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Aug. 23, 2006
A dog's life...
I love animals. I always have. Once upon a time I dreamed of bein' a veterinarian, but I realized there was no way I could deal with people bringin' in dogs that were abused, neglected or hit by cars...Nope. I don't have that strong of heart.
So, my life has been filled with dogs since as long as I can remember. Thankfully, I married a man that loves dogs just about as much as I do. There will never be a time in our life when we don't have a dog. Our family just doesn't work well without one. When we lost our beloved 10 1/2 year old Bishop tragically (he'd broken out of the kennel he was boarded at, was hit and killed by a car while we were on vacation), we vowed we'd take a break from dogs for a while. We made it a month before God brought us Chaos. That little ball of fluff would bring us so much joy, despite livin' up to his name on several occasions.
Our dogs are spoiled. There's just no gettin' around it. Each of my kids have inherited our love of animals. With five people totally at Chaos' beck and call for play, ear scratches and food, what dog could be happier? Our evenings are almost always filled with hootin' and hollerin' kids as they chase him around (and are chased by him). He adds his joyful sounds to the mix, his play bark. I hope this baby in my belly can sleep through the mayhem, a good sign is that he or she no longer "jumps" at the evening ruckus.
We entered into a new world of cat ownership last year too, when we adopted "Mischief" at a young 6 weeks. I have to say that I still prefer dogs to cats, but Mischief has brought yet another layer of delight, although all on his terms (felines!). I saw a card the other day with a picture of a cat and it said, "Dogs have masters, cats have slaves." That is pretty much our relationship with Mischief. We may pet his royal head if and only if he permits. Some days he doesn't feel like jumpin' all the way up to on top of the dryer to get to his food (we keep it up there to Chaos-proof his meals), seein' how this same cat can jump on top of our entertainment center which is twice the height of the dryer, it is merely a ploy to ensure we are firmly under his right paw. He'll dance around our heels and howl at us indignantly until we thick-minded slaves pick him up and place him in front of his food dish. You'd think we might get a grateful purr or somethin', not Mischief. He gives us this sort of eye-ball rollin' glare like, "Well it's about time!" Yet, he is far too cute for us not to love to pieces. So I guess we'll have to deal...
I just feel like animals add so much to our life. Our kids learn about how to selflessly love God's creatures and that even if they can't speak for themselves, we need to be strong enough to be gentle and compassionate. Our family dream is to one day own a farm. Our kids talk about havin' horses, chickens, a dairy cow, lots more dogs and a few more cats. It's a fine dream. Well, until Carissa adds to the list of residents baby giraffes, lion cubs, a grizzly bear and then Connor wants a Zebra to ride instead of a horse, but Carissa does not want a hippopatomus because "They is gross." Whew, I was really worried about that one.
So I suppose all things become complete. I've traded in my dream of bein' a veterinarian for ownin' my very own zoo.
"A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." Proverbs 12:10
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Aug. 23, 2006 - Thanks!!!
I love it! Your entries are very interesting reading, and it looks like you've got a beautiful family there.
Oh, about Vietnam~ it just reopened for U.S. adoptions earlier this year. Our agency was one of the first to obtain their license. And, the baby we're waiting for is in the same orphanage as our 6 year old was (we adopted her in 2000).
Nice meeting you~ I'm going to add you to my friends list, if you don't mind.
Heidi