A Glimpse Into The Not So Distant Future

Tonight we drove by our new home. I say that with very little hesitation based on the fact that there is a sold sign in the yard and we received our insurance policy today. We haven't actually closed yet, but I am trying this new optimism thing, remember?

Brad and I locked Meyson, Carson, and Memphis in the car in the driveway and went to check out the backyard to figure out the best placement for a dog run. We've seen how quickly Junah can destroy a yard and we have no intention of letting her mangle our new, more beautiful yard.

When we returned to the car Meyson was cracking up and telling us to get in quick and watch Memphis. They had been watching the teenager next door skateboarding in his driveway. Every time the kid caught air Memphis would giggle, but when the kid would fall Memphis would break out in full belly laughs.

He was having so much fun and I caught myself laughing along until Brad said, "You know that's going to be him before too long." You know what, maybe this isn't so funny after all.

Do Not Beware Of Dog

With Brad gone so much this winter, I was glad to have our dog Junah with me. Even though she stinks and is the most emotionally needy dog I have ever encountered, she loves us and I had every reason to believe she would protect us if she had to. I'm glad I didn't know then what I know now.

I'm not the greatest housekeeper. This is unfortunate for Brad because my messiness is displayed without restraint in our bedroom. It has just become the room where everything that doesn't have a place goes (I swear these two topics are related, I haven't recently injured my head).

Anyway, last night I was busily typing out an email from my bed in our very quiet house when a book slid off of the top of a pile of crap. I thought nothing of it, but it startled Junah so badly that she jumped off of her bed (which is six feet away from my side of our bed) and onto my arms. All 45 pounds of her. Now, this dog has been trained from day one to stay off of the furniture, especially our bed, so I was shocked to find her on top of me.

I had to laugh when I looked at her face because she appeared to be as shocked as I was that she was where she was. It took her a good ten minutes to calm down. The incident was amusing to me until the thought crossed my mind that she is supposed to be protecting me, not the other way around.

I have to admit that Junah has grown on me. For the first few months after we got her, I wondered what I could possibly have been thinking when I fought to get her. She chews everything. She loses hair by the ton. In general, her behavior is not good.

She is getting better and all of her faults are redeemed by the way she plays with the kids. She loves them and is wild and gentle with them at the same time. If this baby is a girl, I expect that Junah will become Memphis' best friend. And I expect that she will watch over him. At least, she better.

Junah

Junah is our dog. We walked into a pet store in September to see a friend who volunteers there and we all fell in love with this very sweet and shy little dog waiting to be adopted. She had those sad eyes that let us know that in her short life she had been abused or neglected, maybe both. She wanted to trust us, but was very cautious. We decided we wanted to take her home (we did NOT go in there wanting a dog, in fact we had made it clear to the children that we could not have one), but they could not give her to us then because she had not been spayed yet. We went through a whole month of waiting for her.

First, she developed a cough that they thought might be distemper and did not want us to take her home and get attached just to have her die. Then, she got out of her foster home's yard through a hole in the fence. It just kept getting postponed. Finally we brought her home on October 6th.

She had been passed around so much that she must have thought we were just another temporary home for her but, after a week or so, she knew she was home and her true nature began to reveal itself.

To date she has chewed up 5 or 6 pairs of shoes, several stuffed animals, an entire sippy cup, many barbie hands and feet and countless IKEA bowls and cups. There are many other things that I have stopped her from chewing up just in time.

There are two big dogs in the yard next door and she thinks she can dig under the fence and go play with them. She's not exactly a small dog (about 45 pounds), but those dogs would eat her for lunch.

She has eaten more dirty diapers than I can count which makes me want to vomit. Yes, I pick them up. Yes, I put them in the big trash barrel outside. She still manages to find one now and then. No, I will not consider using an indoor diaper pail.

Junah loves the kids, but plays with them like she weighs 10 pounds. Memphis and Carson are constantly picking themselves up off the ground after she pounces on them. Memphis just looks around like, "What the heck was that?!," but Carson takes it personally and goes into all out wailing mode.

She is very sweet sometimes. We like calm Junah better than rambunctious Junah and we are hoping that she will grow out of her wildness. She is the perfect addition to this family as she blends right in, adding to the chaos and all.