10/17/2007

A what? A couple days ago in North Houston, there was a free event called 'Pet Fest.' Really, it's a tribute to all things dog (and a couple things ferret). We drove up with a picnic lunch, Hoo-Yah, Prince Charming and the Beauty Queen for a couple hours of dog petting and freebie collecting. We were not disappointed. Nathan, of course, loved being around all the dogs, but the highlight of the event for Nick and I came in the form of a little booth displaying a sign that read:

"Free: Ask the Vet"

We figured this was our chance to get a professional opinion on Hoo-Yah's breed. So, we DID ask the vet. She picked up the puppy (who was deemed, by the way, one of the most darling little fur balls they had ever seen), asked us about his age, etc. and then spoke one of the strangest words I'd ever heard. "Schipperke", she said. A what? So we went home and began our research. And wouldn't you know it...it must be fate...

"Schipperke" comes from the Dutch word for "Skipper.'' The use this name for the breed because (get this!) they so much enjoy sailing. No joke! Here we are, with a boat in our house and a dog named after the Navy and we find out we've got the world's greatest sailing dog living with us, too! What else about the breed? They stay rather small...18 lbs is around the top. They are known as "Little German Shepherds" because they are so intelligent and can be taught to do just about anything. (I found this inspirational and have signed Hoo-Yah up for puppy training school in a few weeks. If he is so brilliant, I figured we might as well take advantage and have a professional teach him a thing or two.) Anyway, the mystery dog is unveiled!

Here I am with Hoo-Yah at PetFest. They had this little Halloween dog house set up...I think the purpose was to take pictures. Hoo-Yah wasn't too fond of staying in the dog house for a photo shoot, so I just held him. By the way, Nathan knows how to say Hoo-Yah. I wish you all could hear him: "No, Hoo-Jah" he yells!



And here is a picture of the little sailor. Isn't he adorable? I get a kick out of those ears! People at the PetFest kept looking at our family: Dad, Mom, two 'babies' and a puppy and they would all say, "Oh! They're ALL so cute...we don't know who to look at!" I volunteered that, having spent many hours with all of them, the kids were officially cuter, but I wouldn't be offended if they wanted to check out the puppy.


Some of you may have read Mom Jones' post about the yellow ribbon for Jesse. (I talked to him the other day via Internet, by the way...so cool how we can communicate from different sides of the globe!) I had to smile, because I too wanted some tangible item to remind me of Kyle and his service to our country. Well, I didn't choose a yellow ribbon. I like to think of myself as sort of 'young and cool' still, which my children will probably grow to deny, but anyhow, I thought it would be fun to remember Kyle by wearing dog tags. And so, Kyle went to the official 'Navy Dog Tag Maker' (what a job!) and got me official Navy dog tags. They have my name on them, but they don't have my social security number. I see no reason to invite crime. The number on my dog tags is Kyle's phone number. I wear these dog tags every single day. Usually I tuck them down into my shirt. They aren't as aesthetically pleasing as a string of pearls. Sometimes when I want to look tough and official I let them hang out. I keep waiting to be offered a military discount. Maybe people look at my arms, notice the obvious lack of anything muscular and assume I must be a fraud. =) Oh, on a side note, we're getting dog tags made for Hoo-Yah, too. We figured this would be a really clever way to tag our puppy...with 'dog tags.'

Nia slept almost all the way through the night last night. She went down about 10 and woke up for a feeding at 5. Not too shabby! She is a snuggler. Unlike Nathan, she loves to be rocked. In fact, if I could spend the entire day in the rocking chair with her, she would be most pleased. Nathan never liked to rock. I enjoy having this cozy girl.

The best word to describe Nathan is "personality." He is FULL of it! People are always taken with him. He is outgoing, funny, dramatic, and creative. My Mom had taught Nathan to sing 'Holy, Holy, Holy', and we regularly sing it still. However, the other day while cutting out horse-shaped sugar cookies, Nathan smiled at me and began to sing (to the same tune as Holy, Holy) "Horsey, Horsey, Horsey." Then, finding himself incredibly clever he laughed and laughed and laughed. He likes to tease Hoo-Yah. He will regularly offer Hoo-Yah a bit of food only to shout, "No, Hoo-Jah" when the dog tries to eat it. We spend literally hours reading together each day. For a busy boy, he will sit still and listen to books for unimaginably long periods of time. Sometimes I go to bed with a sore throat from having read so much. I think it is fabulous! In fact, Nathan is so familiar with our books that he can ask for many of them by name.

I know I've been delinquent in my posting, but I will try to get my act together in the near future. We plan to go to the Children's Museum tomorrow evening for free family night (they have trick or treating at the museum this time of year). Maybe I'll remember to snap some pictures to share.