Out and About!

I was excited but a little suspicious they other day when Mom told me we were going for a car ride. She wouldn't possibly break one of her New Year's resolutions, would she? No, not my mom. I thought to myself that we must be going somewhere good like Popeyes but it was way too early in the morning. Do you see the school bus in the background of the picture? We left the house at 8:30 am and my worst fears were realized.

Mom tricked me into going to the vet to have my blood drawn. I have been on Previcox for my arthritis for about a month. When I was on it at the end of 2008, my kidney enzymes became elevated and I had to stop taking it. The doctor then put me on Tramadol but I hated it. It tasted bitter and Mom and Dad did every trick in the book to get the pills in my mouth - yuk!


My blood work showed that my kidney enzymes were once again elevated so bye bye Previcox. Mom was upset because I have been acting like a puppy while taking it. I have been pain free and loving life. Now I have to back to taking Tramadol or find something else to relieve my pain. I was so upset when I got in the car that I had to leave muddy paw prints all over my seat.

I was feeling okay yesterday so I told Mom and Dad that I wanted to go with them to my Uncle Greg's house. He's my favorite uncle and he was having a birthday party for my aunt. I love a party, especially if there's food, so into the car I went and we headed up to Wisconsin.

Even though it was cold outside, I insisted on having my window down in the car. I love to have the wind in my face, the cold air rushing into my ears. There are so many wonderful things to smell on the drive to Wisconsin and I'm not just talking about the farm animals. We drove right by a smokehouse and I pleaded with Dad to stop the car so we could pick up a few things but he told me that we didn't have time.

When we arrived at my uncle's house, my cousin Molly was sleeping. She's only 2 years old and she takes a nap every afternoon. Hey, I'm 11 and I nap all day long. I wonder if I only took one nap a day when I was 2. Doubt it! As soon as Molly woke up she ran into the kitchen and found me. She cannot get enough of me! We hung out in the kitchen all day - me because I was waiting for food to fall on the floor and Molly because she was stuck to me like Velcro.

Molly doesn't understand English because her mom only speaks to her in Spanish. She doesn't really talk that much but when she does it's mostly Spanish. She also can't pronounce my name so she calls me Lolly. Say what? Maybe Lolly means Stubby in Spanish. I mostly just ignored her when she talked to me because I only understand and speak English.

Mom calls Molly 'mole' because that's what it sounds like when Molly's grandmother says her name. Molly's grandma lives in Chile and I guess it's just her accent but now Mom has me calling Molly 'mole'. Mole, mole, mole. I'm getting hungry from all this mole talk.

Molly wouldn't let me rest while I was at her house. She just kept going and going. I'm sure glad we don't have any 2 year olds at our house or I would have to move out. I need my rest people! When we got home, Dad had to carry me upstairs to bed. Mom says I look like a little baby in this picture . I think the chicks will really dig it.

Thankfully, I slept in late today and by mid morning I was ready to get up because I was starving.
Before I headed downstairs to eat breakfast, I decided to practice my singing. I'm getting pretty good, don't you think? Emmitt, I'm ready for my solo!