The Cook and the Lobster

We hope everyone had a Happy Halloween. We stayed home and passed out candy. We had a lot of kids come by and were back and forth to the door all evening. (helped us work of those extra Halloween calories) Jonas wanted to see everyone that came to the door and got tons of praise and petting. He even tried to follow a few of the kids home.

We didn't dress up to pass out candy but Jonathan and Jonas dressed up for work on Friday. They turned out super cute and I wanted to share a couple of pictures.


Chef Jonathan and the lobster.

Front view.

Side profile.

Family Visits -- Joe Graduates

A few weeks ago my family got together for Joe's graduation. Mom and Dad came down from WA and Alan and Kristina came up from So. Cal. We stayed all together for a couple days and it was so much fun. (The previous post is from our family BBQ in the park.)


Here are a few pictures.

With niece and nephew . . .


With his sisters . . .


With Mom . . .

With Dad . . .


After walking in . . .

Receiving diploma . . .


Walking off the stage basking in the glory of a Master's Degree!


Beaming with the joy of accomplishment . . .

Training

Inspection of the weapons.


Cadet Amara.

Cadet Ethan


Desention in the ranks.


Joining forces to attack the enemy.

Fleeing from the enemy.

Dancing in the Park

This Saturday I got to go to Raley's Field to watch a River Cats game and see my brother Joe get his groove on. Joe is on a dance team (http://sim.dreamhost.com/index.php) sponsored by the Spotlight Dance Club in Sacramento. Part of their team performed on Saturday in-between innings at the game. I was really impressed! Joe was great out there. They performed 2 different numbers. The first one was all smooth and elegant but the second one was more spicy.

Here is Joe with the team. Check out the hips!

Getting a little sexy!

Showcasing his partner's spin.

Close up of Joe and his partner.

In action.

I wish you all could have been there. Next time you see him ask him to show you some moves.

The Only Thing to Fear . . .

As most of you know I have a slight aversion to needles--particularly those involved in blood letting of any kind.

Well, this week I had to get a blood test. As soon as my doctor mentioned it I broke out into a sweat. This was followed by an intense reprimand/pep-talk to myself.

"Anna. People get blood drawn everyday. It's not that big a deal. Don't worry about it. For heaven's sake . . . BE AN ADULT! Just suck it up! "

I called Quest Diagnostics and set up a morning appointment. I was actually feeling pretty confident when the moment arrived. (I knew I'd be in and out in five minutes.) When I got into the blue chair (why is it always a blue chair) I told the tech I was a little nervous and made a joke. A few seconds later I was out cold. Everyone was very nice about it. They were saying how common it is for people to pass out, etc. They let me rest for a while and then with one lab tech on each side I was helped/carried to a room with a cot(I started to lose consciousness again as we walked).

After resting on the cot for 10-15 mins I decided I was feeling steady and needed to use the restroom--an unfortunate choice. This is where things really went a rye. I walked to the bathroom just fine but felt like I was going to pass out again when I was in there. I called to the tech standing outside the door and she came rushing it. I laid on the floor but I kept feeling worse and worse. I had terrible stomach pain and my arms were tingling like they were asleep. The tech look really concerned and ran out momentarily to tell someone to call an ambulance.

By the time I heard the sirens I was really a mess. I was doubled over in pain and my arms were completely numb. I was waving them around and hyperventilating when the paramedics came in. The lab tech had kindly draped her lab coat over my bare behind so I wouldn't be embarrassed when they moved me onto the gurney. Oh, the indignity of it all! Actually, I was completely oblivious. I felt so awful I really wasn't paying attention to anything except the questions being asked.

They loaded me into the ambulance and I was so happy thinking that they would help me and make my pain go away. Unfortunately, no help was forthcoming. I was advised multiple times to "BREATHE" but I guaranty that was harder than it sounds. They tried to get a line into me but my blood pressure was really low and my arms were numb!--no veins!

Then things got weird. Some crazy guy on drugs started screaming and trying to climb into the ambulance. He managed to get into the cab but was pulled out. I could hear him yelling and growling and could feel the ambulance shake as he slammed into it over and over again. We had to wait for the police to come. More sirens. I have no idea what happened with that guy. As soon as the police arrived we left for the hospital. Just 2 blocks later we arrived at the emergency room (it was pretty close to the lab).

I spent the next several minutes throwing up into a pan and answering questions in between. Ten minutes later I was feeling just fine. Grrrrhhhhh! I spent the next several hours resting and being tested. I got to enjoy being stuck by 4 more needles--the cause of my being there in the first place.

In the end I was given a clean bill of health. Nothing wrong with me except for a fear of needles. On the plus side I had a great story to tell at work the next day.

Stick Figure Family

Make your Stick Figure Family at FreeFlashToys.com

All For A Good Cause

On June 6th, Jonathan and I will participating in the San Francisco "Take Steps for Crohn's & Colitis Walk."

Jonathan was diagnosed with Crohn's disease when he was 16 years old. It is a painful digestive disease that can cause ulcerated sores anywere throughout a person's digestive tract. Currently there is no cure but people that suffer from this disease experience alterating periods of remittance and inflamation throughout their lifes. Treatment includes medication, surgery to remove "problem" areas (colon, intestine, etc) and even radiation.

This walk is meant to raise funds for research. We are asking for donations from friends and family. No obligation--any amount would be wonderful.

We are on a 3 member team called "Clare". It will be Jonathan, me and a friend of ours from church. If you are able to make a donation just go to the link below.

http://online.ccfa.org/site/TR/Walk/Chapter-NorthernCalifornia?px=1534068&pg=personal&fr_id=1264&et=mwJqW-KNNuNGmqgZkmTFFA..&s_tafId=1892

Thanks!

Update on Jonas:

Well Jonas is back to his old self. He is running and playing and wagging his tail. He's also been gobbling food like the bottomless pit he is.

His breathing is pretty much back to normal. He has been clearing the fluid in his lungs. Unfortunately, he has been clearing it on our carpet. It's easy to clean up but wow is it gross to step in -- I think I win the prize at 3 times last night. Eeeeewwwww!

But we love him. Thanks everyone for your concern and well wishes.

--Big friendly lick from Jonas to you.

Breaking Our Hearts

It's been a difficult couple of days at the Clare house. Yesterday morning when we woke up Jonathan noticed that our new dog Jonas was breathing funny. I wasn't too concerned until I tried to feed him breakfast. No interest at all--and Jonas LOVES food. A Lot! We knew something was very wrong.

I called the vet and took him straight over. Poor little guy. The initial assessment was that it was heart disease. We were devastated. We thought we were going to lose our sweet Jonas. However, after an ultrasound, multiple X-rays, and blood work they ruled out heart disease ($1000 later, grrrrrrhhh). They found a lot of fluid in his lungs but otherwise a clean bill of health. They said his heart has a small defect but it's strong and should not pose a problem for him. Unfortunately they don't know why his lungs are filled with fluid. When I came to pick him up at the end of the day everyone referred to him as the "mystery dog." In other words, there was no diagnosis. The vet's theory is that he probably ingested rat poison 2-3 weeks ago (before we got him). Apparently rat poison causes internal damage but isn't noticeable until roughly 2-3 weeks after it is eaten.

The vet sent us home with some medication to clear up the fluid and an antibiotic--"to cover the bases." Although we are so happy to know that Jonas will be alright it's breaking our hearts to have him home. When I picked him up his breathing was worse than it had been when I brought him in. All last night he was struggling. He refused to eat or drink and would barely move. We tried to make him comfortable. We got him to take his pills with peanut butter (clearly not sick enough to pass up peanut butter!) I got him to drink a little water by dipping my fingers in his water dish and having him lick them. He was clearly exhausted. All his energy was spent on breathing.

It was painful to watch. Both Jonathan and I ended up in tears at different points in the evening. Jonathan was able to give Jonas some relief by holding his head between his hands. Jonas seemed to relax and breathe a little easier. That was about 1:00 am. It was a long night.

Jonas is doing a lot better today. His breathing is still labored but he is eating small amounts, walking a little bit (very slowly), and drinking water. I'm feeling a lot more confident about his recovery. We definitely had our doubts yesterday.

We have only had Jonas for a week and a half but we are so happy to have him. His sweet personality has melted our hearts and we can't imagine life without him. We are so grateful for him and are pleased to know he'll be with us for a long time to come.

New Addition!

No, don't go buy us burp cloths and booties . . .

We got a dog! We have been working through the doggy adoption process for a week and we finally picked up our fuzzy pal yesterday. His name is Jonas and he is a 2 year old dachshund. Here are a couple of pictures of me and Jonas.





Jonas has red hair with some dark brown in there two. He has a white chest and white toes. He loves to give kisses and go for walks. And he adores food--the smell of food--any activity in the kitchen--the opening of any bag or container that might contain food--any remote possiblity of food. In other words he is highly motivated by "treats" which should be really helpful for training.

We are so happy to have Jonas in our family. He is a sweetheart! He hardly ever barks. He sleeps on his doggy bed while we are sleeping without whining or trying to climb into our bed. He doesn't need constant interaction (although he loves attention) but he is content to be wherever we are. He also loves to fall asleep in our laps (as you can see above.)

For those of you concerned about our cat Dante . . . rest assured. They won't be friends but they don't seem to care about each other. They can pass by each other without barking or hissing. We think this is a good sign.