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The Tenderness of Animals

Posted on February 23, 2013 by auburnchick

God’s design is amazing.

He left nothing to chance, including the way that living creatures respond to each other.

Take, for instance, the case of my fur babies.

As I mentioned on Wednesday in my Hodgepodge post, Aubie isn’t doing very well right now.

She’s thirteen years old and is losing her ability to hear.

She also began limping last weekend.

We took her to the vet on Thursday, and she confirmed that Aubie has already lost a great deal of muscle mass in the leg that she’s favoring.

We also discovered that she’s lost five pounds since her last visit in July.

That’s not good.

The doctor suspects that Aubie has either strained her leg or that she has bone cancer.

😦

We’re being cautious, though, and have begun giving her joint supplements and baby aspirin to relieve joint pain and inflammation.

If the limping isn’t better in two weeks, we will take her back for x-rays.  X-rays will determine if there’s any cancer in her body.

The Mr. and I are quite torn up about this.

We’ve had Aubie since Rooster was in kindergarten.

She and the kids have grown up together.

She represents a huge chunk of time in our lives.

One of the things are are doing to help her healing process is limiting her activity.

The way we are doing this is by moving her dog bed from one room to another.

This is where we’re seeing God’s design come into play.

When we put her bed in the living room, she gingerly got in.

The other dogs know that something is going on with her.  Loving her as they do, they want to be close to her.

The following are pictures I’ve taken over the last couple of days…

Look at Pele’s leg on her bed.  Poor Gambit.  He’s such a snuggler and just wants to be near her.

He crawled into bed with her this morning…

We would really appreciate your prayers for her.

We are absolutely heartbroken over what may be coming.

Our entire family is.

Aubie has claimed everyone’s hearts.

Grand Pooba and Coupon Queen took care of her for almost a year while we were building a house.  They fell in love with her.

During that time, Super Sis and her family fell in love with her too.  They decided to get a dog after watching their children interact with Aubie.

She’s been a role model for the other dogs in the house.

She’s been another mother to Pele and Gambit.

Molly hasn’t been so impressed with her, but they’re typical alpha dogs, so it’s understandable.

While we don’t know what future days hold for our precious Aubie, we do know that we’ll be keeping her as comfortable as we can and spoiling her rotten.

It’s the least we can do for everything she has given us over the years.

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

One Year Ago…

Posted on December 31, 2012 by auburnchick

One year ago today, I decided to take my Molly for a walk.

We’d scarcely gotten down the road when an uncollared, skin-and-bones puppy ran up to us, friendly as could be.

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My neighbor stood outside and explained that he’d been allowing the puppy to sleep on his porch and had been feeding him, but that the puppy had not let anyone pet him.

I spoke a few words to the puppy and then proceeded to walk Molly around the neighborhood.

The little guy stuck with us and walked as if he were part of the family.

When I stopped, he stopped.  When I started up again, so did he.

The Mr. and Rooster came outside when we got home and admired the puppy’s markings.

He had tiger stripes, and being Auburn fans, we liked that.

The poor guy looked hungry, so we fixed him a bowl of food.

He gobbled it right down, along with a couple more bowls of food.

He also drank down a couple of bowls of water.

The evening promised to be cold, so we set up a pallet in the garage and turned on a light for him.

image

We returned to the garage many times that night to check on him, and he looked up at us each time, wagged his tail, but stayed on the towel we’d set up for him.

In the morning, we fed him breakfast and took him to pee.   This was his first introduction to our other dogs.

Molly had already met him.

image

Aubie and Pele were curious but accepted him immediately.

image

To his credit, the puppy was docile and quickly rolled to his back…his act of submission.

We decided to take him to the vet to get him checked out.  He was healthy, but we’d found a tick, so the vet gave us a prescription for any kind of infection he might have and also administered one vaccine.

He was also checked for a microchip.  We figured someone, somewhere was missing him.  He didn’t have a chip though, so back home he went until the next day, when the local animal shelter would be open.

Our plan was to take him there, where a good home could be found for him.

We did, after all, already own three dogs.

Meanwhile, we’d begun allowing the puppy to stay inside.

He and Rooster quickly bonded, and we knew it would be difficult to tear them away from one another.

image

The day after New Years, we loaded up the car and headed to the animal shelter.

It was closed, but a worker was there to feed the dogs.  He checked the puppy for a microchip but could not locate one.  He also explained that there was a dog fighting ring, and the dog had probably not performed well and was, thus, dropped off on the street.

The Mr., usually the tough one in the family, made an instant decision.

Honestly, I think he’d been waffling about what to do ever since he’d laid eyes on the little guy.

He gave the green light to keep the puppy, so we drove straight to the pet store and bought the puppy a collar and his own food bowl.

image

He was officially ours.

We allowed Rooster to select the name, and we trucked ourselves back to the pet store and had “Gambit” etched on a name tag.

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Thus began our first year with our new puppy.

What a blessing this little guy has been.

To be sure, he’s wreaked havoc on the home.  The first day he was here by himself after we went back to work and Rooster went back to school, he tore up EVERYTHING in the living room, including a set of vertical blinds…

image

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One new crate later, and that problem was solved.

He has slept with one of us nearly every night that he’s been with us, and I must say that he is the BEST snuggler of all four dogs.

He wakes us up by laying his big head on our faces.

He has no regard for personal space.  Wherever you are, he thinks he should be as well.

He is smart, though, and eager to please.

It’s obvious that he was abused because he still shies away when he sees us wielding papers in our hands, despite our assurances that we’re not going to hit him.  We’ve never hit a dog.

He gives as much love as he gets, making our decision to keep him one of the most rewarding we’ve made in a while.

One year later, this little four-legged bundle of fur has brought nothing but love and joy to our family, and I can’t thank the Lord enough for putting us together.

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Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

Bringing in 2012 With the Hodgepodge

Posted on January 4, 2012 by auburnchick

It’s a new year, and what better way to begin anew than with a fresh set of Hodgepodge questions?!  Thanks, Joyce, for hosting!

1.  What are three words you would use to describe your 2011?

Hectic – I taught five grades from January through June, completed an entire teaching certification program (nine classes), and began teaching a new subject, reading, at a different school in August.

Adventurous – My family flew to Seattle, WA, and then jumped on a cruise ship to Alaska, courtesy of Coupon Queen and Grand Pooba.

Illuminating – Last school year, I taught at a Muslim school (I am a Christian).  Prior to that experience, I’d never had close contact with those of the Muslim faith.  Before talking to them, I had no idea what kinds of challenges they face in the United States.  It was eye-opening.  My year of illumination continued into the current school year.  Most of the students I currently teach come from a lower socioeconomic station.  In the last five months, my eyes have been opened to the host of problems that my high school students face.  These kids face everything from learning disabilities to “unique” family dynamics.  Watching my students face their difficulties head-on has been inspiring and illuminating.

2. Do you like shrimp? What’s your favorite way to have it prepared?

Yes, I do like shrimp, but I haven’t eaten it in over a year now…ever since I switched to a vegan diet.  I really never had a preference to how it was prepared…shrimp cocktails, shrimp scampi…it just didn’t matter.

3.  Is your house de-Christmased? If so when did you tackle that job? If not, when will the decorations come down?

Yes, my has been undecorated.  It took a couple of days…off and on.  I finished around the 29th or the 30th, I think.

4.  Do you like to watch scary movies?

No, I’ve never enjoyed watching scary movies, although the Mr. will tell you that our first date was to a scary movie.  What can I say?  I didn’t get asked out often, so I wasn’t going to turn down the opportunity for anything.  I tend to have very scary dreams, so scary movies intensify my dreams.  Honestly, I see no point to scary movies.

5.  Ice skating~sledding~skiing~snowboarding~of the four listed which wintertime activity do you most enjoy?

I live in Florida.  We don’t do any of these activities.  Had I to choose, though, I’d say ice skating.  I’ve always loved skating of any kind.  I love ice skating Olympic events.  I fancy myself (in my silly head) another Kristi Yamaguchi.

6.  Did you have a childhood hideout? Describe it.

I don’t think I had a childhood hideout when I was younger.  I did spend a lot of time in my room, but what kid doesn’t?

7.  What’s a place or space that motivates you?

I would say that a place that motivates me is another teacher’s classroom.  Oh, not just any classroom, but the classroom of a FANTASTIC teacher.  Seeing what that teacher is doing inspires me to think outside of the box and get more creative with my own students.  It makes me long for the time when teaching will become more natural as well, so “hanging in there” becomes my mantra.  Time and diligence will help me be a better teacher one day.

8.  My Random Thought

I don’t know if any of you read my post a couple of days ago. If not, go on and skim over it.  My random thought is a follow-up.

New Year’s Eve, a stray dog wandered up to me while I was walking one of my other dogs, and he followed me home.  I didn’t have the heart to put him out, so the Mr. and I decided to keep him in the garage.

He slowly worked his way into the house, but after checking for fleas, we found a few ticks on him, so we put him back in the garage.

We were waiting until Monday when we could take him to the animal shelter.

A funny thing happened during those three days.

We began to fall in love with the guy.  The feeling was mutual, and he quickly grew comfortable with us, as evidenced by the next few pictures…

He followed me everywhere…even into the bathroom…

On Monday, the Mr. and I loaded him up and drove to the animal shelter.  There was a young animal control officer outside, but he told us the facility was closed.  However, after explaining our situation, the guy agreed to check the puppy for a microchip.  I wanted to get him back to his owner, if possible.

Well, the puppy didn’t have a chip, and because the facility was closed, we took him back home for one more night.

Meanwhile, the Mr. found two more ticks on the puppy, so we decided to take him to Banfield, the veterinarian facility that Pet Smart stores have onsite.  I had called ahead, explained how we’d taken in a stray, and the office manager had agreed to waive the $40 office fee.

The Mr. gave me strict instructions to find out the cost of getting him checked for ticks as well as worms.

It turned out that the few services we were willing to commit to were not too expensive.  He’s a healthy guy…a pit-boxer mix…a healthy 55 pounds…and about a year old.  The only problem he has is a case of hookworms, which we got medicine for.

The dog was so well behaved while he was being treated…

I took him home, and we watched him, growing ever closer but determined to detach ourselves the next day.

What was actually happening was that Rooster and the Mr. were bonding with the dog.

We decided to think and pray about keeping him and decide in the morning.  I wasn’t returning to school until today (Wednesday), so I could take him to the animal shelter.

When we woke up Tuesday morning, the Mr. tried to ease out the door.  Rooster and I were still sleeping, but I woke up in the nick of time, caught him and cornered him for a decision.

Financially, it wasn’t a good decision.  One more mouth to feed, one more hiney to vaccinate.

Then, the Mr. went to Rooster’s room and saw this…

The Mr. couldn’t say no.

Rooster had already laid claim to the dog.

He gave the okay to go shopping…

It was time for the dog to have his own collar and food bowl.

I think this little guy had known, all along, that he was home (as did all of my friends on Facebook as they followed the saga as it played out)…

Over the last few days, I couldn’t help but wonder if God was in this.  Out of all the people to follow, the dog followed me, and he instantly took a liking to me.  Aubie, Pele, and Molly accepted him easily, although Molly did have an issue the other night when he attempted to eat her food.  We’re now feeding them separately.

I know that some people might call us nuts for taking in another animal.

What can I say?  We’ve grown into a family that has a heart for strays.  We adopted all of our fur babies from local shelters.  Even the Mr., who pretends to be all tough on the outside, has turned mushy where it comes to our animals.

I hope there’s a special place in heaven for people who take in strays.  Not that it matters to me.  I don’t know that I need the extra incentive.  It’s just a part of who I am.

Oh, and what did we name him?

Well, Rooster asked for this privilege since, technically, the dog is his, and he’s never gotten to name one of our dogs.

After spending the entire day agonizing over a name, and I do mean agonizing, Rooster decided on the following, which we had etched on a tag at Pet Smart…

Our little guy’s name is Gambit, after the X-Men character.  I like the name because it means “risk,” which is what we do every time we open our hearts to an adopted fur baby.

Happy New Year to all of my Hodgepodge and other bloggy friends!

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , | 16 Comments »

The Pied Piper

Posted on January 1, 2012 by auburnchick

Yesterday, New Year’s Eve, I decided to take Molly for a walk.

We had not gotten very far when this little guy wandered up, smelling Molly, and keeping pace with us…

I stopped, unsure if I should continue walking.  I noticed that he didn’t have a collar on…

I talked to a neighbor who lives across the street, and he’d first noticed the dog the day before, and he’d allowed the dog to stay on his porch that first night.  However, the dog was wary of my neighbor and wouldn’t go near him.

Apparently he felt differently about me.

I decided to continue my walk, hoping that someone in the neighborhood would see us as we passed by and recognize him.  I felt a little like the Pied Piper.

This sweet puppy stayed with us the entire way.

I made my way back down my street and saw a different neighbor, whose itsy bitsy dogs had gotten out of her house and started running toward the stray…barking the entire way.

The stray, almost certainly a pit bull, acted like he was scared of the smaller dogs and ran from them with his tail between his legs.

I wondered what I should do, figuring that the Mr. would have my hide if I brought him home.  The Mr. came out of the house, and we chatted, finally agreeing to feed him and allow him to sleep in the garage for the night.

Meanwhile, I called Animal Control, but the officers who pick up strays were off for the weekend.  I had hoped that by getting the dog to my local animal shelter, he could be scanned for a microchip.

It was obvious that this dog was very well trained.  Surely he had an owner who had chipped him.

The guy at Animal Control suggested that I call Pet Smart, which has a scanner.

I called, but the vet who has his office there (and, thus, has the scanner) had already left for the day.

Hence, we were stuck for the weekend.

We fed the little guy.  He was starving and gobbled down the food quickly.

We fixed a pallet for him in the garage, and he quickly settled in…

What a sweet little guy.

My guess is that he’s about three months old…he still has a lot of puppy in him.

I let him into my backyard a few times to potty before I headed to bed.

I didn’t get up until 9:30 this morning and quickly went to check on him, figuring I’d find an accident or two.

No such thing.

He eagerly did his business in my backyard.

We decided to introduce him to Aubie and Pele, and surprisingly, Aubie took to him quickly.  She’s not much on other dogs.  He adored her.

Throughout the entire time, I waited for the Mr. to be grumpy.

He did good…real good…even suggesting that I give the dog a bath so he could stay in but not smell up the house.

I did, and he stayed in…

Then, I took him outside and began to inspect him.  He’d been scratching…a lot.

I noticed fleas.

Ugh.

Back out to the garage he went while I looked up the recipe for a homemade flea shampoo.

I found one, tried it, and checked him.  He still had a few live fleas.

Poor thing.

We kept him in the garage.  I do not want a flea infestation in the house, nor do I want my other dogs to get fleas.

Throughout the afternoon, we went outside to visit the little guy.

The Mr. appears smitten.

The dog has tiger stripes…his coloring is very unique.

Then, we found a tick on him.

Sigh.

We looked for more, but we didn’t see any.  Still, we’re not the experts, and we’re very leery of getting a tick infestation.  Super Sis went through that two summers ago, and it was awful.

So, the little guy is back in the garage.

I feel badly for him, but at least the garage is warm, and he’s been fed.

I’d love to keep him, but with three furry babies in the house already, I just can’t do it.  Plus, I think that the pup needs medicine.  The fleas probably gave him an infection of some sort.  That’s how Molly started her life with us.  Veterinary bills are not in our budget, unfortunately.

Until then, he’ll be loved and prayed for.  I’d like him to wind up either with his original owners or in another loving home.

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , | 5 Comments »

A Furry Baby Christmas

Posted on December 29, 2011 by auburnchick

On Tuesday, my pups returned home, courtesy of the drop-off service my boarding facility provides (for a small fee, of course)…

They sure were glad to be home, as evidenced from the following pictures…

Poor Molly.  She’s not feeling too well and hasn’t eaten much since she got home.  She doesn’t do well, emotionally, when we board her, and eating the boarding facility’s food threw her belly for a loop, I’m afraid.

She’s become a big snuggler…grateful that her mama is home…

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , , | 4 Comments »

Pele Finds Religion

Posted on February 10, 2011 by auburnchick

Monday night, I attended a band booster meeting.  Then, I had to pick up Rooster from his college class.

Meanwhile, Pele was busy…

I found this after I got home, and let me tell you…I was not happy.  Mondays are long enough as it is, but to find my brand new devotion book chewed up really frustrated me.

I turned the book on its spine and saw evidence of Pele attempting to read it.  The corners of the pages were chewed on…

I guess Martin Luther’s writings were too much for Pele to resist.

It appears as if my fur baby has found religion.

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , | 6 Comments »

Bad Dog

Posted on December 1, 2010 by auburnchick

Participles kicked my behind today.

I desperately needed a laugh.

Pele provided it.

I walked past Rooster’s room this evening and noticed this…

 

So I followed the trail to see where it would lead…

Good thing he’s so cute…

 

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , | 3 Comments »

Two Peas in a Pod

Posted on November 24, 2010 by auburnchick

This is Molly…

 

This is me…

 

I was the one who saw Molly at the animal shelter, and it was because of my instant love for her that she came home with me.

It didn’t take long before I realized that we are two peas in a pod.

Molly marches to the beat of her own drummer.

So do I.

Molly possesses a “leader of the pack” mentality, as do I.

Molly is leery of strangers.

I am shy in front of new people.  In fact, my least favorite part of church services is when we have to shake hands with people around us.

Molly barks for whatever reason she chooses.

So do I.  In fact, I’ve been known to start barking the moment I enter the house.

Molly retreats to her hiding place under the bed when a crowd arrives at the house.

I actively seek out solitude to help me deal with family gatherings.

It’s no wonder that Molly sensed my stress tonight and emerged from her corner to comfort me in the midst of my self-imposed time out.

In that moment, I felt a very strong connection with my four-legged fur baby.

Truly, we are two peas in a pod.

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

Bonnie and Clyde – On the Run Again

Posted on September 27, 2010 by auburnchick

Please study the following picture closely…see if you can figure out what’s wrong with it…

What?  You can’t figure it out?

I’ll give you a clue.

Those are my dogs, but they’re not exactly standing in my yard.

Oh no.

See, I was standing in my driveway when I took that picture.

And all I could repeat, over and over, was, “Stupid dogs, stupid dogs, stupid dogs.”

Grrr.

Sometimes it is difficult to be me.

Things always seem to happen at just the wrong time.

What led to the above picture?

Well, it all started last night.  Rooster came home from youth group and announced that one of the lenses in his glasses was missing.

Say what?

I should have taken a picture of them.  Bad blogger.

He was very apologetic as he explained that he had no idea how he had lost it.  All he knew was that one moment he had it, and the next, it was gone.

Poof.

He should get his own show in Vegas.

My friend, Taylor, would surely understand.  She has a boy-child who has managed to lose or break every pair of glasses he has owned.  And he is all of three years of age, I think.

Well, because Rooster desperately needs his glasses to do such important things as see in school and drive, I called Eye Masters and cajoled them into shaving 1/2 off of the price to replace it.  I mean…he’s only had the glasses a month.  Doesn’t this speak of shoddy workmanship?

But, to get the glasses fixed ASAP, we had to leave right away.

Rooster and I got in the car, and I started backing out.  I hit the button on the garage door opener and watched as the door started to come down.

And then…

A blur…

Two blurs, actually…

One white and one brown.

Oh no.

Molly and Pele.

Bonnie and Clyde…reincarnated from the dead…

Now, this isn’t a new thing, and I should have known better.

Just like the bank-robbing couple, where Bonnie was in charge, and Clyde did the heavy lifting, so it is with Molly and Pele.

Molly is the brains…

Don’t let her cuteness fool you.  I think that people said Bonnie was pretty (before she got all shot up in the end).

And Pele…well, he’s the muscle and will foolishly follow along…

Seeing him smile like that makes me see red after what he puts me through each day.

Here’s how their great adventures begin…

From what I’ve noticed, when someone goes outside, Molly starts the run to the door.  Pele runs behind her, jumps on the door handle, and turns it…opening the door to freedom.

It used to be funny.

Until days like today – when we needed to be somewhere ten minutes ago.

Grrr…

I have learned that the dogs suddenly develop hearing loss when I call them in.  It’s best to completely ignore them and take the fun out of the chase.

But, like I said…we were in a hurry.

So, on a whim, I ran inside and grabbed a jar of peanut butter.  I put some on my finger, called Molly, and held out the treat to her.

Stupid dog.

She ran close to me but took off again before I could grab her…not even interested in the peanut butter.

Stupid dog.

I put the peanut butter away and grabbed a bag of baby carrots.  My dogs LOVE these.

I went outside and tried to coax them to come to me.  This was the picture I got of them…

What?  Don’t see the dogs?

Yeah.  That’s right.  That’s because the dumb dogs ran right past me.

Bonnie and Clyde would have been so proud.

I continued to hold out the proverbial carrot, and finally, Molly got too close…sneaking in a lick as I grabbed her collar…

Just like Clyde giving up the fight, so Pele gave up as well…glumly trotting back into the house, tail between his legs.

Turd.

Yes, I just said that.  It’s mild compared to what I would have liked to say to them, but which I didn’t because I do not have a potty mouth.

Fortunately, the dogs are too stinking cute for their own good…

Bonnie and Clyde live to see another day.

Filed under: Pets | Tagged: , | 5 Comments »

One “Mo” Crazy Day

Posted on August 3, 2010 by auburnchick

So, you know that yesterday was my first day as a teacher.

I shared the emotional highs of the day.

What I neglected to mention was how my day began and ended…

Chicky had just taken my picture, and she was about to head out to work with her sports trainer.

I had gone to the garage to start putting stuff in my car.

All of a sudden, I heard loud scratching, followed by the sound of jingling collars…

My precocious fur babies had escaped!

Oh sure…they look all sweet and innocent in the above picture, but believe me, behind those precious faces are wheels that are constantly in motion…coming up with new ways to make me crazy.

I honestly don’t know who is the instigator.  I strongly suspect it’s Molly.  Pele provides the muscle, and the two of them make for a well-oiled machine.

So, they got out and took off out of the garage.

My heart fell.

It was 6:30, and I wanted to be at school by 7.

My pups love a good chase, so it looked doubtful as to if I would be able to round them up in time.

To make matters worse, I had not put on their collars yet.

Sure, they have microchips, but still.

Ugh.

I went back inside to ruminate.  Over the last three years that Little Miss Escape Artist has lived here, we have been through this many times.

I have discovered that part of the fun is in the chase.

I sneak up behind them, they play like they are going to let me catch them, and then they take off as I make a dive, catching nothing but air and a mouthful of grass.

Not pretty.

Anyhoo…

I heard Chicky start the car, so I thought she was leaving; however, when I went outside a minute later, I saw that she had barely backed out of the driveway.

She was standing outside the car, a smile on her face.

The dogs, it would seem, decided they weren’t in the mood to run, and Molly had returned of her own volition.

Yes, folks, if you ever doubted God’s existence, let this be proof.

He had mercy (doesn’t He always) on wee little me, knowing that being late for work on my first day was not a good thing.

We put the dogs inside, praising them all the way, and I left for school.

So, my day went on (I’ll share a cute school story tomorrow).  It was incredibly wonderful.

Meanwhile, Chicky and Rooster had gone on a day-long biking excursion with my church’s youth group.  This is Youth Week, and there are activities going on through Wednesday.  The kids look forward to this every summer.  It is a great way to end the summer and kick off the new school year.

The only bad thing about today’s trip, though, was that I had scheduled an eye appointment for Rooster.  At the time, I did not have the schedule of events for the week.

So, Chicky and Rooster had to drive a separate vehicle and leave a little early so he could get back in time.

I had a game plan…

As soon as school let out, I would meet the kids at the eye doctor’s office.

When I got there, I did not see the kids.  They were running a little behind, so I let the front desk know.  Of course, this was the ONE day when they were actually right on schedule.

Go figure.

I have that kind of luck, you know.

Meanwhile, I kept calling Rooster…”Are you almost here?”

Ugh.  That is a horrible feeling.

I stood and waited…

And waited…

And waited…

Finally, I saw Chicky drive up.  Rooster jumped out and hurried in.

And then I saw it…

My Rooster…

Oh

My

Gosh.

His hair…

Oh

My

Gosh.

This is a story in and of itself.

See, on Sunday, the youth group had its annual scavenger hunt.  It is the big kickoff to Youth Week, and the kids and parents look forward to it.

You might remember my post from last year.  It was the first time I had ever driven, and I had a blast!

Although I had lesson plans to write, I decided that I needed a respite from my work, so I gave myself the afternoon off.

The way the scavenger hunt worked was that we had several items we had to find (and take) back to the church.  Each item was worth a certain number of points.

Then, there was another list of things each group had to do.  The driver (an adult) was the photographer who would snap pictures of the entire group doing the listed activities.  The pictures served as proof that we really did what we said we did.

Some of the items on the list included:

  • Proposing to a random person
  • Serenading a male/female couple in a public place
  • Helping an elderly person cross the street
  • Tossing pizza dough in a pizza parlor
  • Singing to a child in front of Toys R Us
  • Braiding someone’s hair
  • Applying a peanut butter facial
  • Walking through a drive-thru and pretending to place an order

There were a lot of other things on the list, but perhaps one of the most unusual (and most difficult) was to find someone sporting a real Mohawk.  Extra points would be given if the person’s hairdo was dyed.

Uh huh.

You see where I am going, eh?

All of the groups had to meet back at the church by 5:30.

As my group walked in, I saw my Rooster.

Sporting a Mohawk.

With pink, green, and blue sparkly paint to boot.

Oh

My

Gosh.

You might wonder what my first words were.

You would be surprised.

I asked him to let my group take a picture with him.

I like to win.

Remember the chicken biscuit party?

AuburnChick MUST win.

To the point where I hollered, “Don’t let them in,” as my new associate pastor entered Toys R Us with his group.

I’m ruthless.

However, Rooster had other ideas, and they did not include helping his Mama.

He’s ruthless too.

He likes to win.

He gets it honestly.

Well, me being ruthless and all did what all people desperate to win do in situations like this.

I offered him money.

I saw him smile.

How much, he wondered.

Ten stinkin’ bucks.

Deal.

My group got its picture.

We didn’t win though.

We couldn’t find kumquats.

Apparently they aren’t in season, and I didn’t know what they looked like, so I missed the kumquat tree that I passed on one of the roads.

Losing stinks.

But, back to the original point of my story…

The eye doctor.

Rooster walking in.

In that moment, the last day and a half flashed before my eyes.

Rooster came home from church, intending to cut his hair.  I had been hounding him for weeks, so he knew I wouldn’t mind the Mohawk since it meant he’d be halfway done with the hair cut.

However, Rooster had been invited to sleep over at a friend’s house.

I had agreed.

I had forgotten about the hair.

This teaching/working thing has totally taken over my life, because although I had remembered about his appointment, I had forgotten that we never cut the rest of his hair.

So, when he walked in, he looked like Billy Ray Cyrus’s son.

Yeah.

There I am in my teacher dress and new shoes, looking all professional, and there is Rooster…sporting a Mohawk.

In the middle of a very busy doctor’s office…the kind where they have something like 20 or 30 eye doctors…who do all of that specialized surgery along with regular checkups.

Uh huh.

I wanted to crawl under the carpet.

I could only imagine what others might be thinking.

Now, this is not to disparage those who wear Mohawks, because there could be some very fine fellows who make well-thought-out decisions to wear their hair this way.

However, my experience has been that when I see kids wearing their hair like this, well, I do a double-take, and it’s not the kind where I go, “Hmmm…their mamas must be so proud.”

Let’s leave it at that.

The only good thing about Rooster’s Mohawk was that he had managed to wash out most of the paint.

Thank the Lord (again, He was merciful).  Rooster wasn’t sparkling like a girl.

Yeah.

As a nurse escorted us back to an examination room, I made it a point to have a loud conversation with Rooster…

“The SCAVENGER HUNT was fun, wasn’t it?  You were so kind to do this for the SCAVENGER HUNT, weren’t you?”

Yeah, you know those conversations that we have for other people’s benefit.

The nurse came in, ignored the hair, and did her little “Which one is better…1 or 2” quiz.  It was all I could do not to giggle.

When she left, Rooster and I busted out laughing.

Oy.

Rooster decided to get glasses instead of contacts.  He has had one bad eye ever since middle school…the result of a collision with another student in PE.  I finally got him seen about it last year (I am such a good mom, eh?), and he had tried wearing a contact (since it’s only the one eye) but hated it.

Let’s just say that I was a little more than relieved when he told me he wanted to look for frames another day.

He had already outgrown the Mohawk.  It had served its purpose and put $30 in his pocket.

Thank goodness.

When we got home, he cut off the rest of his hair.

My clean-cut boy was back.

Praise the Lord.

And so, another day ended…just one more in the saga that continues to be my crazy life.

Filed under: children, Pets | Tagged: , , , , | 3 Comments »

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