Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Who is PenDaisy and what in the world does she need a blog for?

I'm starting this blog in hopes of having an outlet for the stress that seems to be taking over my life right now. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. First a little about me. I live in Colchester, Vermont. I work in the office of a physical therapy clinic. I also love to go and observe and assist in surgery at my vet's office whenever I have a chance. My hobbies include woodburning and scrapbooking.

Two and a half years ago, my sister, her husband and daughter, and I decided to buy a house together in order to take care of my ailing mom. My mother's health had starting failing shortly after my father passed away (which coincidentally was three years ago today), and we decided that she really couldn't be alone all the time, especially after she fell a few times.

I more or less live in the basement level with my two darling dogs, Sherman and Raeka, and purrfect kitties, Phoebe and Flower. Sherman is a 7-year-old Pekingese. He is a rescue dog with only one eye and a boatload of personality. He is a clown and he makes me laugh every day. Raeka is also a rescue dog. She is 2-years-old and is from Puerto Rico. She is a hound mix and is very shy and clingy. She absolutely adores Sherman. In fact, Sherman is her idol. She lives for him. Phoebe is a 6-year-old tuxedo kitty from Maine. She is the sweetest thing. She has been with me for five years now and has recently decided that sitting on my lap is a good thing after all. Flower is an ancient cat that my vet was looking to place in a home for loving hospice care when she was left there. She was a stray and has had a rough life from the looks of her raggedy ears, split tongue, toothless mouth and scarred up face, but she is the most loving cat you could ever wish to meet. I took her thinking I would just love this little bag of bones (under 5 lbs) until she died, but now, almost two years later, she is 12 pounds and healthy as a horse.
Sherman and Raeka

Flower and Phoebe

My sister Melissa that also lives here, has a Siberian Husky, Gabby, a beagle, Maggie, and seven cats, Guido, Lindsey, Howie, Lucky, Storm, Tigger, and Gracie. We have a house full of furry love :)

My mom, Nancy, has just been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Pulmonary Hypertension
http://www.phassociation.org/. This on top of congestive heart failure and a paralyzed diaphragm on one side with limited lung function on that side. Her prognosis is a year. Melissa and I have decided to try to take care of her at home for as long as possible, and hopefully until the end. We take turns bringing the baby monitor to bed with us to keep an ear open for mom if she needs us in the night. She has quickly gotten to the point where we are having to do almost everything for her. Needless to say, we're not getting much rest these days.


My mom at age 18


I'll wrap this up for now and gather my thoughts for tomorrow. Stay tuned!

3 comments:

Janyne Kizer said...

Penny,

Like you, I started a blog because I have a lot going on in my life that I used to share with internet friends via mailing lists. As my life changed, I found that I wanted another outlet. I hope that your blogging efforts provide what you are looking for. Have fun with it!

Reillybug said...

Penny

Welcome to blogging! I've got you linked to mine!!!

Lizz said...

Welcome Penny!! I am So jealous that you have figured out how to put the links ON your page and get the pictures IN your posts!!!