April 29, 2011
Ok, it has been many years since I had a baby to take care of on my own. Well, last night I had a new baby, who woke up every 2 to 3 hours. She cried and made alot of noise. I was told to leave her alone and see if she would calm down, she did but I was still awake. Anyway we made it through our first night with no accidents. She ate well and did her buisness correctly.
The morning started at 6, with me getting ready for the day, then feeding, watering, and giving her a break. Then breakfast and we were all loaded on a bus and taken to the park. It was wonderful and it was a beautiful day in New York. I walked her with the harness for the first time. We walked about one mile and we did ok. We still have so much to learn about each other. We are bonding and it feels right. So, with practice we should get better and better.
Have to get ready for dinner and after dinner another lecture and hopefully a good night sleep. Will post again tomorrow. Love to all, nancy
Friday, April 29, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
She is here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
April 28, 2010
Well, the wait is over and she is even more grand and wonderful than I dreamed. I was told this morning her sex and name. Then we were sent back to our rooms to wait for the trainers to bring us our dogs. It took awhile but then a knock came at the door and there she was, just perfect. All the time, work and waiting was over and worth every minute.
I have been around dogs and owned dogs for most of my life, but I still have so much to learn. It's all about the footwork and hand motions. Oh, don't forget the commands and which foot to start on. You know, that is a little hard for me since I can't really tell my right from my left. LOL
Well, they are coming to help us feed, water and take the dogs out. So, I must close for now. I Am So Very Happy. nancy
Well, the wait is over and she is even more grand and wonderful than I dreamed. I was told this morning her sex and name. Then we were sent back to our rooms to wait for the trainers to bring us our dogs. It took awhile but then a knock came at the door and there she was, just perfect. All the time, work and waiting was over and worth every minute.
I have been around dogs and owned dogs for most of my life, but I still have so much to learn. It's all about the footwork and hand motions. Oh, don't forget the commands and which foot to start on. You know, that is a little hard for me since I can't really tell my right from my left. LOL
Well, they are coming to help us feed, water and take the dogs out. So, I must close for now. I Am So Very Happy. nancy
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
I am here in New York
April 27,2011
I can not believe it, but I am really in New york and at guide dog school. Yesterday was alot of waiting and traveling. All the planes were delayed for reasons unknown. However, we all made it and had a great dinner and then a lecture. There is so much to learn. We were given our dogs leases and told to work the leather to make it softer. There is a tie down in our rooms where the dogs sleep, no dogs in the bed. We will be busy most of the day and lectures alfter dinner every night. I may not need anything to help me sleep as this is not the activity level I am use to at home.
Sorry, this is so short but must go now. Post again soon. nancy
I can not believe it, but I am really in New york and at guide dog school. Yesterday was alot of waiting and traveling. All the planes were delayed for reasons unknown. However, we all made it and had a great dinner and then a lecture. There is so much to learn. We were given our dogs leases and told to work the leather to make it softer. There is a tie down in our rooms where the dogs sleep, no dogs in the bed. We will be busy most of the day and lectures alfter dinner every night. I may not need anything to help me sleep as this is not the activity level I am use to at home.
Sorry, this is so short but must go now. Post again soon. nancy
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Easter Sunday
1 more day until I leave!
April 24,2011
All I can say is I am so excited and just can't hide it........
Today is Easter Sunday and it has been a gorgeous day. Love, hope and faith are all in the air. I am very thankful for all my blessings.
I have washed all my clothes and have a plan on what I need to take. However, since the weather has warmed up, I am rethinking everything. I am working hard on staying focused. That staying focused is really hard, infact it has gotten harder with age. LOL
OK, enough I just want to say again I am so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hopefully, next post will be from New York. Love to all, nancy
PS
Here is a link I found on youtube from the Guide Dog Foundation, it is awe inspiring. It is wonderful!
April 24,2011
All I can say is I am so excited and just can't hide it........
Today is Easter Sunday and it has been a gorgeous day. Love, hope and faith are all in the air. I am very thankful for all my blessings.
I have washed all my clothes and have a plan on what I need to take. However, since the weather has warmed up, I am rethinking everything. I am working hard on staying focused. That staying focused is really hard, infact it has gotten harder with age. LOL
OK, enough I just want to say again I am so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hopefully, next post will be from New York. Love to all, nancy
PS
Here is a link I found on youtube from the Guide Dog Foundation, it is awe inspiring. It is wonderful!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Good Friday
3 more days to wait......
April 22, 2011
Today is Good Friday, and it makes me think about celegrating Good Friday in New Orleans. My girls and I lived in a great neighborhood on a dead end street. Which means our street ended at a canal, which is pretty much like a drainage ditch. Anyway, on Good Friday almost everyone on the street got together and we had a big crawfish boil. The tables were set up at the end of the street which was right in front of our house. We always had enough food, drinks beer and cheese pizza for everyone. The tables would be covered with newspapers and the crawfish, corn, potatoes and anything else cooked in the crawfish boil was poured on the tables. It was a block party with adults and children and everyone had a great time. Those are wonderful memories. So, to anyone from Carriage Road who is reading this now, thanks for being great neighbors.
Well, I have spoken to the person who will be picking me up at the airport in New York. The reservations are done and all I have to do now is pack and try to remember all the items and clothes I will need. I have been looking on line for information about the school and have found several articles that are very interesting.
NY TIMES ARTICLE
I am going to the Guide Dog School in Smithtown, NY. They have a web site and pictures you might be interested in looking at of puppies and guide dogs.
http://www.guidedog.org/
After my own research, I realize there is alot for me to learn. I have been around dogs all my life but I read the guide dogs learn about 200 different commands. Ok, I can not even think of 100 commands to give a dog. It is going to be very educational for me. Once again I must say I am so excited!!!!!!!
Hope everyone has a Great Easter and I will be posting again soon. nancy
April 22, 2011
Today is Good Friday, and it makes me think about celegrating Good Friday in New Orleans. My girls and I lived in a great neighborhood on a dead end street. Which means our street ended at a canal, which is pretty much like a drainage ditch. Anyway, on Good Friday almost everyone on the street got together and we had a big crawfish boil. The tables were set up at the end of the street which was right in front of our house. We always had enough food, drinks beer and cheese pizza for everyone. The tables would be covered with newspapers and the crawfish, corn, potatoes and anything else cooked in the crawfish boil was poured on the tables. It was a block party with adults and children and everyone had a great time. Those are wonderful memories. So, to anyone from Carriage Road who is reading this now, thanks for being great neighbors.
Well, I have spoken to the person who will be picking me up at the airport in New York. The reservations are done and all I have to do now is pack and try to remember all the items and clothes I will need. I have been looking on line for information about the school and have found several articles that are very interesting.
NY TIMES ARTICLE
I am going to the Guide Dog School in Smithtown, NY. They have a web site and pictures you might be interested in looking at of puppies and guide dogs.
http://www.guidedog.org/
After my own research, I realize there is alot for me to learn. I have been around dogs all my life but I read the guide dogs learn about 200 different commands. Ok, I can not even think of 100 commands to give a dog. It is going to be very educational for me. Once again I must say I am so excited!!!!!!!
Hope everyone has a Great Easter and I will be posting again soon. nancy
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Conference Call ... 5 more days to wait
April 20, 2011
Well today at 1:00, I joined 9 other classmates who will be attending school with me. We were given instructions about what we needed to bring and I am going to have to purchase rain gear. We get our dogs on Thursday after touring the campus and several interviews and classes. The schedule is going to be challenging for me since it starts at 6 AM and ends at 9 PM. There is a lot to learn and I am so ready! We all have single rooms with bathrooms which is nice. There is a community frige but they suggest you lable anything you put in the frige. Funny, huh because we are all vision impaired!!!!!!
Enough for today as I am heading out to shop. Love to all, nancy
Well today at 1:00, I joined 9 other classmates who will be attending school with me. We were given instructions about what we needed to bring and I am going to have to purchase rain gear. We get our dogs on Thursday after touring the campus and several interviews and classes. The schedule is going to be challenging for me since it starts at 6 AM and ends at 9 PM. There is a lot to learn and I am so ready! We all have single rooms with bathrooms which is nice. There is a community frige but they suggest you lable anything you put in the frige. Funny, huh because we are all vision impaired!!!!!!
Enough for today as I am heading out to shop. Love to all, nancy
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
... the story continues
6 more days
It is getting close and the excitement continues. I am checking the weather everyday and think I am going to need all my clothes and shoes for this trip. LOL. :D
Anyway to continue my story... After Katrina, My Dad and I moved into a lakefront condo in South Carolina. It was comforting to know the water in the lake would never come up to get us. During this time, I was trying to get on disability, which was an ordeal. It took many months but it finally came through. I was also thinking about a guide dog.
I remembered watching a Disney movie many years ago about a young man who loses his sight after a boxing accident. He was one of the first people in the USA to use a dog to help him get around. The name of the movie is Love Leads the Way. It is based on a true story and his use of the seeing eye dog helped congress to pass the law which allows service dogs to go anywhere with their blind master.
I remembered watching a Disney movie many years ago about a young man who loses his sight after a boxing accident. He was one of the first people in the USA to use a dog to help him get around. The name of the movie is Love Leads the Way. It is based on a true story and his use of the seeing eye dog helped congress to pass the law which allows service dogs to go anywhere with their blind master.
I remember watching this movie with my three daughters in New Orleans way before I ever know I would have a problem. It made a big impression on me and when I found out that I would lose my sight, I wanted that dog. I really can not make anyone understand the loss of sight unless it has happened to you. However, I know everyone can understand how it feels when you know something will and can help you return to a more productive life but yet it seems out of reach. Wanting it and waiting for my dog has been a very hard thing to do and patience is definitely not one of my strong points.
Now, I can not believe it is really going to happen! I feel so blessed in my life and I know now that I am really ready to accept this wonderful gift. I am so very happy.
Well, that is the short version of my loss of vision and how I got to this point. Tomorrow there will be a conference call and I should know more about what to expect. So, until tomorrow take care. nancy
Monday, April 18, 2011
The beginning of my vision loss
7 more days to wait .....
All I can think or dream about is guide dog school and getting the dog. I thought maybe today I would tell you my story of losing my sight.
About 10-12 years ago, I was as most 40 year olds wearing glasses. The glasses were needed for distance, far sighted. However, I was having problems seeing the heart monitors in the emergency room and could not read the exit signs on the interstate. I really thought I just needed knew glasses. So, went to the eye doctor and he ran all these test. He came back in the room and said you have a real problem. You need to see a retina specialist. So, after a short breakdown and total denial phase, I made an appointment with a retina specialist in New Orleans.
Of course, being a single mom and very independent I drove myselfe to New Orleans from the Gulf Coast in Mississippi. The doctor at Tulane told me I had dry macular degeneration and my eyes were like an 80 year old person. He told me there was no treatment except to take some vitamins that might slow the process but if I wanted to take a trip around the world then I needed to plan for it soon. He also suggested that I learn brail. I remember asking him if he could pay for my trip, laughing, and walking out of his office. Needless to say, I was devistated.
As I was driving back and feeling extremely sorry for myself, I thought about how many others were given much worse news and I should be thankful that it was not that bad. Oh, do not get me wrong I was unnerved and worried about my future. I did think about the guide dog at that time and thought that a dog might give me some consolation. I did not tell my family right away and went into my denial phase where I was pretenting nothing was wrong. I did finally tell my family and they were and still are very supportive.
It took years for the macular degeneration to progress to the complete loss of my central vision. It also took hurricane Katrina for me to realize that I would never be able to pass a eye exam for a driver's license. Since, we pretty much lost everything in Katrina including two cars, Life was going to change. That experience was totally devistating and unreal. To think you can find yourself homeless and with no possessions overnight is a nightmare.
Anyway, thanks to my daughters, son in laws, family and friends we made it through to this point.
Tomorrow the story will continue. Until then be happy and safe. nancy
Sunday, April 17, 2011
8 more days to wait
April 17,2011
Well, it has taken me two days to figure out how to post again. LOL. It is hard to figure out things when you can not read instructions and they do not make sense to you. Anyway, I am still riding on the high and am so excited. It makes me think about how I felt when I was a kid and waiting on Christmas. You know the best Christmas for me was when I got the most TERIFIC bike. It was blue with double baskets on the back and it had saddle bags. Of course it did not have speeds or hand brakes but it was beautiful and I rode it all over town. Thigs have changed in that area but when I was a kid it was freedom.
Today, I am trying to think about getting clothes together and the extra things you need when you are staying for a month. I know there is no way I can take my bed or my pillow but I sure want too. There is a conference call Wednesday and hopefully they will tell us want we need to bring. Of course, there are stores in New York and maybe even a Walmart or Target. I feel like a kid going to camp and wondering what it will be like. I know it is an alcohol free campus, bummer, but they said you could go off campus and drink and eat as long as you were back in time to feed your dog.
I just can not believe I am acturally going to get and be trained for a guide dog. It is the most wonderful feeling. I do not know what kind of dog I will get. They have Labs, goldem retriever, combination of lab and golden and german sheperds. It truly does not matter which kind of dog I get, I just want one. My best friend. Just think, it will always be happy to see me, never talk back and love me no matter what. GREAT yea.
Well, enough for today. Hope all is well with everyone. Later, nancy
Well, it has taken me two days to figure out how to post again. LOL. It is hard to figure out things when you can not read instructions and they do not make sense to you. Anyway, I am still riding on the high and am so excited. It makes me think about how I felt when I was a kid and waiting on Christmas. You know the best Christmas for me was when I got the most TERIFIC bike. It was blue with double baskets on the back and it had saddle bags. Of course it did not have speeds or hand brakes but it was beautiful and I rode it all over town. Thigs have changed in that area but when I was a kid it was freedom.
Today, I am trying to think about getting clothes together and the extra things you need when you are staying for a month. I know there is no way I can take my bed or my pillow but I sure want too. There is a conference call Wednesday and hopefully they will tell us want we need to bring. Of course, there are stores in New York and maybe even a Walmart or Target. I feel like a kid going to camp and wondering what it will be like. I know it is an alcohol free campus, bummer, but they said you could go off campus and drink and eat as long as you were back in time to feed your dog.
I just can not believe I am acturally going to get and be trained for a guide dog. It is the most wonderful feeling. I do not know what kind of dog I will get. They have Labs, goldem retriever, combination of lab and golden and german sheperds. It truly does not matter which kind of dog I get, I just want one. My best friend. Just think, it will always be happy to see me, never talk back and love me no matter what. GREAT yea.
Well, enough for today. Hope all is well with everyone. Later, nancy
Friday, April 15, 2011
Acceptance to guide dog school
Today is my first post. Two days ago I got a phone call telling me I had been accepted to guide dog school. I was so excited and thankful. This has been a long process and has taken several years for me to finally get in. So, on Tuesday April 26, 2010 I will be flying from Greenville, sc to New York. Yea. Now the adventure will begin. Already, I had ordered a light weight jacket from Lands end. Hope I will be warm, who knows about weather in New York?
I have such high expectations that this will be the answer to some of my problems. Hopefully, I will become more active and free. Free to do more things and go more places with a wonderful new friend. I can not stop smiling.
Hopefully, I will post what I am doing and how it is all going every day. Well, that is my goal .
Thanks to everyone who has helped me and believed that one day this would really happen. Until next time hope you all are doing well and have a great day. nancy
I have such high expectations that this will be the answer to some of my problems. Hopefully, I will become more active and free. Free to do more things and go more places with a wonderful new friend. I can not stop smiling.
Hopefully, I will post what I am doing and how it is all going every day. Well, that is my goal .
Thanks to everyone who has helped me and believed that one day this would really happen. Until next time hope you all are doing well and have a great day. nancy
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