The Chef and the Assistant

In our house, Yankton is the chef. This seems to work out better for us as I only like cooking occasionally and Yankton likes to experiment anyway. The deal is; we plan our menu for the week, I do the grocery shopping, he does the cooking, I load the dishwasher, he empties the dishwasher. We discovered this fabulous recipe - which Yankton has jazzed up a bit for baked chicken fingers. They are ultra-delish and my very favorite way to have chicken now! They are also really good as chicken nuggets and put on a green salad. So above are a couple snaps of Yankton making chicken nuggets one night.

Now the funny thing is that Nero always helps Yankton in the kitchen. He doesn't mind sticking with Yankton all throughout the dinner making process. I don't think this is unusual - most dogs probably like to hang out in the kitchen and see what they get. (Nero nevers get anything.) What is weird is the way Nero has decided he needs to help Yankton. He always assumes the same position. Here are some examples:

He caught me taking pictures!

Coconut Layer Cake

I made my Mom and coconut layer cake for her birthday. The frosting alone had 4 sticks of butter. Yikes!

Rose Garden

I thought I would post more pictures of Yankton's rose garden. These are the roses he planted last year. He had to rent a jackhammer just to plant them as the soil is so rocky. He jack-hammered right throuogh the sprinkler system line (whoops!). But this year, they are growing like mad - blooms all the time - so beautiful.

Roses

Here is the first rose that bloomed in our garden this year. Yankton is in charge of the rose garden. I think he is doing a pretty good job so far!!

Nero vs. The Pollen

The Pollen Wins!

The pollen in San Antonio has been very bad this year. Here are a couple of photos of Nero - he is wondering why I won't let him in.

Nicole's Health Update

I have recently been diagnosed with a chronic auto-immune disease known as Sjogren's Syndrome. This auto-immune disease most likely caused a second (but still very bad) health problem known as Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (hypothyroidism). Additionally, I have little to no vitamin B-12 in my system.

So...

I take pills for the Sjogren's, pills for the under active thyroid, and shots (yes! shots!!) for the B-12 deficiency.

So, what is the worst part of finding out about all this??? THE BLOOD TESTS! These doctors always want your blood. And how do they get it? By sticking you with needles! It's horrible.

How bad is it when the doctor actually says they are going to put a note in your file saying that you have to be lying down to have your blood drawn? I guess they have gotten tired of my fainting. :-)

I thought I would update in seperate posts exactly what Sjogren's and Hashimoto's is and what it affects. More to come later...

Nero

Nero went to go get his annual vaccinations yesterday. He got 3 vaccinations and he had to have his blood drawn. The vet said he is now full grown at a whopping 4.10 pounds. Last night Nero starting shaking. We thought he didn't feel good from his shots, but just tried to make him confortable thinking he would get better.

This morning when we got up Neor never moved. He didn't wag his tail or even lift his head up. He laid in exactly the same spot for the hour it took me to get ready and take him back to the vet. The vet said he was dehydrated and had a fever. The poor little guy was NOT reacting well to his shots.

He is back from the vet and doing better now. He is still sluggish and not his usual happy Nero self. He did perk up when he saw a cat outside on the back deck though!