Alpha Dog

Spoiler Alert!  If you are an animal lover, you may not want to read on.

I'm over my pets.  I am done.  I have never been what you would call an animal lover, more like an animal 'liker'.  Now, I am at a point where I can barely tolerate the beasts.  I know, for some of you who adore all living creatures and bring home every stray, this is hard to read.  There are others of you, however, that are wondering why I ever allowed four-legged creatures into my house in the first place.

The cat came first.  Skipper arrived as a kitten - so cute and black and cuddly.  She grew up.

Now she is confined to my bedroom when she is in the house, well, our room, since I do have a roommate of 29 years.  Why our room, you ask?  I'll get to that later, since it relates to the dog.

Back to the cat.  She curls up in the middle of my our bed and every time I walk in the room talks to me, (yes, that's right, talks) begging for attention, wanting to be scratched, petted or cuddled.  I'm not a petting, cuddling kind of person.  She is getting on my nerves.  To make matters worse, my husband has become a cat person.  Really.

 I came down the hallway the other night and heard him whispering to someone in our bedroom.  "Does that feel good?"  I stopped dead in my tracks.  Who on earth was in there with him?  I turned the corner and there she was, the little tramp, purring so loudly the neighbors could hear, while he scratched her behind the ears.  He never scratches me behind the ears.

He was always so proud of the fact that he was a "dog guy", but now I fear that he will become that crazy cat man you always see on the 6:00 news, with twenty cats and a city ordinance against him.  It's a slippery slope.

Skipper's not satisfied staying in at night either.  She settles in for a while and then, when she's sure that I'm fast asleep, she sits right on top of me meowing until I let her out.  She doesn't bother with her best friend Steve.  He sleeps like a log and only wakes up if the house is on fire.  If I leave her out, she sits right outside our door begging to come in.  She is one fickle cat.

Now, let's deal with the dog.  Even worse than the cat, she is my nemesis.  We got her from a local animal shelter and I felt like we were really doing a good thing, rescuing her.  What was I thinking?  Dogs come with dog hair.  Who knew.

Dog hair ends up everywhere, even places the dog doesn't go.  It is the bane of my existence.  Far worse than dog hair, however, is dog poop and dog pee.  That is the delicate Christian blog way of wording it.  I have other words for it that I won't share with you today but if you happen to be at my house when Casey "has an accident", you may hear those words.  They are angry words that I use when I have had enough of cleaning up after this mangy mutt.

Now, I told you that the cat curls up on my bed, well, the dog sits right in my spot on the sofa.  She sits there and looks up at my as if to say, "What are you gonna do about it?" 

I look right back at her with my best alpha dog face and, needless to say, she moves, leaving her little doggie hairs behind.  We have dog hair removers placed strategically throughout the house.

There's the dog hair, the dog poop, the dog attempts at domination, the dog odor, and of course the constant, relentless, unending chasing of the cat by the dog.  This is why the cat resides in my bedroom.  The dog will not leave her alone.  She lives and breathes to chase that cat.

All of these things are reasons enough to be done with the dog, but the final straw came last week.  I was in the backyard, picking up little doggie treasures from the lawn.  I could see something buried in the dirt.  It was black and I peered closer.  I finally pulled at it and could not believe my eyes.  That crazy dog had buried my bra!  This is the honest to goodness truth.  I decided then and there that my little beagle is a pervert and a thief.  She has to go.

I have calmed down since then and reminded myself that when we brought these little creatures home, we committed to them for life.  My daughters leave hair all over the bathroom floor and I haven't gotten rid of them (yet).  The men in the house are always stealing the remote and I haven't told them to hit the road.  We put up with each other, in spite of the things that drive us crazy.

They're just lucky that they have me.  I'm the only sane one in the house.

Houseguests

We had a few overnight guests last Friday.  It has been a while since my kids were toddlers and it is amazing how much excitement three little people can bring to a home.

Our daughter offered to host a sleepover for her nieces and nephew-to-be so their mom could enjoy a night out and a peaceful night's sleep.

Lauren, Asia and Kahlil livened up our house with their questions, chatter, chasing the dog, chatter, endless energy and did I mention chatter?  It was a delight having them over.

We had plenty of toy options for them to play with but the three things that entertained them the most were (in order of importance)

1.  the dog

2.  a magnifying glass

3.  Ashley's Pilates ball

I forgot that there was a time  in my own children's lives when a cardboard box would create endless hours of amusement.

One of the funniest moments came when Lauren had something that her big sister Asia wanted.  Asia approached her and in a sing-song voice said, "Sweetie! That's dangerous.  Give it to me."  Lauren frowned and clutched it closer.  Undaunted, Asia grabbed her in a death-grip and repeated, sweeter than ever, "Sweetie!  It's dangerous.  Give it to me."  So cunning and charming at the same time.  I like this girl!

I wanted to get a group picture of everyone there.  Let's just say, it took a while.  Here are my attempts.

There's that darned Pilates ball!

I got one!

Not quite...

Keep smiling Steve.  We'll get there eventually!

Success!

It's been a while since I mentioned my personal heroes, so today I want to honor a group of people who are heroic in my eyes.  To Hosanna, the beautiful mother of these three children, and all the other tireless single parents out there.  You attempt the impossible every day.  May you find friends who support you, strength for the task and the grace to forgive yourself when you stumble (as all parents do)!

 
"Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out."
^{Ephesians 6:13-18}

Our Dumb Dog

Our dog Casey is stupid.

I know that sounds unkind, but stick with me here and I think you will eventually agree.

On the other hand, our cat is smart.

This has nothing to do with me be "cat person" or a "dog person".  These are just facts.

I actually prefer dogs.  They wag their tails when you walk in the room, accompany you on on walks  and are generally good-natured when they are loved and cared for.

Cats, on the other hand, want everything on their terms and can, at times, behave as though they really don't need you.  My cat would not like to be taken for a walk and I gave up buying her collars, since she immediately got rid of them (I have yet to figure out how).  I spent years disliking cats intensely and still have only warmed up to a few of them.  Our cat Skipper has won me over.  Even though she is noisy (like the rest of the family) and a bit demanding, she is smart.

You are probably wondering why I think our dog is so dumb.  Let me tell you a story.

Once upon a time, a family had a black cat.

She was happy with her status as the family pet and was not in the least threatened by the parade of fish and reptiles that came and went.  She survived the occasional scrape with tomcats and possums and managed to avoid the coyotes.  To show her love and appreciation for her family, she regularly left gifts of dead birds, mice and lizards on the back step.

Then this family adopted a cute little beagle from the local animal shelter.  That's when everything changed.  From the moment this dog entered their home it was clear that her beagle hunting instincts were very strong.  She cornered the cat, chased her down the hall and generally pestered her on a daily basis.  The cat, however, ignored the dog as best as she could and avoided her at all costs.

One day, the cat had enough.  She was cornered by this pesky dog and took matters into her own paws.  With one swipe she left her mark.  The dog ran away, yelping  in pain.  When the owners examined her they realized the cat had hit the bullseye, or the dogseye, as it were.  She had scratched her cornea and left an ugly mark.  The dog was taken to the emergency room where they said the eye would heal.  The vet said, "well, at least now she will leave that cat alone".  For days, she lay shaking in her dog bed, whimpering in pain, while the cat paraded by, inches from her, once again queen of the house.

Slowly the dog began to heal, with daily antibiotics squeezed onto her eye and extra TLC from her owners.  Peace ruled the house and the family breathed a sigh of relief.

Now, if the story ended there, that would make sense.  The fact is that dog got better and once she got better, you know what she started doing again?  Chasing that cat.

Now, if you were bugging me, teasing me incessantly and generally making a nuisance of yourself and I took a stick and poked you in the eye, practically blinding you, would you continue pestering me?  I highly doubt it.  Well, not our dog Casey.  She is truly thick-headed.  She has resumed chasing the cat, although I have to admit, the cat doesn't take her quite as seriously and doesn't perceive her to be the threat she once was.

On her checkup visit to the vet, I told her how the dog had begun to chase the cat again and she shook her head in disbelief.  That is one dumb dog (she didn't say it, but I know she was thinking it).

When I started thinking about these two beloved pets of ours and their complicated relationship, I realized I'm really not that different.  There have been times in my life when I have been poked with a stick in the eye - not literally, but you get the drift.  And you know what I did?  Went back to doing the same thing I had done before.

This was partcularly true of me as a child and a teenager, but it has persisted into my adult life.  Like my kids say, "sometimes I likes to be's bad!"  I do something stupid, suffer the consequences for my behavior (the proverbial stick in the eye) and then turn around and do the same stupid thing over and over and...

It has been a slow journey for me, realizing that I need to change my rebellious ways and learn from the discipline.  But the Lord is so patient with me and his mercy is endless.  If there's hope for me, maybe there's hope for that dog!

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. ^{Hebrews 12:11 (NIV)}

Personal Heroes - Chapter 2

I received such an overwhelming response from my first post on Personal Heroes that I have decided to make this a weekly entry.  If you are interested in nominating someone to be profiled here,  read the directions at the end of this post.  Today's post is brought to you by a guest blogger - my son.  This is something he wrote for school and I thought it was an appropriate entry for our Personal Heroes series. 

 The Best Dog Ever

Do you have a dog?  Many people do, just like me.  I have an amazing dog.  She helps me to always keep a positive attitude.  To explain her fully will take a while, but don't worry, it won't be boring.

First, I should tell you about my dog.  Her name is Casey.  Casey's original name was Lisa.  "What do you mean by an original name?" you ask.  Why, the reason I say this is because she was adopted.  But I will get into that later.  Casey is a very energetic dog.  She likes everything from playing 'chase' to just cuddling!

I got Casey (aka Lisa) at the Irvine Animal Shelter.  The date was July 22, 2007.  Also, at the shelter they said we were very lucky because she was just put up for adoption on that day and beagles are adopted very quickly.  I'm super happy that we got Casey.

I care for my dog by walking, playing, feeding her food, and picking up poo.  My favorite thing is playing, while my least favorite is...yep, you guessed it, picking up poo!  Ewwww!  I also like going for walks with her.  It's a lot of fun.  My favorite part of going for walks is whenever I say 'walk' she gets really excited and happy.

As you have guessed, owning a dog is pretty fun, but there are still a lot of responsibilities.  Don't worry though, because it's all worth it at...

the end.


"I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love.  For me they are the role model for being alive."  ~Gilda Radner



Now, I have an assignment for you.  This is an audience-participation blog.

My son and I have shared with you about personal heroes and I have plenty more.  However,  I want to hear from you.  Who are your personal heroes?  They could be living or not, man or woman, famous or living in obscurity...you get the point.  Give me a couple sentences telling me who your hero is and why.  Leave it in the comments section below and I will pick one entry (or two, if I feel like it - this is my blog) to highlight here.

Be sure to leave your name or email me if you left it anonymous and let me know which one is yours.  I will contact you and get the scoop on your hero and give them a shout-out here.  I can't wait to hear your stories.

Personal Heroes - Chapter 1

Who are your heroes?  Are they political figures, sports stars, television personalities?  While I admire many people in these arenas (and scratch my head over the popularity of others), my heroes are less well known.  They are the 'unsung heroes' around us.  Over the next several weeks, I want to introduce you to some people who are my personal heroes.  You will find out they are ordinary people, like you and me, but they are making a difference with their lives.

I would like to introduce you to Randy & Nadine.  I picked them today because they are my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and today is their 21st wedding anniversary.  This is my gift to them!

As they started their life together 21 years ago, they had no idea of the challenges that lay ahead for them and their family.  A year and a half after they were married, they gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Megan, followed shortly by their handsome boy Josh.  They dealt with the challenges of living on a ranch and raising children and several years later welcomed another beautiful boy, Caleb, into the family.  It became apparent early on, that something was different with this sweet little boy.  He didn't respond like they felt he should and his development was delayed.

After many years of struggling to find answers they received a diagnosis they did not want to hear.  Caleb has autism.   I have known many people who have children or loved ones with challenges.  But I have never met a family that has risen to the test of raising such a special child, like they have.  Whenever I am around them, I am touched by the patience and tenderness that they show.  I know there are times when they feel unequipped for the task, but it is beautiful to see a family united in caring for someone with so many special needs.

This extends beyond Randy and Nadine to their two other incredible children.  Josh is a big brother with a big heart.  He shared a room with Caleb for years and treats his little brother with tenderness and respect.  Megan is a lovely young lady whose love for horses is second only to the love she has for her family.  She is always proud to show off her little brother with the latest pictures she has taken (she took the beautiful black and white picture).

A couple years ago they welcomed one more member into the family.  His name is Kane and he is a service dog.  He has the sweetest disposition and is Caleb's constant companion.  He is my # 1 canine hero!

You can see why I picked this incredible family and why I am proud to be related to them.  They exemplify God's love in action.  They are my heroes.

"Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love."
1 Corinthians 13:13

Strawberries, Puppy Dogs & Sleepovers

Today I visited my favorite strawberry stand, Manaserro Farms and bought some beautiful strawberries. For my money, they are the best. Occasionally I will give in and get them in the grocery store when they're on sale, but I'm always disappointed. These are big, sweet and juicy - picked locally when they are ripe and not shipped halfway around the world. I LOVE strawberries, especially dipped in chocolate (are you hungry yet?) So this was my way of treating myself today. And no, I am not paid by Manassero to sell their berries!

I had another unexpected treat today, in the form of a dog.  Look who was lost in my neighborhood!  Our dog Casey was very uncertain as this little guy ran laps in HER backyard.  He was petted and loved by the kids and would even play catch!  As nice as it was having him visit, I was relieved when his owners came to pick him up.  One dog is enough for me!

Well, it's a short post today. R is having a sleepover, so it should be lively around here tonight. Hope these pics brought a smile to your day!

"A cheerful heart brings a smile to your face;
a sad heart makes it hard to get through the day."
Proverbs 15:13 The Message