As I posted a few days ago, I’ve been home for the week trying to heal up my cyst (Fred)-free Hell Boy hand. It’s been exactly a week today since I had the surgery and I get the splint taken off tomorrow and the stitches removed before starting therapy, woooo! I’m so excited! I can’t wait to get this thing off and itch my arm. Some people have told me to use a coat hanger to scratch it but I can’t because of the stitches so it’s going to be glorious when the thing comes off. I have so much sympathy for people that have to have casts on for weeks at a time!

In case you’re curious to see what Fred looked like before he was removed. The top is my fingers and the bottom right is my wrist/arm.

I’ve pretty much been reading the whole time with my hand in the air to reduce swelling. The first 4-5 days weren’t bad in terms of pain but the last two have been a little uncomfortable. I’m hoping that it’s because it’s healing and not because it’s infected or something. I’ve taken a week off of exercise because I’m not allowed to sweat and get this thing wet. It’s been tough on me mentally but it’s what I have to do!

My parents are both runners but they don’t usually run together. My mom has her running buddy, Julie, and my dad enjoys running alone. However, for the past two years or so my dad has been saying he wants a Rhodesian Ridgeback that can run with him. Rhodesian Ridgebacks, also known as the African Lion Hound, are known to be great runners. For my dad’s birthday this year, my mom decided to surprise him by taking him to a lady in the area that breeds Rhodesian’s. My dad got to pick out the puppy he wanted and a few weeks later they brought her home. Since one of our dogs is named Hunter, they decided to name the new puppy Lilly after one of the world’s greatest hunters, Ben Lilly. With the addition of the little nugget, we now have three dogs in this crazy household: Crystal, Hunter, and Lilly. She was and still is so stinking cute.

Lilly, 6 weeks old.

Lilly and I when she was 8 weeks old.

Unfortunately (and fortunately), this is the busiest time of the year for my parents so they’ve been working every day since I’ve been home. Since no one is here but me, I’ve had the honor of taking care of Lilly while they’re gone. Let me tell you, it is not easy. She always needs someone to play with her and keep her busy so that she doesn’t chew on things she shouldn’t be… Like the coffee table. COME ON! It’s the dang coffee table!! I know that thing doesn’t taste good! Of course she has to be taken out, which isn’t difficult but we use a bell system here where she has to ring the bell at the door when she needs to go out. Well Lilly has gotten in this awful habit of ringing the bell and then running from the door so she doesn’t go out. She thinks it’s funny… I don’t. She also doesn’t like hot weather (it’s 90 degrees here today), cold weather, or rain. From what I’m understanding, it needs to be 70 degrees with 0% humidity in order for her to be content and stay outside. Since she’s still so young, she can’t be trained on the electric fence yet. Once she can, I think she’ll be much more willing to stay out for longer. I also think that she’ll just run right through it but we’ll see how that goes. Her new favorite thing to do is to charge at me and Superman jump on me as soon as I lay down on the couch. It was pretty funny when she started doing it but with my gimp hand it makes it tough to fight her off. Oh, and she thinks my splint is also a chew toy. Just thinking about the stuff she does makes me laugh… The other day I was reading in the living room when she ran in, pushed a sofa cushion off the couch onto the floor, Superman jumped off the couch onto the cushion, peed a little, and ran away because I was running after her by that point. I know she was probably laughing at me and saying , “HAHA look what I can do!” Once I dragged her outside I couldn’t help but laugh. That girl is a piece of work!

In Lilly’s defense, she is just a puppy. I can’t be mad at her! She just wants to chew because her big teeth are already growing in and she needs to play all the time to burn all of her puppy energy. That’s just how it is with puppies! My parents are working really hard at training her. They even take her to puppy classes every week where she learns basic skills like sit and stay. Eventually they’ll take her to advanced classes where she’ll learn things like “park it” so that my parents can take her out with them to coffee shops and she’ll sit like a well-trained dog is supposed to.

The precious little terror at 12 weeks old.

On a walk with 17 week old Lilly!

I will 100% admit that I’ve wanted a puppy for a while now. I think the second most frequent phrase that Stephen hears from me is, “I want a puppy.” But I also will admit that I don’t actually mean what I’m saying. I didn’t understand that completely until I spent this week with Lilly. I work all day long and while I would LOVE to come home to a furry friend every night, it just wouldn’t be fair to it. Dogs need proper training and time and I don’t have the energy for that right now! Oh and don’t forget about how much they cost… They need all of the proper vaccinations, heart worm medicine, flea and tick medicine, they need to be fixed unless you plan to breed, etc. I hate to be like that and sound like my parents (HAHA they will laugh when they read this) but really, really think about what you’re doing before you make the decision to get a pet! I’m not saying this to be a party pooper! Pets deserve your love, attention, and training so wait a year or two more until you are able to give them what they deserve! You will both be much happier in the end.

While this week with little Lilly has been pretty exhausting, it also taught me that I still have a few more years until I will be ready for a four-legged running buddy. In the meantime, I’ll love Crystal, Hunter, and Lilly and I’ll enjoy my runs alone or with friends!

Me, Crystal, and 18 week old Lilly!