling a little groggy, but my sore throat was better. Brian didn't wake up until 1PM and we still needed to pack all of his stuff! But, he really didn't feel the same sense of urgency that I did and he instead watched TV and played with this Pachinko machine (yes, a Pachinko machine) he brought home from work that morning. Silly boys. :P We finally left after 2:00 and headed to Ko Olina.
We arrived at the Ihilani shortly before our 3PM check-in. We pulled up to the lobby and I waited for the valet to approach our car, which is what normally happens, right? Well, there were no other cars around and the valet was schmoozing with this chick who was waiting with a bunch of other people. After a few seconds, it was clear he was on a different planet so I opened my door and got out. He finally snapped out of it and saw us. He didn't even skip a beat. I think he thought we spontaneously materialized out of nowhere and appeared right at the second he snapped out of it. I was a little annoyed, but that quickly passed as we entered the Ihilani lobby. Is it silly that I hear angels sing when I enter the Ihilani's grand foyer/atrium? :P
As always, the front desk was very friendly. We were given little, cold, moist towels (real towels, not wet naps or something :P) to freshen up with while the front desk guy checked us in. When he was ready to give us our room keys, he came out from behind the front desk to hand us our keys, confirm our room rate, and tell us how to get to our room. I opened the little pocketfold thingy to see what our room number was and saw "1710". Holy smokes! That's the top floor. I was so excited!
When we arrived at our room, we noticed that all of the rooms on the floor were marked as "PURE Allergy Friendly Rooms".
Since we had the Ihilani Suite during our last stay, I didn't quite know what to expect from our Deluxe Ocean View Room. I knew the rooms were over-sized and I had seen photos, but I just couldn't picture what it would be like.
Upon entering the room, we opened the glass sliding doors to the lanai. Although it was a bit cloudy and gray that afternoon, we were still greeted by these amazing views!!!
Strangely enough, although we were on the top floor of the hotel, we could still hear the water sloshing and waves crashing, loud and clear, as if we were right there standing on the beach! It was really neat.
After checking out the view, Brian made a bee-line for the TV and found a tennis ball behind the TV.
Brian, tossing that tennis ball in the air while watching TV
I, on the other hand, was eager to check out the rest of the room. It had a small foyer with a nice bar and mirrors. I opened up the bar and found a little refrigerator, snacks, and a little safe.
The bathroom was to the left of the entrance. It was very spacious and luxurious, with a private water closet, 2 vanities, a European soaking tub, and separate glass shower.
The bedroom itself was quite large. Larger than I was expecting. We had a king-sized bed, sofa, chair, coffee table and desk. Very nice.
After getting settled, one of the staff members came by to drop off some chocolate covered strawberries for us to enjoy, along with a little note.
Note: There were 6 strawberries, but Brian snagged one before I had a chance to grab my camera
This other note from our wedding event manager, Terri Hyden, also got delivered later in the evening.
We bummed around for a bit and headed down to Ushio-Tei for our 5:30PM dinner reservation. (For the Knotties: I'm happy to report that I wore my wedding day shoes to dinner--last time I wore them was on my wedding day--with a nice pair of dark blue jeans, Aqua-ish floral-print Cinnamon Girl blouse and cream-colored cardigan. I'm definitely no fashionista, but I was quite impressed that I was able to throw together a pretty decent look with stuff I already had. Sadly, I have no photos to show for it as it didn't occur to me to get Brian to take one.)
When we arrived, I was thrilled to see a familiar face. Cheyeanne, whom we first met last year at our rehearsal dinner, was working that night and took good care of us, as always. After our rehearsal dinner, we returned to Ushio-Tei 2 or 3 more times, but had not seen her since last June so it was so wonderful to catch up with her. We even exchanged e-mail addresses. I'm not sure what the heck it was, but we just hit it off the very first time we met and seem to be able to pick up right where we left off every time we see each other. (Note to self: Take a photo with her next time. Duh!) We found out that Cheyeanne's own wedding anniversary is only 5 days before ours!
Brian and I both had our usual, the Tabehodai (all-you-can-eat) buffet. Here's the buffet menu for Saturdays:
COLD ITEMS
Seafood Salad
Rice Paper Roll with Tuna
Oriental Soba
Tsukemono (Japanese Pickles)
Ahi Poke
Assorted Sashimi
Assorted Maki and Inari Sushi
HOT ITEMS
Chicken Miso Yaki
Seafood Steamer Basket
Salmon Teriyaki
Wafu Steak
Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura
Tonkatsu (Breaded Pork Loin)
Steamed Rice
Miso Soup
Included in the buffet is an amazing selection of petite desserts--too many to list here, but I could only manage to eat a honeydew melon panna cotta and creme brulee.
We didn't do too well with the buffet this time. Cheyeanne told Brian that they had a new beer in called Koshihikari Echigo, which is made from a premium Japanese rice. Brian was interested and Cheyeanne returned with a 17 oz. bottle of the stuff, which Brian really ended up enjoying. I think, perhaps, he should have stuck with water. I think the Koshihikari, oh, and the Kirin he chased it with, were just too filling for him and he was done with the buffet after 1-1/2 visits.
I also chose poorly and had 2 Samurai Sodas (I think that's what they were called), which was made with soda water and tropical juices. I had the Pineapple and Banana flavors, but probably should have stuck with water myself. I think we were just so happy to be there that we felt especially indulgent and made some choices we wouldn't have normally made. Cheyeanne really wanted to bring out a complimentary anniversary dessert for us, but we just couldn't do it. Brian started to look not-so-good. I really was afraid he would yarf right there at the table. He really just needed to lie down. I was so bummed. I was really looking forward to the same tempura fried ice cream Cheyeanne gave us at our rehearsal dinner. :( Here's a photo of it from last time:
But, I was stuffed and declared that I didn't want to see another shrimp tempura for a while. Geez, I hope it doesn't sound like I'm complaining. Believe me, we had a lot of fun, good food, and great company.
Wow, sorry this was so long! That wraps it up for Saturday. Stay tuned for the recap of Sunday and Monday! Thanks for reading!
Friday, March 28th
I was still feeling under the weather on Friday night, but we agreed that we should tidy up so that we return to a (somewhat) clean house come Monday. I somehow managed to do some chores, a bunch of laundry, and began packing before finally heading off to bed after midnight. I was dead tired and really should have gone to bed earlier.
Saturday, March 29th
Brian didn't get home until almost 5:30AM. When he got home, I woke up and had that darn sore throat/post-nasal drip thing again! Gaaah! Brian gave me some Benadryl and I knocked out until about 11:30AM. I had planned to wake up early to finish packing and put away the laundry. Oh well. I woke up feeling a little groggy, but my sore throat was better. Brian didn't wake up until 1PM and we still needed to pack all of his stuff! But, he really didn't feel the same sense of urgency that I did and he instead watched TV and played with this Pachinko machine (yes, a Pachinko machine) he brought home from work that morning. Silly boys. :P We finally left after 2:00 and headed to Ko Olina.
We arrived at the Ihilani shortly before our 3PM check-in. We pulled up to the lobby and I waited for the valet to approach our car, which is what normally happens, right? Well, there were no other cars around and the valet was schmoozing with this chick who was waiting with a bunch of other people. After a few seconds, it was clear he was on a different planet so I opened my door and got out. He finally snapped out of it and saw us. He didn't even skip a beat. I think he thought we spontaneously materialized out of nowhere and appeared right at the second he snapped out of it. I was a little annoyed, but that quickly passed as we entered the Ihilani lobby. Is it silly that I hear angels sing when I enter the Ihilani's grand foyer/atrium? :P
As always, the front desk was very friendly. We were given little, cold, moist towels (real towels, not wet naps or something :P) to freshen up with while the front desk guy checked us in. When he was ready to give us our room keys, he came out from behind the front desk to hand us our keys, confirm our room rate, and tell us how to get to our room. I opened the little pocketfold thingy to see what our room number was and saw "1710". Holy smokes! That's the top floor. I was so excited!
When we arrived at our room, we noticed that all of the rooms on the floor were marked as "PURE Allergy Friendly Rooms".
Since we had the Ihilani Suite during our last stay, I didn't quite know what to expect from our Deluxe Ocean View Room. I knew the rooms were over-sized and I had seen photos, but I just couldn't picture what it would be like.
Upon entering the room, we opened the glass sliding doors to the lanai. Although it was a bit cloudy and gray that afternoon, we were still greeted by these amazing views!!!
Strangely enough, although we were on the top floor of the hotel, we could still hear the water sloshing and waves crashing, loud and clear, as if we were right there standing on the beach! It was really neat.
After checking out the view, Brian made a bee-line for the TV and found a tennis ball behind the TV.
Brian, tossing that tennis ball in the air while watching TVI, on the other hand, was eager to check out the rest of the room. It had a small foyer with a nice bar and mirrors. I opened up the bar and found a little refrigerator, snacks, and a little safe.
The bathroom was to the left of the entrance. It was very spacious and luxurious, with a private water closet, 2 vanities, a European soaking tub, and separate glass shower.
The bedroom itself was quite large. Larger than I was expecting. We had a king-sized bed, sofa, chair, coffee table and desk. Very nice.
After getting settled, one of the staff members came by to drop off some chocolate covered strawberries for us to enjoy, along with a little note.
This other note from our wedding event manager, Terri Hyden, also got delivered later in the evening.
We bummed around for a bit and headed down to Ushio-Tei for our 5:30PM dinner reservation. (For the Knotties: I'm happy to report that I wore my wedding day shoes to dinner--last time I wore them was on my wedding day--with a nice pair of dark blue jeans, Aqua-ish floral-print Cinnamon Girl blouse and cream-colored cardigan. I'm definitely no fashionista, but I was quite impressed that I was able to throw together a pretty decent look with stuff I already had. Sadly, I have no photos to show for it as it didn't occur to me to get Brian to take one.)
When we arrived, I was thrilled to see a familiar face. Cheyeanne, whom we first met last year at our rehearsal dinner, was working that night and took good care of us, as always. After our rehearsal dinner, we returned to Ushio-Tei 2 or 3 more times, but had not seen her since last June so it was so wonderful to catch up with her. We even exchanged e-mail addresses. I'm not sure what the heck it was, but we just hit it off the very first time we met and seem to be able to pick up right where we left off every time we see each other. (Note to self: Take a photo with her next time. Duh!) We found out that Cheyeanne's own wedding anniversary is only 5 days before ours!
Brian and I both had our usual, the Tabehodai (all-you-can-eat) buffet. Here's the buffet menu for Saturdays:
Seafood Salad
Rice Paper Roll with Tuna
Oriental Soba
Tsukemono (Japanese Pickles)
Ahi Poke
Assorted Sashimi
Assorted Maki and Inari Sushi
HOT ITEMS
Chicken Miso Yaki
Seafood Steamer Basket
Salmon Teriyaki
Wafu Steak
Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura
Tonkatsu (Breaded Pork Loin)
Steamed Rice
Miso Soup
Included in the buffet is an amazing selection of petite desserts--too many to list here, but I could only manage to eat a honeydew melon panna cotta and creme brulee.
We didn't do too well with the buffet this time. Cheyeanne told Brian that they had a new beer in called Koshihikari Echigo, which is made from a premium Japanese rice. Brian was interested and Cheyeanne returned with a 17 oz. bottle of the stuff, which Brian really ended up enjoying. I think, perhaps, he should have stuck with water. I think the Koshihikari, oh, and the Kirin he chased it with, were just too filling for him and he was done with the buffet after 1-1/2 visits.
I also chose poorly and had 2 Samurai Sodas (I think that's what they were called), which was made with soda water and tropical juices. I had the Pineapple and Banana flavors, but probably should have stuck with water myself. I think we were just so happy to be there that we felt especially indulgent and made some choices we wouldn't have normally made. Cheyeanne really wanted to bring out a complimentary anniversary dessert for us, but we just couldn't do it. Brian started to look not-so-good. I really was afraid he would yarf right there at the table. He really just needed to lie down. I was so bummed. I was really looking forward to the same tempura fried ice cream Cheyeanne gave us at our rehearsal dinner. :( Here's a photo of it from last time:
But, I was stuffed and declared that I didn't want to see another shrimp tempura for a while. Geez, I hope it doesn't sound like I'm complaining. Believe me, we had a lot of fun, good food, and great company.
Wow, sorry this was so long! That wraps it up for Saturday. Stay tuned for the recap of Sunday and Monday! Thanks for reading!
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Ihilani Weekend Recap
Okay, nearly 1 week after we left for our Ihilani anniversary weekend, I think I'm finally ready to give you all the rundown of how it went. BUT, it's going to have to wait until tomorrow. I'm actually feeling pretty tired right now and think I will actually attempt to get more than 5 hours of sleep tonight. :P Here's a little teaser photo in the meantime:
What we saw when we went out on the balcony upon our arrival
What we saw when we went out on the balcony upon our arrival
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