IT JUST WASN'T THE SAME....

The weather in Dubai

has cooled down some in the past week or so.

This morning it felt pretty good....

good enough to take a stroll down the JBR Walk.

I laced up my tennis shoes,

grabbed my keys and some dirhams 

for a venti, black, takeaway Starbucks Americano,

and off I went.

But it just wasn't the same

without this little guy.

It just wasn't the same.

RUN, TEDDY, RUN!

I never had the desire to have a small dog.  

But when Jason was 12 and Jonathan was 14, 

Jason begged for a Pomeranian.  

A Pomeranian?  

But, being a sucker for little kids (especially my own) 

and animals, 

I convinced John that we needed to get a Pomeranian

 to be best buddies with 

our seven year old Sheltie, Madison!

And we did!  

Teddy arrived weighing all of two pounds. 

From the day he joined our family, he kept us laughing!

And he made these two little boys really, really happy!

 

It didn't take long, however, for him to sneak 

into each one of our hearts. 

 He grew to be a whopping six pounds and somehow

accrued lots and lots of names, i.e., 

Ted, Teddy, Tedmeister, Little Tuffy, Pyscho Man, Tedmoe, 

Little Hitler, and Tedders.

He passed his training with flying colors, however, proceeded to show us who was in charge each and every day! 

 It seemed that WE needed to be trained,

 not Teddy!

 

For nine years Maddy and Teddy were best buds. 

 Maddy was sweet, gentle and had a huge desire to please.  Teddy was spunky, feisty and 

had a huge desire to do things HIS way!  

Although Teddy was a handful, 

he was MY HANDFUL throughout the years. 

 And I LOVED it!

He was so darn cute that 

everyone wanted to pick him up and hold him.  

And, if he was in the mood, 

he'd let you pick him up and be his friend!

Teddy LOVED to ride in cars, swim in our pool, go for walks, and EAT!   Everything he did, he did with GUSTO!

When we moved to Dubai he missed his boys,

but he adapted to life in the desert. 

 He went everywhere with us (when possible) 

and became my little shadow!

He made friends here in Dubai,

 

 and willingly posed for many a picture!

But sadly, 

Teddy never fully recovered from his pancreatitis. 

 He fought long and hard, 

but I guess it just wasn't meant to be.

He died peacefully in my arms yesterday. 

I like to think he is running through a field of green grass, terrorizing his sister Maddy, barking his little head off 

and completely pain free.

He was my best little buddy.

So, I guess this is it.....

Hi folks, Tedders here.   

Just wanted to share my last bark, 

my last growl, 

and my last wag of tail.

Thanks for listening 

over the last couple of years...

 ...OVER AND OUT.

RUN, Tedders, RUN.

RAMADAN RAMBLINGS....

Beautiful Ramadan decorations adorn Dubai.  The Mall of the Emirates is especially beautiful this time of year!

The Jumeirah Beach Walk is almost a mile long and only one of its four-plus Starbucks is open for take-away during Ramadan.  Here's my coffee, wrapped up oh so neatly in a Starbucks bag, so no fasting Muslim will have a clue as to what is hiding inside!  

And here is Tedders this morning in my arms, at the Al Safa Vet Clinic, while I visited.   They gave him a shot of cortisone to help reduce his enlarged (omg) pancreas and are sending him home at 4:30PM.  Wish us luck....lots and lots of luck.

Ramadan Kareem!

ROLLER COASTER...

Typically I love roller coasters, however, this one is no fun at all.  After a great week of feeling good, Teddy was up all night last night not feeling well at all.

We were at the vet's this morning and she recommended another ultra sound and a needle biopsy to see if Tedders has cancer.  UGH.  I left him with her and just got a call.  He was in too much pain to proceed with the biopsy.  They've started him on fluids to get his temp down and make him comfortable.

I'm heading to the hospital now to sit with him as he doesn't like it there very much.  

I'm rooting for you, little guy!!!

TEDDERS UPDATED!

Hi folks, Teddy here.

Just wanted to say "Thanks" for your concern.

I'm feeling 

MUCH BETTER

and so is my pancreas!

Yup, she has me working (sigh) as her proofreader again.

My work, it seems, is never finished.

ISTANBUL INTERRUPTED!

WOW!  Istanbul, Turkey is a beautiful place to visit!  John and I arrived there last Friday afternoon.  We laughed at ourselves after we figured out the tram and metro modes of transportation, and negotiated an overly crowded tram with, let's just say, some "different" smelling individuals!
But we survived and actually rode it again and again!

I can't wait to post pictures of everything we saw! 

Unfortunately, I had to cut the trip short and return on the 8PM flight on Sunday night.  Teddy was in the hospital and was in critical condition with pancreatitis, liver inflammation, anemia, and an electrolyte imbalance.  (All of that on top of a pretty severe heart condition.)  Poor little guy!  

He had not been feeling well right before we left.  I had taken him to the vet where he received several inoculations and was sent home with some new meds.  A good friend, Sue Baldridge, had volunteered to take care of him while we were gone.  Boy, did she end up having her hands full!

Obviously, poor Tedders got worse instead of better.  Sue took him into the vet on Saturday (thank you, Sue!!) where they ran blood work and diagnosed his problems.  He was put on IV fluids and hospitalized.  Sue visited him on Sunday and said that he really didn't look or feel well.  

I got home in the early hours on Monday and slept for a few hours before the vet office opened.  I didn't know what I would find and was preparing for the worst.  I was pleasantly surprised to see Ted actually feeling a bit chipper!  I held him for a couple of hours -- close to his cage because of his IV line.  

When I came back that afternoon, the IV was out and he was eating!  I held him for another couple of hours and left after I was told that he could go home later in the day!  He was so cute when I left -- he was holding his toy as if he was ready to go too!

I picked him up at 6:15PM and brought him home where he proceeded to lay in my lap or by my side for the entire evening!  I read a book; he slept quietly. 

Unfortunately, Tedders was up most of the night.  It seemed like he couldn't get comfortable....perhaps it was because he had dozed all evening long!  This morning he ate breakfast and then threw up.  Oh no -- I'd been warned about this.  He ate again late morning and threw up again.  I just fed him again (he actually acted like he was hungry this time) and am keeping my fingers crossed it stays down.

I can't wait to post pictures of Istanbul, but do you know how hard it is to work on a computer when all your little buddy wants is to be held?  

Sigh.  Istanbul pictures can wait!