Kung Fu Fighting

Our best efforts to happily acquaint Scrooge with the new pup have been in vain I’m afraid.

In his defense, he’s old and kinda grumpy.

And Jet is extremely young. And playful. And goofy. And he never learns. The cat whoops up on him at least twice a day, he just keeps bringin’ it back for more.

Poor sucker.

Love you all!

Scenes with my Boys

We had an unprecedented snow delay this morning. Snow days are a bit trying…snow delays however, just allow us to sleep in and take a bit longer to get ready in the morning. I had the pleasure of coffee brought to me in bed today. Thanks to my big hearted boy, Liam. He attempted first to wake me with the news that it had brewed. When that did not rouse me, he poured a mug and brought it to me. How sweet is that??

Then, there’s the teenager. My exchange with Sam went as follows:

Me: Sam, would you PLEASE make your bed.

Sam: Why would I do that? No one is coming over today…and tonight I will just mess it up again.

Me: Can’t you just humor me?

Sam: Sure. (Grinning) I’ll close my door. Since my room is such a disappointment to you. (Closes the door and walks away laughing at himself.)

Sigh…I love you all!!

Settling In

Well, we are all adjusting quite nicely to the new dog/pup. The kids are absolutely crazy about him. I find myself paying more attention to Marley than I used to just to try and compensate. Sam has done well, paying equal attention to all the pets. Some evenings he can be found on the couch with a cat on his lap and a dog on each side. He’s such a “pet pleaser”.

Jet, the new pup, is extremely amusing. He was definitely NOT a house dog wherever he was before he showed up here. So, we have been house training…with milk bones. This dog is either a) very smart, b)very hungry. The milk bones are working like a charm. I’ve never seen a dog housetrain so quickly. He literally will go out and squeeze a drop out just so he can have a bone. It’s amusing to me. We have only had one pee accident all told…and he is starting to pick up on poo-ing outside now too.

Yesterday, I had an epiphany. I looked at him and wondered why he was so irresistible to me. Stray dogs come by our house with some fair amount of frequency and never once have I even considered letting them in. Never once considered house training. Or facing teething again. But this dog drew me in. Instantly. Then it hit me. He reminds me strongly of my childhood dog Bridget. Bridget was the only dog I ever truly loved. Her death left a doggy hole in my adolescent heart. I don’t think I ever talked to anyone about it either. But her death hit me very hard. She was the first loss I ever suffered.

Jet stirs all that affection up. So, despite the house training, and the puppy chewing (we are currently down 4 flip flops and a coon skin cap) and the not so restful nights, I’m all in. I hope he doesn’t get much bigger, he already thinks he’s roughly the same size as Marley.

He is just so endearing to me…the way he waits for the kids to get home…

The way he fights with the cat…

He even lays like Bridget…recognize this pose???

He’s in my heart for good…so I guess we’ll revamp and replan and figure out how to fit a new pooch in our hearts and home.

Love you all!   

Lawd Help Me!

I did the unthinkable today. Unthinkable for me. I took in a stray dog. We’d been discussing getting a German Shepherd  for awhile. This afternoon, a shepherd mix showed up. Showed up and won our hearts. Pronto.

These two? Love at first sight. Honest to goodness, I fell for him pretty quick myself. We are going to put up flyers to see if he belongs somewhere. But, we are all hoping he doesn’t. Yes, even me.

We’re very fond of him already. He has Jeb-Ears…

I just love his ears…they’re like velvet. We gave him a bath, and fed him and then we put him out. By himself. Thinking that he would leave if he was inclined to go back where he came from. He went to the front door and scratched, then the side door and scratched. Then he went to the screen door and used a small hole in the screen and his nose to slowly, laboriously open the door. At that point, I relented and let him back in. Cause I’m a sucker, that’s why. And he has jeb-ears…

I love you all!!

Town and Country

We live in the country. In the country, there are two kinds of cats. House cats, or as I think of them, town cats. Town cats, you actually acquire intentionally. Our town cat is Scrooge. We paid money for him. We, well ok, I wanted him. Went to a shelter. Sought him out. He is a magnificent, regal beast.

He will not eat people food. He looks at our food like it’s poison. He turns his nose up at it and clearly believes we are disgusting creatures who know no better than to eat that STUFF.

Then there are the “barn” cats. The country cats, we’ll call them. Country cats are not “acquired”. They just show up and never leave. They are not allowed in the house, because however cute they may be…I did NOT seek them out. Our country cats are named Pi ~ short for Piwacket, named by my father, and Uncle Puffy. Contrary to how it may look, Scrooge did not father Pi.

Scrooge is incapable of fathering anything. He was acquired, remember, acquired cats have regular vet visits and get neutered. I’m sure Scrooge also looks down his nose at Pi and Uncle Puffy for having balls, but thats neither here nor there. The point is, I must confess, Uncle Puffy and Pi do NOT get vet visits. They are not neutered. I feel strong armed into caring for them and refuse to treat them as though they were intentional. Despite the fact that I actually do acknowledge that they have value. I live in farm country, you see. The fact that I have never had a mouse in my home is a testament to their prowess. Because, TRUST ME, it is not a testament to Scrooge. Scrooge is old and far above silly pursuits like chasing mice. So, my gesture of appreciation to the country cats is this…rather than throw our leftovers away, I let the country cats have them.

I was thinking this morning as I cleaned out the fridge, our country cats are either very spoiled, or very abused. Depending on your viewpoint, I guess. I offered up made from scratch fettucine alfredo, some provolone cheese that had mold on the edge and taco meat. Pi is no dummy…he dug straight past the cheese and the taco meat and went for the alfredo, which I had indulgently warmed up for him.

Meanwhile, Marley tried to look like she wasn’t interested.

But, she and I both know if I had turned my back for even a second she would have chased the cat away and devoured every bite of the gooey cheesy deliciousness. Marley hates the country cats.

Bon Appetit, Pi.

I love you all!