Service provider changes

One era ends, another begins. We've made some service provider changes this week.

Tuesday was the last day that Mary Ann, our long-time dog-walker, took Walt for a regularly scheduled walk. When Craig and I both worked full-time, Mary Ann came every weekday afternoon to take the dog out and give him a half-hour stroll. When Isaac was born I stopped working, so I am home to open the door to the backyard whenever Walt wants to go outside, but we decided to keep Mary Ann a few days a week anyway. We figured that Walt might feel neglected because of the new baby, but with Mary Ann still taking him for regular walks at least he would be getting individualized attention from someone he knows and loves.

Walt came to live with us when he was nine weeks old, I stayed home with him for the next week while he adjusted, and Mary Ann began walking him the following week when I returned to work. Now Walt is four and a half years old. They've known each other for a long time. It was a sad goodbye for the humans (Walt, of course, didn't have a clue), but in the end we couldn't justify continuing to spend $40 a week to make a perfectly happy dog even happier.

We did have Mary Ann keep her key to our back door, though. Maybe in January when the new baby is born, we'll have her come back to give Walt a little attention.

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And what other service provider changes did we make? This week I went for my last appointment with my old obstetrician, and my first appointment with my new homebirth midwife.

I could compare and contrast the two appointments, but perhaps that's a topic for another post.