Remember this post about ‘Nice?’ One day, I took a linen napkin in my stash and embroidered the word Nice on it along with some free form flowers. I thought about adding more embroidery but I sort of liked it the way it was. It’s been hanging around the studio without a purpose for a few months now. So I grabbed a pillow and this is what I came up with:

I didn’t particularly like the yellow pillow, so why not redo it? The embroidered piece was attached with a series of french knots. Here’s what it looks like on the bed.

Can you tell I like lots of pattern? Oh, that’s right, you’ve seen my living room, aka ‘Pattern Central.’

Thank you for your loving comments on the last post. Mom remains the same. Riley is a bit improved. We’ve learned he has a condition called Cauda Equina Syndrome that is progressive and cannot be cured. It is a debiltating form of arthritis in the joint between the last lumbar vertebra and the sacrum (pelvic area.) The canal through which the spinal cord and nerves pass is narrowed over time. Sometimes the disc is abnormal and that narrows the passage even more, putting pressure on the nerves and leading to nerve damage. It is often confused with hip dysplasia, which is what we thought Riley had. Dogs who suffer from this feel intense pain in their back and in their hind legs and tail. They have a hard time getting up or down and walk with a shuffling gait, scuffing the toes of the hind legs. They can lose control of their urine or, in Riley’s case, feces. He doesn’t always feel the sensation of having to go. It often occurs in German Shepherds and Riley is part German Shepherd.

This condition is ongoing and has progressed rather rapidly in the past few months. As to the other day, he started having diarrhea and was very agitated. By the next morning, he was extremely lethargic, wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t respond and wouldn’t drink. He was also running a fever. I thought this might be the end. Fortunately, this time we met with a Vet in the practice who explained everything about Cauda Equina Syndrome and also did blood work on him. He gave him fluids and put him on antibiotics. The blood work shows some kind of infection in his body – we don’t know where. He is responding a bit. He couldn’t get up by himself at all on Monday and yesterday he started to get up on his own and walk around the house. He also ate. He’s still very tired and we’ve got a ways to go, but I am cautiously optimistic. He’ll get antibiotics for another 6 days and, hopefully, we’ll see a big improvement by then.

I know that you all understand, especially those of you who are animal lovers. I dread the day we have to make a decision as to Riley’s quality of life. Hopefully, that won’t be in the near future.

My doctor said I couldn’t lift anything over 20 pounds for a month. I had my surgery one month ago on Monday… the day I had to help Riley up many times over the course of the day. Thank goodness I was able to.