A Certain Joie de Vivre!

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I watch the adoptable dogs scrolling by on the front page almost every day.  From time to time, I dream about getting a third dog and I’m always on the look out for the perfect dog for our family.  Recently, when I asked family members to “guess what we got?” after we got our pontoon boat, every single one guessed first, “another dog.” Usually, we don’t meet the requirements.  We don’t have young kids and we do have a physical fence, but almost always the ad says, “would do great in a home with another well behaved dog to show him/her the ropes.”  Since the only two dogs we have are Fudge and Vern, this is the deal breaker.  I just don’t know if my husband and I can survive another dog that has been “shown the ropes” by Fudge and Vern.  We are outsmarted almost daily by the two we have and three dogs would tip the scale further in their favor and then we have a gang of ruffians on our hands. It was the same reasoning we used when we stopped after two daughters.

 

There have been so many great dogs scrolling down the front page lately and little Carter, or mini Vern as I call him, just warms my heart when I look at him.  Unfortunately, they want to place him in a home with a well mannered dog, so as usual, we are disqualified.  I have thought about running down to Texas and getting him.  I figured it wouldn’t be that hard to trick Doris.  I could tell her I just saw Knox throw up and when she runs in the house to find a can of pumpkin, hightail it out of there with Carter in tow.  By the time she could say, “That darn Laurie just bested me,” we would be out of there. 

Linda just wrote a blog about her foster, Baxter, and he is another adorable Doodle.  He sounds perfect and I thought about asking Linda if I could exchange one of my dogs for him, but the problem is I can’t decide which dog.  Fudge is the obvious choice with her recent escaping escapades, but after walking Vern the other day and ending up looking like a tangled up Maypole as he chased the swooping Martins around me, I am not so sure. 

I have never heard of the DRC agreeing to an exchange, so I am probably stuck with my two StinkerDoodles.

 

Today, however, I saw Jax go by and I loved his write up and the fact that they said they wanted to find a home for him with a family that appreciates and embraces his lovable nature and his joie de vivre.  I took two years of German in High School and I can speak enough German and English fluently that some would consider me to be bipartisan, so for those of you who do not know what joie de vivre means, allow me to share my knowledge with you. 

It means a love of life, a “seize the day” kind of attitude, and what better quality could a dog have, or for that matter, anyone?  When I told my husband about Jax and his joie de vivre last night over dinner, we both laughed, because reading between the lines, you just know that dog is going to give you a run for your money and a whole lot of laughs.  He is my kind of dog and if we weren’t so full up in our house with two dogs that have joie de vivre to spare, I would be all over that like white on rice.  Isn’t that what we love about puppies and young kids…the way they see the world as an amazing, comical, and wondrous place?  Fudge and Vern have this quality.  Vern will spend hours with a new Kong squeaky ball in his mouth just squeaking away with a silly, glorious, look on his face. Fudge will bounce by Vern and me with a stick in her mouth and a “come and get me” happy look on her face.  Wouldn’t the world be a better place if a squeaky ball and stick were enough for some people?  It just takes so little to make a dog happy.

 

Just the other day, we went walking with the dogs up at the park and a group of geese waddled by just as we were letting the dogs in for a swim.  I was at a bad angle to hold Fudge so I passed the leash to my husband who I thought said, “I’ve got it,” but after Fudge leaped into the water with the leash dragging behind her, I realized I might have been mistaken with what I heard.  Off she went like a bat out of hell and came pretty close to capturing for herself the makings for goose pate or getting herself pecked by Mother Goose and taught a lesson.  Fudge is not our swimmer, but on that day as she tried to close in on a family of geese, she swam for all she was worth.  My husband was yelling her name (or something that sounded like her name) and telling her to come loud enough that we drew a little crowd.  I couldn’t help smiling at her little head bobbing up and down in the water, and I could just feel her thinking, “this is my moment to seize the day,” right up until the moment she ran out of gas and realized she had better turn around or the geese would soon be high fiving each other over the demise of an annoying Doodle.

 

Vern makes me smile every single day.  He gets so excited when he thinks we are going somewhere in the car that as soon as he hears my locks open, Fudge runs for cover.  She knows that in his excitement, she is going to get chased or worse.  Sometimes, she just stands in our doorway weighing her options as Vern crouches, ready to make his move and I can just hear him thinking, “go ahead, make my day!”  He also likes to delay his exit from the van on the off chance that Fudge will walk by unawares and he can surprise her with his presence.  He would sit in that van all day in our driveway, if I would let him, just crouching and leaping, never catching on to the fact that Fudge stopped walking by the van after his first onslaught. We may have to outfit her with a helmet while she is out and about in the yard or trying to get in our van.

I have taken to making him sit while I tell Fudge to go get in the car, because if he gets in first, he sits poised in the van ready to continue his assault.  I swear he is smiling.  The funny thing is if I have him in a sit, Fudge will purposely delay her entry into the van and prance around with something in her mouth right at the van entrance, taunting him. Sometimes, I release him from his sit, just to watch Fudge realize taunting someone twice your size is not always wise.  I felt the same way when my oldest daughter used to go with me to take the youngest to the doctor and would say in her most sympathetic voice, “I hate to tell you this, but I think you have to get a shot today,” just to get a reaction, until one day the doctor informed the oldest that she was the one due for a shot. I had to pinch myself and remind myself that I was a mature adult and the mother who needed to set good examples, because what I really wanted to do was stick my tongue out and say, “na-na, na-na, boo boo.” 

My dogs may not be the best-trained dogs, but they certainly know how to embrace life and have a good time. I like to think they are free spirits, but I think you can all read between the lines.  I hope every one of those dogs scrolling down the front page finds a home with a family that embraces their individuality and their joie de vivre, in whatever form that may be, because I am a firm believer that we can never have too much of a good thing.  Here's to you, Jax, and all the other adorable dogs looking for homes.

My mom says I have Joie de Vivre!

Mom says I have it, too!  Vern and I think it means, "the jokes on you!"

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Jax is pending on the front page. Congratulations to the lucky family who gets him :)

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Doris, So far, last night I did not dream about you. I might need a picture to look at before I fall asleep....LOL!! I am going to have to bring a notebook on the cruise, so I don't forget one thing. Contrary to what F is implying, all my dreams are very factual.

You are so right about Penny. Every day we spend with our dogs is a true gift!!

[Doris, Knox & Flash]

"Seizing the Moment" really hits home in view of what Penny the Wonderdog's family is experiencing.  I know we are all giving our dogs a little bit more lovin' today...

[F, Calla & Luca]

Doris, details have never stopped our Laurie. You will survive it. Donna and I did.

[Doris, Knox & Flash]

 NO!!!!  That's not necessary...really, it's not!  I forgive you -- really, I do!! Having a dream about me would put everyone to sleep, I promise.  Just wait until you meet me in person on the cruise -- then you'll have plenty to write about, lol!!

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Doris, It is a deal!! I will think of something :) Maybe I will have a dream about you....LOL!!

[Doris, Knox & Flash]

Laurie, I will put it all behind me as long as you present me favorably in a future blog or discussion! Deal??

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

F, Thank you for taking my side. I told you Donna can be devious :) How could I bug anyone?

[F, Calla & Luca]

Now who's causing trouble? I would never contemplate physical harm to Laurie as much as she bugs the may tease me or others : )

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

F, If you can't laugh at yourself, what can you laugh at? Some of our best jokes are in the comments. LOL BTW, my husband said he is not a bone marrow sucker :) He didn't say this, but I was going to say it must be just the females in the family, but that doesn't sound right.

Donna, F would never hurt me :) Now, stop causing problems, because it seems they are no longer building a case against me.....LOL!!!