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Re: Dolly

Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2018 9:07 pm
by CarolC
That is so funny! But brrrr! :cold: An old farmhouse with no heat? Yikes!

I saw a photo that looked so cozy I had to save it. I'm not sure where I found it (or I'd give someone credit) but it's from a museum according to the photo name. It shows an old-fashioned bed for sleeping in the winter with no heating. Whatever filling is inside that duvet is a foot thick! Don't you wish you'd had it in the farmhouse?? Ahhh....
Musee_des_maisons_comtoises_-_Ferme_a_tuyé_7.jpg
Our laundry has certainly improved since we figured this out. :wash: I used to have to use spot treatment on the bottom sheets if that happened, but not anymore. :sleepingdog:

Re: Dolly

Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2018 11:46 pm
by Christine
That does look cozy! I will say that one trick I used was to use my blow dryer to heat the bags before we got in. Nowadays, I am so cold natured that Glen keeping our house temp at 70 degrees year 'round is very cold to me. He likes a fan on at night. My compromise to the situation is sleeping under 4 blankets and quilts doubled and I sleep with a knit ski cap. Can't believe the ski cap idea never occurred to me back in the old really cold house! Here's a picture a friend took last year while we were watching tv - everyone else is sitting around in their shirtsleeves.

I can just hear Dolly after your giving her the first early bowl....."It's about time, Mom!!!! Took ya long enough!"

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2018 6:22 am
by critters
:hysterical: Yeah, it's amazing sometimes how long it takes for the light bulb to come on!

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2018 6:25 am
by critters
Christine wrote: and I sleep with a knit ski cap. Can't believe the ski cap idea never occurred to me back in the old really cold house!
My solution is to use a hooded sweatshirt. The "hat" is always attached, so it can't get lost or stolen by a Bad Boy. It doesn't come off by itself, either. I can pull it up or down as I want.

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2018 6:28 am
by critters
CarolC wrote:That is so funny! But brrrr! :cold: An old farmhouse with no heat? Yikes!

I saw a photo that looked so cozy I had to save it. I'm not sure where I found it (or I'd give someone credit) but it's from a museum according to the photo name. It shows an old-fashioned bed for sleeping in the winter with no heating. Whatever filling is inside that duvet is a foot thick! Don't you wish you'd had it in the farmhouse?? Ahhh....
Musee_des_maisons_comtoises_-_Ferme_a_tuyé_7.jpg
Our laundry has certainly improved since we figured this out. :wash: I used to have to use spot treatment on the bottom sheets if that happened, but not anymore. :sleepingdog:
I wouldn't want that much stuffing--too hard to wash. This year I used only stacks of fleece and flannel sheets and mattress pads as blankets because they're so much easier to wash than real blankets. Even so, they usually took 3 days to dry on the lines!

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 8:34 pm
by CarolC
I made this photo really big, so maybe you can see what I'm talking about. This is a roll of foam, and you might think, big deal? It is a product that was sold in the camping department at Academy for putting under your sleeping bag, around 2009. Back then I bought some and cut it to fit in the bottom of Dolly's playpen. There were several reasons, the main one being that the playpen has a removeable "floor" like you have probably seen on all the new playpens, made of stiff boards covered with a layer of foam and a wipe clean fabric, to serve as the bottom of the playpen. It has to have boards to be strong enough for a toddler to stand on, but it is heavy because of the boards. Since I have to put sheets on the bottom every night, it was a real hassle. So I wanted some kind of foam mattress to lay on top of the "floor" that I could easily lift and put sheets on, and when I found this green foam it was perfect.

Recently I went out to see if I could buy a new piece and they don't seem to make it anymore. All the foam mats are really squishy, like yoga mats or something. The green one I have is very plastic-y and wipes clean and does not absorb anything, kind of like for example, a styrofoam cup. It is not styrofoam, but the surface is smooth and nonabsorbent like that. Camping mats now are closer to foam rubber and would absorb urine, so they would never do for an incontinent dog. With the green one, I can rinse it in the bathtub or hose it off or spray it with a bottle of Clorox water and wipe clean and it's done! Anyway, I've been looking for a while at Academy and Wal-Mart and online on eBay and anywhere I could think of and could not find it again.

Then this week I found this dusty, scruffy roll of green foam tied up with a blue nylon rope for $1.99 at Goodwill. Woohoo!!! :ecstatic: I took it up to the register and told the cashier, "You probably think, who would want this ugly old foam, but would you believe I've been looking everywhere for exactly this and I'm thrilled!" She was happy, too. :D

And to top it off, when I untied the rope and unrolled it, there were 2 full sized pieces, so now I have one left over. If I can remember, I think it cost about $12.84 or something like that back in 2009, but I could not find it for any price this year when I looked.

Why is it perfect? 1) lightweight, no effort when I change the linens 2) nonporous and nonabsorbent for an incontinent dog 3) gives extra cushion under her when she bounces up and down in her bed on her bottom at mealtime, or when she curls up in her blankets to sleep :sleepingdog: 4) happens to be the right width for a playpen, you just need to cut to length 5) the light, solid color makes it easier to see if it is clean, compared to the multi-colored patterned fabric of the playpen floor.

Happy Day!!! :D :D :D
click to enlarge
click to enlarge
EDIT TO ADD: In 2021 I found this same kind of pad for sale as the Coleman Rest Easy Camp Pad for about $10.

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 9:52 pm
by Christine
It's amazing how little it takes to make us happy when it comes to our fur children. That is so cool! I am happy for you. This situation has to be so much easier on your back too!

Re: Dolly

Posted: Sat Oct 20, 2018 7:40 am
by critters
I bet the new ones are memory foam or the like, and yes, it's not so good for disability use, if you ask me. They're also using it more for mattresses for people's hospital beds. You might consider Reflectix . https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss ... =reflectix . It's fully nonabsorbent, and you could use several sheets taped together if you wanted it thicker. It lasts a remarkably long time unless squashed or clawed (it IS basically industrial strength bubble wrap, after all) and is useful for lots of applications.

Re: Dolly

Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2018 4:07 pm
by CarolC
Talk about coincidences! :shock: I had never heard the name Reflectix until you posted it, and then someone used it in a video about living in your car. (She insulated her windows and put it under the carpet in the floor). It makes crinkly sounds when she is moving it, so if Dolly was bouncing up and down on it, I'll bet she'd sound like snap-crackle-pop Rice Crispies! But she might like that! :wink: :lol:

This is the video, not on topic except if anyone wants to hear what Reflectix sounds like.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0EoyTzcFOI

Re: Dolly

Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2018 6:00 pm
by Christine
I am addicted to You Tube videos about rv nomads and people who live full time in their cars and vans (don't ask!). Carol, did you notice that this lady has a chi named Dolly?? This fellow has come great ideas and van tours that keep me awake on late night sewing binges.

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2018 8:41 am
by critters
I've never noticed Reflectix making noise, but I don't use it (yet) on lower surfaces. I've covered most of the outside doors with it, and I use it over the vents in our crawlspace. Even though it's glorified bubble wrap it's pretty tough yet easy to use.

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2018 10:23 pm
by CarolC
Christine wrote:I am addicted to You Tube videos about rv nomads and people who live full time in their cars and vans (don't ask!). Carol, did you notice that this lady has a chi named Dolly?? This fellow has come great ideas and van tours that keep me awake on late night sewing binges.
You are not alone! And yes, the little dog is adorable. :D

Re: Dolly

Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2018 10:34 pm
by CarolC
critters wrote:I've never noticed Reflectix making noise, but I don't use it (yet) on lower surfaces. I've covered most of the outside doors with it, and I use it over the vents in our crawlspace. Even though it's glorified bubble wrap it's pretty tough yet easy to use.
It looks like the same kind of stuff they use to make car windshield sun reflectors, and those are quiet. Anyway, got the foam washed and dried and cut and it's great. Glad to say, I think we're set for life now. :D

Re: Dolly

Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 9:29 am
by critters
It's not durable enough to put on the floor, especially with claws, but I had to cut some for the crawl space the other day and didn't notice any noise. Glad you think y'all are set for life! :lol:

Re: Dolly

Posted: Sat Mar 09, 2019 10:47 pm
by CarolC
Dolly got a waterproof diaper today, grey with butterflies and a cord lock tail. It is to wear over her denim diaper when the grass is wet.

She had diarrhea the last 2 nights, then things firmed up during that day. I kept her indoors today because I suspect she is eating something in the yard, but I don't know what. I walked around and didn't see anything. If she has diarrhea tonight after being in all day then I won't know what to think.

This morning I gave her a Milk Bone and cooked some Minute Rice and she didn't eat the rice, but she seems fine otherwise.

Fingers crossed tonight, or I'll be outside hosing off the bedding in the morning and washing it three times again, and it's not like her to skip breakfast. :|