Kibbles and Bits and a bit of a Ramble

I recently met the new addition to the family. My cousin is the proud mommy of a gorgeous, coal black standard poodle puppy. We passed a nice evening, walking Shadow through the park, having dinner out on my deck and basically catching up with each other.

We went to Cranbury Park- a place that is near and dear to my heart. It was after all, my temple, a sanctuary where Muji and I spent many happy hours wandering the trails, enjoying a picnic lunch and meeting friends- human and canine. Watching Shadow explore a new dimension in his young world was such a pure moment of joy.

And, it reminded me of how much I miss Muji- godpuppy number 1 who taught me everything I needed to know about being a fairy dogmother. Those stolen hours on a Saturday were often my only hours away from work, family and other obligations. Once, someone at work was trying to get me to go to her church. My reply was thank you, but I worship in the Temple of Dog. While it was meant as a polite, funny response out of an awkward 'recruitment' situation, I've come to realize just how much truth was in my reply.

Muji taught me how to slow down, relax and savor time. He was funny- one of his best tricks was playing nose soccer with a won-ton dumpling. He, like me had lots of Gemni moments. There were times where he couldn't decide which toy he wanted and tried to carry both in his mouth at once. He was heaven to have on the foot of the bed at night, especially when it was cold. Being part chow, border collie and keeshond, he was warm, fuzzy, non judgemental and didn't snore. He was the master teacher of unconditional love. The photo is one of my favorites- it just shows his sweet personality to perfection.

Now, I carry all his precious lessons with me and Jack gets to have all the fun. My current godpuppy is a wonderful little fireball of energy, who also slows down long enough to snuggle and watch House reruns. I live for the times when I get to babysit. We go for rides, explore doggy friendly parks, take trips to the puppy toystore and in general, have a weeklong slumber party.

Ah, back to a place where life is simple- happiness is a dancing doggy happy to see you, a full jar of peanut butter dog treats and time to wander cool, leafy trails.