Hot Diggety Dog!

We've had a busy fun few days which means I haven't spent a lot of time planning my A-Z blog challenge posts. I asked my daughter what I should write about for today's letter, something that would tie in with my theme, and she said I couldn't write about grandparenting, grandchildren, or grand things without talking about the 'grand' dogs. 

D is for Dogs

And we do think ours are pretty grand. I love dogs but am not someone who refers to them as people. Although, quite often they do act so much like humans you can forget they're not. 

If you read here regularly you know we currently have custody of our daughter1's dog while she and her family are living in South Korea. Does she know we're not giving him back? I guess she does now-ha! The dog hubs absolutely positively did not want is now his best friend and closest companion. 

A magnet stuck to his side from sun up to sun down. Where hubs goes he goes including the daily bluebird feeding, the dock, the boat, the mailbox, the front yard, the back yard, the patio, the porch, Lowes (his favorite) and waiting not so patiently just outside the shower door, the screened porch door, the garage door, any door where hubs is on the other side. 

The little brown dog is obedient, well-behaved (unless you're popping popcorn then all bets are off), always ready to go where you're going, and needs an excessive and steady stream of belly rubs-exercise-and attention. Hubs obliges because he is a man who should always have a dog even when he says he will never have another dog because you love them too much and lose them too soon. 

This is one of the lessons dogs teach us. 

There is a cost to loving with your whole heart, but the reward is worth the cost. 

We spent the Easter weekend with our other 'granddogs'. One being the sweetest dog we've ever known and the other, her new best friend even though she might not admit it...

The little guy who will keep her young, who thinks he's boss, and who jumps like the very best player in the NBA, who was abandoned by someone but loved and cared for by my son-in-law. 

Dogs are a lot of work. They need feeding and walking, and owning a dog means you can't just jump in the car and road trip spur of the moment because you need to consider the dog. Who will care for the dog and will they care the way you care?

We think the joys of owning a dog far outweigh the aggravations. Dogs love without reservation. They throw a party every time you walk through the door even if they saw you five minutes ago. They teach you patience, but they also know instinctively when you need them to snuggle up beside you because you've had a bad day or you're having a bad moment. 

Dogs fill empty spaces in your home and heart you didn't even know were there. 

And while life would likely be less trouble, it would also be far less grand without our little brown dog and his 'cousins'.