Farewell Bijou

Our dear sweet Bijou died on Saturday morning.

Her diabetes had been uncontrollable, but she had been coping pretty well with it. However, Thursday she seemed extra tired, and I gave her extra snuggles that night thinking her end was near. That evening at about 10:30 she began having seizures, and Michael rushed her to the kitty ER. Her blood sugar had completely crashed and it appeared she was having hypoglycemic seizures. At this point we thought that this might be a good sign that we were closing in on the right dose of insulin for her and that we just needed to give her less.

However, treatment could not bring up her blood sugar, and throughout the night and Friday it became clear that something else was going on. The vets believe it was most likely a brain or pituitary tumor that was interfering with her body's ability to regulate hormones. This would explain why we were never able to regulate her diabetes; the diabetes was a symptom of something else. Friday evening Michael and I and Zane went to spend some time with her.

For a while late Friday night she rallied a bit, and we were thinking it might instead be a pancreatic tumor called an insulinoma, which could be removed once she stabilized. However, by Saturday morning she was having seizure after seizure, and it was clear her brain was involved. We knew it was time to let her go. Michael and Zane and I went, and we spent about 45 minutes with her in a private room, just holding her, helping her through seizures, washing her, and loving her. She died peacefully in my arms. Zane was fantastic through the whole experience, being very quiet and entertaining himself.

We took her home, washed her and dried her, and laid her out in state in the living room. We tried to get JoJo to say goodbye, but she wouldn't come out from behind the couch. It was very therapeutic for us to clean her body and make her ready for burial. We let her be in sunbeams for the last time.

We buried her in the back yard next to the lilac, in a shady spot she often would sleep in during hot summer days. It's comforting to look out there and know she is there.

We are very sad, and many small things around the house continually remind us of her. However, we know she had a wonderful life, and we did everything we could to treat her illness. When it was time to go, we let her. Zane has been a ray of sunshine during this sad time. Saturday night he got extra clowny at night. I think he was bored with the somber mood and ready to be happy again!

Requiescat in Pace, Bijou. We love you.

All of her blog posts are here.

Sicko

First, good news. Zane is getting very dexterous and can feed himself with a bottle if he's lying down. He can hold it, and take it out of his mouth and put it back in. He's also really lifting himself way up on his arms, and starting to get his butt up in the air. Crawling is on the horizon!

We're dealing with a cold this weekend. Thursday I dropped Zane off at daycare and I saw a baby boy sitting there with a massively snotty face. Hmm, I thought, we'll be seeing that at home soon. Yep, Friday night Zane started getting cranky and by early Saturday morning he was snotty. Oh well, I guess that's part of what daycare is all about. Helps build his immune system. Poor Zane got so tired and stuffed that yesterday he wouldn't eat for several hours, which worried me. Some trial and error has made me think he needs to get enough sleep before he will eat, so I'll try to focus more on that today. Yesterday I had to put him in his stroller and go for a walk to get him to rest, and I'll probably do that again today just to make sure he gets good sleep. Zane is such a trooper, though. As long as he is distracted with fun, he stays the happy boy he usually is. It's just very tiring and intense. Yesterday I was covered with snot and saliva, tired, hungry, thirsty, unshowered and still in my PJs at 2pm. I hadn't been able to clean up after pets, and I may have forgotten Bijou's insulin. When Michael got up I finally got a little break.

Oh, and Bijou, poor Bijou. It turns out we're not getting any where near controlling her diabetes. She now is pissing in the living room. Plus bouts of colitis which give her foul diarrhea from hell. I bought a carpet steam cleaner, and cleaned her pee spots, but she just peed there again. Sometimes poop falls out of her butt onto the floor when she gets out of the litter box before she's done. I don't know if her problems are all physical or also some dementia. I think once the weather warms up the house is really going to reek. And then, of course, JoJo has to have sludge butt attacks, too. I'm constantly cleaning up someone's pee, poop, or spit up. Yay.

On a more peaceful note, here is Zane helping Michael wake up:

This has been my last full week home with Zane. Tuesday he'll be in daycare from 1:30 to 9:30! This week we had our last Tuesday night bath. Zane usually goes to bed at 9:30, so I don't know how disruptive this will be. He'll also be in daycare from 9:30-6:30 most Thursdays and Fridays. This week is also my first weekend on, so I'll be away from him a lot. It will be very hard on me! And Zane and Michael will have a crash course in full days of togetherness. It'll be good for both of them. For me? Not so much.

Bijou Update

It has been very discouraging over the past months in that we have not been able to get Bijou's diabetes under control. She's had many, many all-day visits to the vets to check her blood sugar levels, she's been shaved and had an ultrasound, and we even switched types of insulin, but nothing seemed to be working.

Today we got good news! For the first time, Bijou's blood sugar levels are finally coming down. We are on a new insulin and are closing in on the right dosage. Yay! She'll still need to go back to the vets a few more times over the next month to check her levels and get her dosages adjusted, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. She'll still need two shots daily for the rest of her life, but hopefully she'll pep up, reverse the neuropathy in her limbs, and stop drinking and peeing so much. Hopefully we can move her litter box back downstairs so it is no longer in the living room. Right now litter gets tracked all over.

Today I went to a meeting and Zane went to his daycare for the first time for about 5 hours. It seemed to go well! He'll go once a week for the rest of the month to help him (and me!) get used to it before he goes for three long days a week starting in February.

Boom Boom Crash!

Last night we went to a World of Martial Arts exhibition, and Zane met many of Michael's Kung Fu friends. We didn't stay for the whole thing, but at the very beginning was a Lion Dance with a pounding drum and clashing cymbals. Every time the music would start, all of Zane's arms and legs shot out and quivered. It was pretty funny! He didn't seem at all upset, just very, very stimulated. After a while I covered his ears. He seemed more into the music than the lion dancers. Today I got out a tamborine for him, and he loved scratching his hands on the drum head and tinkling the cymbols. So far, Zane likes banjos and tamborines and hates violin and flute. Not a classical scholar so far. He also likes to play with gaudy fabrics, so maybe he needs his tastes refined a bit:This week has been record-breaking cold in Seattle (nothing for you Maine folks, just in the 20s). Bijou and JoJo have been sacked out by the heaters all day:
Tuesday Zane has his 4 month check up and shots. I'll report back!

Sweet Bijou

Friday I found out that our cat Bijou has diabetes. The normal blood glucose levels are 80 - 150, and her level is 730. Yesterday I went into the vets' and learned to give her insulin injections, which I will give her twice a day. It's not as bad as I imagined, as the needle is tiny and she doesn't even seem to notice.

Bijou is 15 1/2, so it is not unusual that something like this would come up. Her kidneys are also on the downward slide, but not so bad as the diabetes.

Poor Bijou! First we get a rabbit, then we get a baby, and now she has diabetes! She seems low energy, drinks tons of water and is pissing like a race horse. The insulin should take care of the water intake and output. For the low energy, I think I just need to spare he more of my attention.

Five Weeks

Well not a lot has happened since the one month post. As you can see from today, being 5 weeks old is a lot of work which requires napping. Here he's watching football with Michael, giving me a much needed break.

The biggest difference I notice this week is that Zane is definitely smiling at us now! That is really wonderful. I thought he might be, and then one day he woke up from a nap to see me leaning over him, and he opened his mouth in a big wide smile! He's doing it more and more often, and we are also playing monkey-see-monkey-do with face expressions, which is pretty fun. He also looks at things more intently now, so I think his vision is really sharpening up.

Today I jokingly told Bijou to keep an eye on Zane, and when I came back into the living room I saw this:What a good guard kitty! Actually, she was staring at JoJo who is hiding behind a chair ...

Ugh

Shit. It's hot. Seattle is in the midst of a loooong heat wave. We don't usually get those, and I'm not usually pregnant, so it's a little extra sticky this year. We're supposed to get up to 101 today and cool off to 95 by Sunday.

I think the worst hit in our family is JoJo, though. Bijou, Michael, and I can all sweat, but Bun can't. Michael and I can slosh around in cool water, but Bun doesn't like that, although Michael does wet her head throughout the day. Bijou is smart enough to move to the lower part of the house where it's cool, or go sit in the shade, but Bun is not so clever. We pile ice packs around her, but she won't actually snuggle up to them. Poor Bun.

I'm not sure if it's the heat, but my Night Blooming Cereus has bloomed early this year. I got one bloom a couple of weeks ago, two more last week, and then another this week. I see another bud getting ready. I thought they were supposed to all bloom at once! Oh well, the heat is making everyone cranky.

Lilacs, Kicks, and Nesting

My lilac finally bloomed this year! I'm so happy, as I really love lilacs. When I moved into this house there was a beautiful old lilac hanging over the back fence from the neighbor's yard. It was neglected, but I tried to keep "my" part trimmed and pruned. The house is a rental, and tenants often make a stab at gardening and then let the yard languish. One new set of tenants got all gung-ho and decided they were going to put a compost heap in where the lilac was. They asked me if I minded if they cut it down. I truthfully said I'd really miss it. They slowly hacked it apart with what looked like an electric carving knife. Then they left it half dead and never put in the compost heap. Big surprise. Morning glory vines re-colonized the place. It made me sick at heart! Three years ago I put in my own baby lilac and finally got some blooms this year! I feel like my yard is complete again. Ahhhh.

A couple of people have said they were eagerly awaiting my next update! Wow, I didn't really know if anyone was out there! I do belly updates every three weeks, so look for an update on Wednesday!

I've been slowly organizing and cleaning spaces to make room for The Bean and his stuff. I was finally able to make a visible contribution to his room. I cleaned out a bureau, lined the drawers, put some little clothes and blankets in it, and topped it all off with some stuffed animals. He has three bunnies, a wombat, a small rhino, and a wooden crocodile waiting for him.

The Bean has been kicking a lot. The other night I was sleeping on my side, and Bijou was snuggled next to me partially propped up on my belly. Then The Bean woke up and gave her a good kick. She moved away, like what the heck was that! I figure this is only the first instance of the boy bothering her. Bijou's probably got a lot of future annoyance coming her way. She'll probably love all the blankies and sleeping places, though.

Happy Birthday, Squeaky-Ji!

On Cinco de Mayo my beautiful Bijou turned 15! She's the oldest cat I've had so far, and she's still going strong! May she be around for many more years.

Togetherness

My brother Brady was out visiting for a week before heading up to Skagway, AK for a summer of guiding cruise ship tourists on hikes and river rafting. I tired him out with trips to music stores, thrift stores, REI, restaurants, the gym, a honky tonk dive, the farmers' market, and string band class. I think I've made a pretty good case for Seattle as a great place to live. It would be nice to have another family member here!

Since Brady was here, I decided we might as well go ahead and have an Easter dinner! We're not a religious family, but Easter was always a time to have a good meal together. I meant to make the super delicious Kahlua ham I've made twice for Christmas, but I got to the liquor store too late to get Kahlua. We had to settle for the regular honey glaze that comes with the ham. And now we will eat ham for the next month. Good protein!





















Spring has slowly been warming up Seattle. As long as the sun can break through the clouds, we get a little warmth. When the sun hides, we go back to shivering. Bijou has been following the sunbeams around the house, which JoJo loves since one sunbeam goes right through her zone. JoJo loves the company!

Whither Spring?

Sigh. One of the reasons I don't miss Maine is that Spring comes to Seattle so much earlier. We've had crocuses, daffodils, snowdrops, and primroses for a month or more. But dang it's still cold! I want warm sunshine! And Bijou and JoJo agree:
We should all be out in the yard basking in the sunshine and enjoying the first outside (non-alcoholic) beer of the year. But no, we're snuggled up to heaters and still sleeping on flannel sheets. Cold rain, cold rain, cold rain, and sometimes slush from the sky. Most years I have to really restrain myself from putting my houseplants out before April 1st. This year I think I might even need to wait a few weeks longer. Well, hopefully we'll be repaid by an absolutely fabulous summer.

Whine whine whine

Happy Winter!

Usually the first day of winter in Seattle is just another cold rainy fall-like day. Well not this year! We're in the midst of a series of snow, wind, and ice storms that have paralyzed Seattle. And the weather has been freezing or below, to boot! That's pretty normal for some parts of the U.S., but not here.

Bijou and JoJo have been mostly cooped up inside and are getting antsy. Our usual routine in the mornings (when I don't work) is to go into the backyard for 20 minutes or so to stretch legs and catch up on the smell news by sniffing everything. JoJo also needs to check out her excavated burrow and make sure it's still open. Well this week I've been going out to feed the birds and defrost their bird bath, and JoJo and Bijou come out but don't stay long. They both seem pretty irritated by the snow, although JoJo has dug around in it and eaten some. And JoJo is finally camouflaged!

Here's a short video of JoJo in the snow:


For the rest of the day Bijou sleeps on her bed in front of our heater and JoJo lounges behind the couch or on her pile of blankets in the livingroom. In the two and a half years we've owned JoJo, she's never shown the slightest interest in any of the heaters, but it's been so cold that yesterday evening (while Bijou snoozed in a comforter on the couch) JoJo had a bath and a nap on Bijou's heater bed for 40 minutes! We've never seen her do anything like it before. I guess the house is cold!


The poor birds in the backyard have been cold. I've been pouring hot water in their bath every day, making sure they have food, and defrosting the hummingbird feeder. The Anna's hummingbird overwinters in Seattle, and I have at least two that visit my feeder. I've been very worried about them in this extended cold weather, but today I saw one at my feeder again, and that made me very happy.

The other birds have really been enjoying the warm water in their bird bath:


I've talked to my Mom on the East coast, and they're having snowstorms, too. Well, wherever you are, take a cue from the animals and roast yourself in front of a heater, have a hot bath, and drink sugar water. Merry Squidmas!

Photo Roundup

I've just emptied my camera, and decided to share some photos with you.

JoJo lounges.












JoJo looks imperious.















Bijou and JoJo glare at each other across the no-man's-land of the carpet in Fringe Wars. They both love to nap on the fringe of the rug, and they've each staked out an end. No one ever sleeps on the other's fringe.









JoJo inspects her new Vacation Villa. It has turned out to be not much of a hit.



















Finally, my Indian Rope plant has continued blooming now that I've brought inside. The waxy pink flowers are lovely and smell like chocolate. Mmmm!

End of Summer

It's a beautiful day, but summer is definitely winding up. We've had some cold nights and are snugging up with more blankets these days. I discovered our comforter is mysteriously deflated, probably by dry cleaning last spring. They're $139 at Costco, so I think maybe we'll just pile on blankets this year.

JoJo's veggie garden is mostly gone. I gave her the bolted lettuce to eat which she liked. Fresh lettuce on a stick! Two more carrots await pulling and eating.

Meanwhile, we're outside enjoying the warmth and sunshine as long as we can! You can see JoJo's wonderful bolt hole in the right corner above the clematis. It "mysteriously" gets filled in occasionally so she gets to work off some fat digging it out. She needs to do some serious digging soon ...

Tonight's the Night!

Tonight's the night the cereus bloom! At least I'm pretty sure it will be tonight or tomorrow. Unfortunately, I work 'til 9pm tonight and tomorrow. Big wah. I set up the camera, and Michael will get some shots and footage. Last year it got to its most open at around 9:45, so I won't totally miss it, just all the opening action. I discovered another bud, too! I'll have 5 blooms!

This week has been quite hot, although today finally cooled off with some rain. Bijou has decided her new favorite place to cool off is in JoJo's carrot garden. Michael said it's because it's a "bed of carrots." The poor carrots are getting pretty squished, so I started pulling them for JoJo to eat. They're delicious!

Happy Birthday, Bijou!

My oldest child Bijou turned 14 on May 5th! Such a big girl! The oldest I've had a cat live to is 14, so I'm crossing my fingers she goes on for many more years. I think she will!











We had a bit of a scare earlier in the week with JoJo. She got very sick and stopped eating and pooping after a round of diarrhea (all over the living room!). After a few days of tempting her with fresh picked clover, she's back to her regular bouncy self. We think she ate some stuffing from the couch and got blocked up. Silly wabbit!

Camera Incura Adora

I have an incurable crush on -- my new camera! I got a Sony Cybershot DSC-H9. I'm having lots of fun playing with it and learning all of its tricks. I wanted to be really familiar with it before I go to Ecuador in March. I'll be going for 2 weeks to see my Mom; my sister-in-law Colleen and my nephews Ian and Julian will also be there visiting. I can't wait!

Meanwhile, I've been testing it out on Bijou, JoJo, and the birds in the backyard. Here's a straightforward one of Bijou, and a nice close-up of some bun-tocks:



















The camera has a very nice movie function. My old camera would only do 30 seconds a pop, so if the action didn't happen in 30 seconds, I didn't get it. Now I can let "tape" roll until I get what I want! I've been wanting to capture a nice bun-flop, and the other night I got two that I would rate about a 5 on a 10 point Olympic scale. Not JoJo's best work, but still cute. The second one has an appropriate voice over from the PBS show I was watching, Pioneers of Television: Late Night.


Today was the first really beautiful Spring-ish day, and all three of us girls enjoyed hanging out in the back yard while I waited for photo ops. JoJo does a great job with the screen pet-door, and then after much grass munching she did a very small binky and a sprint.


I was able to use my absolutely amazing new 15x macro on my camera to capture a really nice close-up of one of "my" Anna's hummingbirds. I love this photo! My new camera has a repeater setting, where you can hold down the button and take a rapid succession of photos. I tried that with the hummer and got about 30 so-so pictures, but this one on the right was taken as a regular one-off shot. I wonder if the repeater shakes the camera a little, or if I just got really lucky with the clarity on this one.

I also took a brief video of the hummer. The videos lose clarity getting them on the web. They're really amazing my own computer!


We occasionally have a hawk visit us in the back yard. We keep an eye out for hawks, since they may find JoJo to be a tasty tidbit. This one looked a little small, and we think he may be a sharp-shinned hawk. I got a photo of his back, and then some video of him just looking around. Today I saw a mob of crows chasing him out of the neighborhood.

Touchdown in Maine

Michael and I are now in Maine for a little over a week. I don't have any riveting events to relay or fascinating pictures to show. Today Michael went to the YMCA and then we went to WalMart. Yay. But really, the relaxation is fantastic.

Michael, my Dad, and my brother Brady are all out at a sports bar watching the Patriots (currently losing in the 4th). Oh whoops! Nope! Now the Patriots are ahead. I imagine there is much joyous spilling of beer at this very moment. Woo hoo. I'm not really a sports fan.

We've palmed our girls off on very generous friends. Our neighbor Gavin is looking in on Bijou. He has reported she is eating whipped cream from a spoon and he will soon watch a movie with her on our nice flat screen TV. My friend Sabina and her family are watching JoJo at their house. I brought all of her luggage over and set up a 6'x6' pleasure palace for her in their computer room/basement. They have 2 little girls who are very exited about having a rabbit for a week, and I think JoJo will come back very happy and well cared for. It was hard to send her away for a week, though. I cried when I stuffed her in the pet carrier to take her away! Michael and I are softies ...

Ho, Ho, Ho and Happiness

He Knows If You've Been Bad Or Good ...

Christmas is here! I have a hard time feeling Christmasy here in the PNW since we don't get cold and snow. This year has been particularly bad for me Scrooge-wise, but Wednesday and Thursday I got my decorations up, and now it feels like Christmas!Right now I'm listening to my all time favorite, Sleigh Ride from Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops. I've loved this song ever since I was a tiny tot.

Bijou is heading for some coal in her stocking, though. While I was putting up the decorations, I spooked her from her nap spot, and she ended up settling down next to JoJo's favorite bed. JoJo really wanted to stretch out and relax, but Bijou made her nervous. JoJo sat there by her bed, and then started licking it like she does when she's happy. I think she was happy Bijou was there. And then ... well Bijou was a bad girl: