The Pup

I have to be honest, when we made the decision to go ahead and get the pup - to have Chewy join our family, I thought we would regret it. I honestly thought I would seriously and greatly regret it. I was doing it because I knew it would make the boys happy, but I also foresaw a whole lot of work and frustration awaiting me.

But I did it anyway.

I haven't regretted it for a moment. Not a one. (Not even when he ate two socks and threw up for a day. NOT EVEN THEN. Well, okay, Chris pretty much handled the sock vomit and all, but still - not a regret!)

I love this dog. I adore him. I could not imagine a better dog for us. He is so sweet and loving. He is calm. He is easy to train. And he has the softest fur - I could bury myself in it. He is like a walking, breathing stuffed animal.

Strangely enough, he has also become my puppy. Chris handles much of the dog grunt work, getting up with him in the morning, feeding him, bathing him, etc. In spite of this, Chewy still follows me around like a lovesick puppy, eager for a snuggle or a belly rub. After a few weeks, I told Chris that I think Chewy sees him just as a manservant, a minor inconvenience of getting to me. If I say "Come", Chewy runs at me like I have a steak hidden in my back pocket, while any commands from Chris or the boys are responded to haphazardly by our dog. Chris handles it with good humor, but the boys get a little frustrated. The boys get even more frustrated (particularly Griffin) when they are trying to sit on my lap or get my attention and Chewy tries to nip them or nudge them away from me.

The other night, I was home alone. The boys were all in bed and I was watching tv, laying on a chaise. Chewy walked up to my feet and simply stared at me.

I looked at him and asked, "What Chewy?"

He barked loudly at me and before I could react, he jumped up into my lap and started kissing my face. He then made himself at home on my lap, curling up in a ball with a sigh of contentment. My fifty pounder lap dog.

I adore this dog.




(My future sister in law, Lynda, took this picture of me holding baby Chewy Thanksgiving weekend. It is hard to believe I was able to pick him up and snuggle with him like that. He is now WAY too big to be picked up or carried and is well on his way to being one, big dog. One big, big lap dog.)