Wolfie turned 5 last week, but I was just so exhausted from rotation that I didn’t have time to celebrate it. :( Bad bad me. Wolfie is not hurting for anything in this world as far as material needs go – he has more than enough toys, and he really has preferential toys anyways so getting him new ones means he plays with em a bit and then goes back to the old standard. It didn’t really seem worth it get him things then – so I was making cupcakes over the weekend and gave him one. On a daily basis this dog is spoiled. I’m always amazed at how much he begs – and I realized that I just don’t notice it when it’s me and him because I’m feeding him while I’m eating. Bad, I know. :P

They were soft and he took big ol bites – so it got all mashed in the roof of his mouth. Looked like he had gotten peanut butter, good for some laughs. :)

Wolfie has been with me before I began medical school – back when I was in graduate school! Long long time, hard to imagine when Wolfie wasn’t here. He’s a very talkative little guy – always has a little squeak to add in to the conversation, complete with moving his mouth like he’s actually talking. He keeps me company when I’m feeling blue and brings me happiness when I see him having fun himself. I think it’s a unique and wonderful thing to have a pet – whether it be dog, cat, rodent, bug, snake, bird and it’s brought lots of extra love and joy into my life for sure. :)

So I read this one article about how this person was able to break into their bank accounts and the such through using a combination of all their info they put on the internet. One of the things was their birthday blog post!! Eek! So at some point during this week, I popped out (or … hehe descent to engage, flexion, etc…) and began my life outside of the womb. :P

I got a neat present from my mom. I’m going to use other sites to explain the background. :) The picture is of a statue of Jizo, a bodhisattva. I recognized him from all the illustrations in Japanese children’s books of the Jizo statues out in the snow with the offerings.

A Bodhisattva is one who devotes his or her life to freeing others from suffering. Bodhisattvas are not worshipped, but are an inspiration to awaken to the qualities of an enlightened being that are inherent in everyone. Link

Jizo is the protector of children, expectant mothers, firemen, and travelers. Most of all, he is the protector of deceased children, including miscarried, aborted or stillborn infants. In Japanese folklore, Jizo hides the children in his robes to protect them from demons and guide them to salvation.link

My parents talked about how Jizo would be my Bodhisattva because of my chosen field, obgyn. My Dad isn’t here anymore to tell me about this himself, but it’s neat that my mom got this for me for my birthday. It’s from the area where my Dad is from in Japan where they do a lot of iron working.

My grandfather turned 91 this past week! He’s at a nursing home now and they do a good job with him since he’s got Alzheimer’s and gets very confused. Everytime we come, his memory fades a little bit more – but he really never knows who “that little black dog” is so Wolfie gets a new name everytime we go. This time it was Crash. I told Papa a couple of times his name was Wolfie, and he remembered that long enough to call him it once. Luckily, Wolfie isn’t too particular about names. :) It’s nice too that the residents all like Wolfie and even the lady who’s very asleep in the hallway will wake for an Awwwww and then carry on sleeping. :) I think Wolfie should become a therapy dog – the only problem is that he’s very dependent on me so I would have to be with him at all times. They had therapy dogs in the ER and they had ID badges… and I was kind of jealous that Wolfie didn’t have one…. ;)

I had wanted to do a silly little blog party for my birthday, and now with what happened yesterday I’m just so out of sorts and very upset. But if you’re feeling festive I do have some ice cream cake, my favorite :)