Updates and Pupdates

Wow - I'm really sucking at keeping this blog updated.  I guess the good news is that I'm feeling great, don't even think about having CF and busy living my life.

Unfortunately my time is mostly spent caring for my bulldogs.  They are getting older and basically falling apart - when I think one is fine, the other has an issue and vice versa.  So I might as well turn this into a quick summary of me and a pupdate.  

Janauary

It was a pretty quiet month.  Will got Covid, but did fine.  We kept him quarantined to the pool house, so I managed not to get it! yay!  I went to visit my bestie that got a kidney transplant in December. So we enjoyed a few days of hanging at the house and bingeing some tv - it was perfect.  And she is doing amazing, so I couldn't ask for more!  Then me and 4 girlfriends went to Greenville, SC to see Reba in concert!  Oh to be packed in with thousands of people again - it was great to feel normal but a bit freaky too! 

Stella had an oncology appointment and we got great news that her lungs were clear and she's doing fabulous.  

Reba Concert!🎤

February

We went on a trip! Will and I went to South Padre Island to visit his aunt and uncle (which we do every year, except for 2021). It was a fabulous time eating and drinking but the weather was crap! Cold and windy!  The rest of the month was pretty quiet.

Day trip to Mexico! 

March

We pretty much had something going on every weekend.  We had the Bully Ball, went to a Cole Swindell concert, had Steeplechase and Will went on a work trip.  I also took a few days away with a friend to visit their place in Clemson.  Not a fan of the Clemson Tigers, but the town is a lot of fun, and the campus is absolutely beautiful....made me wish I went there (except for the whole thing of it being Clemson...lol).  I spent a few days at my dad's in Knoxville with the family - my niece and nephew had their spring break so we did lots of fun things around Knoxville.

The Bully Ball 🐾

The Lost Sea with the family

A chilly day at Steeplechase 🏇

The biggest news was Stella celebrating 1 year as a tripawd!  This milestone seemed so far away in March 2021 when I was so full of fear and worry about her cancer.  I should have thrown her a party!  Sarge unfortunately started feeling crappy - he was having labored breathing and just not right.  We went in to our local vet and long story short needed to see a cardiologist where they diagnosed him with cardiomyopathy AND and heart base mass.  WTF!

I had to torture them with sweaters and a photo shoot.

April

Started with a day at the Masters - always a great time!  Will had a Vegas trip and then we spent a long weekend at camp.

Happy Easter!

Mostly busy with dog activities.  Sarge went to see the Oncologist (same one Stella uses) to get evaluated for the heart mass.  We decided to start a medicine called Palladia that has been known to shrink these types of masses, which the goal would be to make him more comfortable.  Then on 4/25, both pups went for a follow-up.  Sarge was doing well on the meds, but he started limping the week prior, which also led to a vet visit and x-rays which indicated arthritis in his front elbow.  So we took a week off the Palladia to pump him up with anti-inflammatory meds to help the arthritis.  So far, so good.

Stella had her regular check up which sadly revealed a nodule in her lung.  Crazy that January was clear, but just 3 short months later that bastard appeared.  I'm so mad!  My girl has been kicking ass and then stupid cancer had to show back up.  Looking back she had coughed a few times in the weeks leading up, but bulldogs make lots of strange noises so I wasn't overly concerned.  We are going to try another type of chemo to slow this nodule's growth down.  It's a daily pill that I give each morning after breakfast - she's been on it 10 days already and is doing phenomenal.  Zero side effects! So, I'm hoping that continues.

Both goofballs go back 5/16 for a check up!

Water break at the vet!

That pretty much sums up life around our house!.

And somewhere in this crazy life, I started a new CF Study.  This one is studying CF, exercise and CF related diabetes.  Having CF and also a nephew that is Type-1, how could I say no?!  I will say, when I did my max test on the exercise bike, I feel like I did better than I ever have.  So, thank you Peloton for keeping my cycling skills top notch!

All hooked up for the study

That's really all...I think 😉