Farewell Bruce

On Saturday it will be two weeks since we ushered Bruce into a new life via the Humane Society. There are a number of things I will not miss:

1. Pee on the carpet.

2. Pee on my sweaters.

3. Pee on Bryce's computer bag.

4. Pee on Bryce's wool coat that had to be dry cleaned.

5. Pee on the kitchen floor.

6. Pee on the kitchen cabinets.

7. Pee on the laundry baskets.

8. Pee on Kimball's toys.

9. Pee on my pillow.

10. Having to climb over the child's gate to get into the kitchen because Bruce was locked up for peeing too much.

11. Pee on the child's gate.

12. Stepping on poop in the back yard.

There are, however, several things I will miss:

1. Loud breathing while trying to watch a movie.

2. High pitched howling for no good reason.

3. Barking at fireworks.

4. Walks around the block.

5. Car rides.

6. His patience with Kimball's hugs.

Here are my favorite Bruce memories:

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Watching TV

It's hard to watch TV when Bruce hogs the remotes.

Memorial Day, etc.

In the past few weeks I have:

1. Visited the grave cite of Heber C. Kimball, Little Man's namesake.

2. Visited the new statute of Rodney Badger at the Peace Officer's Memorial.   (Bruce peed on him in greeting.  I'm sure he saw it that way.)
3. Quit my job.  (This is a picture on my last day as a lawyer.)
4.  Made a fire truck cake.
5. Made a baby blessing cake.
6. Took Little Man to the park with Grandma Cyndy.
7. Had fun with Little Man at the park.
8. Watched little man eat the fence at the park.  (More interesting than watching the over-fed ducks at the park.  Fore more on the park, click here.)

Portland

Last week we went to Portland to see Aunt Amber get pinned--i.e. graduate (with honors, not too shabby) from the University of Portland with a nursing degree.  Turns out Kimball is a natural flyer.  He wanted to watch the takeoff from the window and then settled into his own seat to wait for his complimentary beverage.  

The pinning ceremony was one of the most un-boring graduations I have ever attended, and that includes my own.  Although, two hours of sitting was a little much for Little Man.  He got slightly annoyed when the ushers wouldn't let him stand in the corner in Mom's arms.  Well, at least Mom was annoyed.  Good thing Uncle Derek and lots of extra hands were there to entertain.  But overall, two thumbs up.  Congratulations, Amber.  We are so impressed and proud.

Before leaving Portland we had to check out the wonders of the Pacific Northwest and so took a hike in the city park.  It was Kimball's nap time and so he was less impressed than the rest of us.

The adventures of Bruce Wayne

Bruce still pees in the house.  I am pretty resigned that we may never cure him.  So Bryce and I do our best to never let him alone.  I often find myself in one room thinking, "Where's Bruce?" and leave what I am doing, sometimes with carrot peeler or spatula in hand to see where the dog actually is and whether I need to pull out the Resolve.  This morning I found him sitting on Kimball's clean laundry.  Oh well, at least he didn't pee on it.

Here is another picture of Bruce snuggled up to Kimball after he successfully rolled over.  He looks proud of himself, doesn't he.  I mean, Kimball.  Well, they both look pretty impressed with themselves.

Kimball loves to laugh

I promised Amber that I would put up a video of Kimball laughing. Little Man loves to laugh and is especially ticklish when he's naked. He is getting so big I can hardly believe it. He is truly a joy to have in our family.




Bruce, unfortunately, is still jealous of the doting attention that the baby gets. The pee problem has continued if not expanded in scope. Our new tactic has been to force Bruce outside as much as possible including first thing in the morning. Bruce HATES going outside first thing in the morning (no doubt because it's butt-freezing cold) and has started to put his foot down. Just yesterday, after opening his crate, I told him he needed to go outside. He went right back in. So a few minutes later I coaxed him out, petted him, and told him he needed to go outside. He went right back in his crate. This continued. So, this morning he didn't come out of the crate until he was sure that I wasn't going to make him go outside. Sometimes, I feel like Bruce is the one training us.

The danger of a video camera

One morning I found myself startled awake by a bright light in my eyes. Behind the light was my husband and I wondered why he was using a flashlight to navigate the room. It was no flashlight and here are the results of his impromptu filming. I really ought to find a way to get him back.

Bruce and Kimball

Bruce and Kimball are already on their way to becoming fast friends.  Sure, the dog is a little jealous of all the attention the baby gets.  But, who wouldn't be?  Kimball gets fed at regular intervals, gets his diaper changed whenever he so much as peeps, he gets to stay in bed with us after lights out and gets carried everywhere.  Bruce is lucky if we let him out of the house before we notice the potty dance.  And if the water bowl gets refilled before he's emptied the cat's water too, it's a good day.  However, the jealousy melts away when Kimball smiles.  (These smiles have he same effect on Kimball's parent's desire to complain about all the late nights.  Really, baby smiles are like a super power.)

How is that comfortable?

I found Bruce napping one evening on Bryce's legs.  I am still baffled and have no further comment.  The pictures speak for themselves.