It has been a month since I last posted. And, in that last post, I didn’t suggest that I was taking a hiatus, say for a round-the-world trip. I just didn’t post for a month. And now I’m breaking one of the rules I set for myself when I first started blogging: No posting about how long it’s been since you last posted. Ugh!

But as I contemplated posting again, I debated between just forging ahead with the post I’ve been meaning to do for at least two months (about photographing adoptable dogs) and a post that acted as a segue between my silence and the regularly scheduled programming, to offer, if not an explanation, an acknowledgement of the fact that I’ve been a slacker, as well as some updates. As with the last time I took an unplanned hiatus, I don’t have a good excuse. But I will say that the longer you neglect your blog, the harder it is to get back to nurturing it. I had anxiety about simply clicking on the link to my dashboard. Then come the questions of how to handle the segue, how to get back to regular posting (and also: Should I continue to blog? Why am I blogging? What does it all mean?!), etc., etc.

Anyway, I decided on a compromise regarding how to re-enter the world of posting: do an update post now, but also have the photographing-adoptable-dogs-post finally ready to go (that post is set for Tuesday).

What We Have Been Up To For the Past Month:

• Dukie’s rehab. He’s baa-aack! Based on his x-rays from about a week ago, Duke’s leg has healed well, and he can now ease back into normal activity. So back we went to our illicit off-leash outings, and oh did he run! He did his chugging, head bobbing, full-out run. He also went back to doggie daycare last week. He still limps when he gets up because of the arthritis that had already formed, but the vet says the surgery made quite a difference and that his bone is actually healing ahead of schedule.
• HAAAAAAACK. Kennel cough. Gertie caught it at doggie daycare, then gave it to some other dogs at daycare (which caused me to feel like a Very Bad Dog Mom to have taken my girl to daycare with a hacking cough and snot running down her snout, but I swear the snot was snot there when I dropped her off! And I thought the hacking was possibly due to some innocuous allergies.). Duke also caught the cough, but it didn’t seem to affect him very much. Gertie went to the vet and got a look of shock at the amount of mucous pouring forth from her nostrils, as well as antibiotics. She did fine on the antibiotics for six days and then started puking
• The Great Disappearing Walks. I have been having problems with my S-I joint (the sacro-iliac joint, located around the tailbone/lower back) for a while now, and the pain forced me to stop running a few months ago. This development actually translated to better walks for Gertie and Duke, since the walks became my main workouts, aside from my physical therapy workouts, so I sought out hills with Gertie and walked briskly for 40 minutes or more with my fawn girl (I went easier on Duke since he was still rehabbing). But for the past week or so, the pain has increased to the degree that walking is now a chore to be dreaded, due to the sharp pain that comes with every step of my left foot. So there have been a couple of days when the dogs simply didn’t get walks, and a couple of days when my husband had to take over dog-walking duty. My solution now is to load the dogs in the car and drive to the aforementioned field where I only have to walk about a hundred yards to the entrance. Then I can release their leashes and let the canines wear themselves out. This strategy has worked out pretty well for the boxers, but I am grumpy. (Though I do realize that it could be much worse.)
• Spring has sprung. Due to the whiny tone of the above two bullets, I feel the need to end on a positive note. How ’bout this spring? Duke and Gertie are fans. Before our walks became truncated, I would walk Gertie to Brucemore, a mansion sitting on several acres in the middle of town that has become a public trust. While walking, I scouted redbud, crabapple, and pear trees to photograph in full bloom. We also came upon this idyllic scene several times: a pond with a log on which six to seven turtles sunned themselves, all framed by a crabapple tree in full, pink-blossomed bloom (see picture below). Duke has delighted in showering the hostas, weeds, wildflowers, and other spring blooms with his scented urine. So much to mark, so little time.

In addition to neglecting my own blog, I have also, gulp, been slacking on my blog reading. So I also plan to catch up on what you all have been doing. But if you would like to tell me what you’ve been up to here, that would be great too: What have you been up to for the past month? Alternatively, what are your best stories about puking or hacking dogs?