Thursday, March 10, 2011

Introducing our new puppy ...

Last summer, the cutest dog wandered into our backyard. He was clearly a stray and hadn't been cleaned up or taken care of in quite a while. But, oh, he was sweet. We gave him some water and some food. He started following Molly all up and down the street. He never barked. I took it as a sign that we needed to keep this precious dog and have him join our family.


I dare you to try to tell me that dog is not adorable.

Well, Cory wasn't convinced, no matter how hard I tried. He doesn't want a dog. Period. We found a shelter and took him there that night. We checked to make sure it was a no-kill shelter, but, frankly, I was hoping it wouldn't be, because then that dog was coming back home with us. But, it was a no-kill shelter, so, away he went. And, I was left dog-less once again.

Fast-forward eight months: We have a new puppy!

Truth time -- now that I've gotten all you dog-lovers excited -- our new puppy is actually Charlotte. I say this with the utmost love for my darling daughter, but lately, I've been noticing how much like a dog she is. That sounds horrible, I know, but bear with me. So, here are the reasons Charlotte is taking the place of our family dog:

1. We have to clean up after her poop. That one is obvious, but at least we only have a year or two more of this. If she were actually a dog, we'd be doing this for the rest of her life.

2. She refuses to walk on two feet, instead, preferring to crawl around on all fours. She has taken about two steps, so I guess she's moving away from this designation. But, she's taking her sweet time to do it.

3. She eats from a bowl on the floor. Ok, this sounds bad,  I'm sure, but listen, the girl can eat. She eats more than Molly. And, if I put her in her high chair, she expects a full meal, no matter the time of day. So, when we just need a little snack time, I will occasionally put some goldfish or Cheerios in a bowl, along with her sippie cup of water, on the kitchen floor. That way, she can have some snacks, play a little, and crawl around after her big sister. And, if that's not enough, at meal time, she sometimes drops food off her tray with, what we're sure is, the intention to save it and eat it at a later time. Which never happens because I always sweep up immediately after every meal. Yup, always and immediately. Don't let anyone tell you any differently.

4. She begs for food. I will reiterate, this girl can eat. Most days, I make my breakfast after she's already eaten hers. I'm a girl of habit, so I almost always have cereal with a banana on top. When Charlotte hears me get my bowl out of the cabinet, she fast-crawls over to where I'm standing. She gets up on her knees, and when she sees me get the banana out, she immediately puts her hands up, opening and closing her fingers while saying, "eh, eh, eh." In Charlotte speak, that means "I want it! Give it to me!" She doesn't stop until I give her bananas from my bowl. See? Now, I'm feeding her scraps of my food.

So, these are the reasons that for right now, Charlotte is our puppy. I used to think that Cory would relent and get a dog once the girls were big enough to stick out their lower lips and beg. Now, I'm pretty sure even that won't change his mind. So, for now, Charlotte is our adorable new puppy. And, I'm here to tell you that her wet, slobbery kisses are the best!

Eating her goldfish on the floor, and as happy as can be about it.
* One note of irony: Charlotte's lovey is a pink kitty blanket, so our 'puppy' is cuddling up every night to sleep with a cat.

3 comments:

  1. Yay for sleeping with a cat!!!! BOO for Cory not letting you all get a puppy!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Okay, there are some injustices here with the dog thing. Either you don't live in a democracy OR your girls are not being accepted as equal citizens and their votes aren't being counted! Amanda and I are going to come and picket in front of your house for the Lafferty family to get a dog :)

    Penelope and Charlotte would be best eating buddies! We'd have to shop at costco weekly if they lived together. Penelope eats 2 sometimes 3 full breakfasts every day. Today she had a bowl of oatmeal at 6 am, shared part of my cereal with banana at 7 am (won't eat banana in her cereal, but if mommy has it she wants it. What's with that?!), then ate a hard boiled egg and toast at 9 am and a granola bar at 10 am. And she was saying how hungry she was at 11:30. She barely takes a bite at dinner though so I guess it all evens out.
    Oh, and Penelope didn't walk until 18 months. I hope Charlotte catches on sooner than that!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Their vote will count when they turn 18. Until then we are stuck in a stalemate.

    ReplyDelete