Summer in Finally Over!!!!

Hello all,

Here in Phoenix, summer is FINALLY over. By that I mean in is 85º out and spring-like. Everyone here is as giddy as school girls. People are finding reasons to be outside again and even our dog just wants to sit outside. Fitting that our latest quilt "Indian Summer" has just come out in the Fall issue of "Fabric Trend" just as the summer heat leaves us for another year. Fabric kits are now available on our website www.TheWhimsicalWorkshop.com.

It has been a hectic and stressful week around the studio. First it is always a bit crazy right before Houston Quilt Market. We are scrambling to finish last minute quilt projects as well as getting ourselves ready to go and walk the show. If this was not enough to keep me out of trouble, our 7-1/2 year old Great Pyrenees, jumped out of my jeep a week ago and blew her ACL in one leg. This happened on the last hot day of the year and between the stress of the injury and the time it took my family and I to get her off the ground into the car for the trip to the puppy ER, Her temperature jumped and she was at the heat stroke level. So when we got the ER they were not concerned with her leg but getting her temperature down, which involved an overnight stay and lots of IV fluids.

As small fortune later, we had to take her on Monday for a Surgical consult from the ER. Now imagine moving a 140lb dog who cannot walk from one point to the next. I am definitely toning up. The surgeon felt Cleo needed surgery, but she did not do this type of surgery. She recommended we take Cleo to a specialist in Tucson. It happens I was suppose to be in Tucson to set up a show on Wednesday, work the show on Thursday and then head home, so this would work out perfect. Kathy (my assistant) and I took Cleo to the specialist on Wed AM and expected Cleo to have surgery on Wed afternoon and be ready to go back to Phoenix with me on Thursday. Except the surgeon is concerned about her age and weight and wants to wait on the surgery until she loses 30lbs. So I boarded her for the night and rest goes as planned.

Now once we are home, I am watching our in-laws dog while they finish up the Tucson show for me. Their sweet dog is really a goat in diguise. On Friday night, my husband believes he saw her with a needle and by the time he gets to her she has swallowed it. Now we have to call the Puppy ER again to find out what to do with Blaze. Another sleepless night of not watching Cleo but watching Blaze. Turns out Blaze is fine and all is well. Blaze went home on Sunday.

Matthew and I finally think everything is going to be okay and calm down some. But Monday, Cleo does not urinate all day or all night. Tuesday, she again does not urinate or want any water. We call the vet who is very concerned. We pack her up one more time and drag her and ourselves to the vet, unsure of how this will turn out. I am happy to report after an ultrasound and test to make sure she is okay, she promptly returns home and pees a river. What sight, Matthew and I holding her up with a sling, while she pees and we are cheering her on.

Now I find myself leaving for Houston in the morning and not ready to go. I can only hope that Market goes much smoother than the last week. I am ready for a calm and uneventful trip. I also know there is a very tall glass of wine in my future. So to all my fellow pet owners who know how exhausting and expensive this past week was, love your furry friends, they are truly a gift that we only have for a short time! I know I am thankful we still have Cleo with us, even if it means we have to help her get around for awhile! Until next time.....