Please don’t hold this against us

Annie’s 1st grade class is working on a pen pal project.  In 21st century style, though, it’s not really about the pens.  This project also involves audio, video, a school tour, and a smartboard.  It’s pretty cool, and the kids have been really excited about it.  The principal thought the project was so unique that she called the local paper to do a story on it. 

This is the first time I’ll point out to you that we live in a small town. 

So one day last week, a reporter came out to the classroom to take pictures and ask questions about the project.  He asked the teachers if they had a particularly expressive child that he could interview, and wouldn’t you know, my little Annie was the one he talked to.  ‘Expressive’ is definitely a word that suits her.

I was told to look for it to run in the Sunday paper.  And as it turned out, being a small town, this story was worthy of the front page.  Pretty impressive, right? 

Well.

So I read along to find my girl, and I come across this lovely little tidbit.

Student Annie Roberts-Nault has already found out about several similarities she shares with her pen pal, Emily.

“She likes to play in PE in school … I told her PE was my favorite class, too,” Roberts-Nault said.

Dogs are a common feature in both households as well, with her pen pal having one pup while Roberts-Nault’s family has three. According to Roberts-Nault, however, more does not necessarily equal better as one of her pets, Rigley, possesses a bad habit. The canine has a tendency to poop on her family’s deck, a definite defecation no-zone.

Props to Annie for landing us on the front page of the newspaper with a story like that.

I would like to clear up a few things now.

• Wrigley is spelled wrong.  Cubs, people, it’s the Cubs.
• She is not my dog.
• She is 9 years old and this has only happened twice in her life.  It’s true that I can’t stand the dog, but even I can say that this is not her major problem.
• She is a 25 pound black lab mix, up to date on all her shots, and ready for a new home at any time.

Did I mention we’re a very small town?  A last name like ours really doesn’t blend in.  Not to mention Annie’s such an extrovert that half the county knows who she is already.  Absolutely no chance of anyone not seeing this one. 

How great for us to now be known as the family with defecation issues!

I am, of course, still proud of her.

And, of course, concerned about her inability to filter for appropriate content.

At least she didn’t tell them about the time Daddy kicked Mommy and Mommy was crying on the floor of the closet.  [Catie actually told this to her pre-school teacher.  That the kids are still in our possession at this point is remarkable.]

So it could have been better, but it definitely could have been worse, too.

The article ends by stating

Technology, it seems, no matter how advanced, is never perfect.

It seems the same could be said for my Annie.

~Read it (and laugh at us) for yourself here.

I need you to weigh in on something.

My husband and I are having a disagreement, and I’m taking it to the streets. I can’t tell you who is clearly a fool thinks what because then he’ll say that you only agree with me because you’re my readers, and not because I am so very obviously correct. 

So we’re doing this the anonymous route.

The background:  we have three dogs, two of whom live outside.  While I was pregnant with Catie I developed a severe allergy to them, and even five years later I can’t be in close quarters with them or I’ll melt down.  (inside dog is a Shih Tzu, excellent for people with allergies, FYI)  So these dogs have lived outside full time for 5 years.  We have a fenced yard so they run free, and they have a dog house to sleep in.  Said dog house was custom built with 4 inches of insulation in the walls and it is heated.

Why yes, you did read that correctly.

Our dog house is heated.

However, the dogs do not seem to care about this, or else they just flat out don’t like it.  They do not spend their time in the dog house, no matter how cold it is.

In fact, this afternoon when it is 14 degrees and snowing, this is where they are choosing to spend their time:

We’re in a real cold snap, and temps are even hitting the single digits at night, with below zero wind chills.  Their water bowl might freeze, but of course I am a stay-at-home mom so I am here and able to make sure they have a non-frozen beverage available at all times.  We also increase their feedings in the winter, to help keep them warm.  (And apparently make an already 120-pound dog even bigger.)  Their feet are also inspected for frostbite daily – by the person who believes they are fine outside, too, mind you.

So considering all of this, one of us still wants to bring the dogs into the garage to sleep at night.   We have a large wire crate that they sleep in out there, and there are a couple of old blankets for added warmth.  The crate is not enclosed, though, which the other person argues might make the dogs even colder in a large, drafty garage than they would be outside in their insulated and heated dog house. 

Or in the snow, where they lay around because their dog house is too hot for them. 

Whatever.

One of us is a country mouse and one of us is a city boy mouse.

City mouse doesn’t have an explanation for why dogs have survived outside for hundreds of years.  Or for how farm animals survive in a barn. 

City mouse stammers when you ask if they believe farmers bring their cows into their garages at night.

But despite all evidence to the contrary, city mouse still believes that the dogs must be cold.

They just don’t know it.

So wise old city mouse believes we must think for them, and bring the dogs inside.

Also on the list of things city mouse cannot explain?  Why the freezing cold dogs literally run you over in an effort to get back outside in the morning.  Or why they roll around in the snow all day.  Or why they have to be physically drug into the garage to sleep at night.

Ahem.

So yeah, that’s the dilemma in a nutshell.  What say you?

Outsmarted again!

The girls were out on the deck playing with the dogs while I cooked dinner this evening. Annie (5) came in to ask me for Wrigley’s leash.

Me: Why do you need her leash?
Annie: To take her for a walk.
Me: Honey, there’s no where to walk to, you’re on the deck. Just play with her.
Annie: I tried but she just wants to lay around.
Me: Well you can’t make her do something she doesn’t want to do.
Annie: I can if I have her leash.

How can you argue with that?