Hell Has Frozen Over

This is the post I never thought I'd write. We got a dog. Me. A dog owner. I swore it would never happen. I am not an animal person. I am definitely not an animal-owning kind of person. I think the best pet is a neighbor pet. And even then it's iffy because they can still bark and crap on your lawn.

But AJ begged - for years. She and Craig would take trips to the local shelter to visit. And on one particular visit in September, we found a great dog and I relented {gasp!} And now I have to admit, she has even charmed me. The non-animal-loving-semi-germaphobe-I-am-not-picking-THAT-up me. And I love her.

Her name is Dixie. She's a long-haired Chihuahua. She is just over a year old. She fits in my purse. (Although I'm not the crazy carry-your-dog-in-your-purse-lady...yet)

The first night we brought her home, she snuggled up with AJ and slept with her all night. AWWWWWW...


In the morning AJ was anxious to give her a mini-makeover. Baths are easy since she fits so nicely in the kitchen sink:



And of course, what makeover is complete without a manicure?



Notice the matching polish...


I really can't complain. She's not a yapper, as most little dogs are. She just wants to sleep on your lap all the time. And she lets AJ drag her around like a stuffed animal - poor thing. But I have to say, I'm glad the newness hasn't worn off for AJ as it often tends to do. She still can't wait to get home from school and see her and wants to play with her all the time. I think that little dog was just the extra dose of love we needed around here.

Costume Caper

Dressing up is AJ's number one favorite thing to do. We don't buy her toys, we buy costumes. But what I find so funny is that she will put on a costume, and then go about her day as if nothing's out of the ordinary. Here are a few things I've caught her doing:

Dusting as Batman (I think?):

Working on the Computer as "Spiderman":


Crocodile browning hamburger for dinner:


And just so CPS doesn't come a knockin', she LIKES to do all those things. I am not a child slave driver. Maybe if I could figure out a way to have her take a bath with a costume on, it wouldn't be such a chore!