Still Miles to Go

I have a dog. Her name is True. We call her “Trooper,” “Boo boo,” “Truby,” and “True Blue”. Because she is. She’s a True-blue friend. She is a service dog and helps me with everyday tasks.

Yesterday was True’s 6th birthday. That makes her middle-aged in dog years. We are so blessed to have True in our lives so we celebrate doggie birthdays just like we do human birthdays.

For this birthday, I made cupcakes on Saturday night. They were dairy-free, egg-free, chocolate-free, and baked with agave nectar in place of processed sugar (because processed sugar is bad for doggie tummies). And because of this, they were doggie-edible.

We got up early Sunday morning to run errands (something True loves). First on our list was Petsmart. Petsmart is one of the few places we go that we let True be “just a dog.” We leave her service dog jacket in the car and take off her gentle leader. She’s allowed to sniff and greet other dogs and get pets and cookies from people she meets. She loves it. We picked up some new nail clippers for her (our old ones got lost in the move) and some specialty frosted cookies and bones for her birthday. She was in heaven.

Next, we were off to Costco. [For my pharmaceutical-dependent friends out there, Costco Pharmacy ROCKS. They charge at-cost so if your insurance doesn’t completely cover something (for me, Zofran), it’s not that expensive!] Costco was a short trip aimed at picking up a few staples in our home.

Then we were off to Beast’s house. Beast is True’s boyfriend. He’s a 10-month-old, yellow lab service dog. They are best friends:

They are hilarious together. They chew on opposite sides of the same bone, swim together, cuddle, and work together. Beast even brings True toys and forces them in her mouth. They are certainly good pals. So was there any better way to celebrate her birthday than by letting her celebrate with her favorite four-legged pal?

After letting True and Beast enjoy the evening together, we headed home so that True could enjoy her allergen-free, puppy-safe cupcakes.

Thank you, True, for being there for me when I need you! Here’s to many more happy birthdays in the future!

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Today, I had my pre-op consult with the surgical team for my muscle biopsy. It seems like such an ordeal for such a small operation. I found out that the procedure is only done with general anesthesia so even after begging for local it was a no-go. But we were able to set a date for the soonest available day: September 16th. We’re looking forward to getting some more firm answers at this point. Wish us luck!