How Do Parents Do It?

Our cat Nico had a bout of feline asthma this past holiday weekend, requiring us to bring him to the emergency veterinary hospital. It was very stressful for both Thaddeus and I as we worried a lot for the poor little guy as he struggled to breath. We couldn't imagine how parents deal with this kind of thing with their own children.

Nico's Fine Now
Despite a traumatic trip to the vet (any trip requiring Nico to get into a car carrier is traumatic) during his labored breathing...a little oxygen, a couple of puffs of Albuterol and some prednisone, and Nico is now breathing normally. Thaddeus and I will return to breathing normally shortly.

I commonly write to folks on my blog or in on-line forums who ask questions that could easily be answered by a quick internet search, that "Google is your friend."

Well, it's also true when your pet isn't feeling well. A quick search on "feline labored breathing" resulted in Thaddeus being able to make a good/educated guess as to what was going on with Nico and how to determined if veterinary care was necessary.

It's quite amazing how much information is available on feline asthma as well.

Current Knitting
I finished the first sock using Marlowe Crawford's design that she specifically made for the Men's Knitting Retreats.











Her pattern calls for using a contrast yarn for the toe, but I also used it for my heel. I used some of the leftover Supreme Merino/Possum yarn that I got from James at Joy of Yarn in New Zealand. I think my next pair of socks is going to be the same design, but with the Merino/Possum yarn again...god I love that stuff.

I tried to show in the pictures how Marlowe shaped the arch of the sock through increases and decreases...not sure if that shows up too well in pictures, but it makes for an exception fit on this sock.

I hate to tease readers who can't get this pattern, since it was so kindly donated to the guys at the retreat, but there is a very similar and excellent pattern by Marlowe that I've also purchased that I'm looking forward to making as well.