“Oh my GOD! He is so CUTE! What kind of dog is he? (Long-haired
Chihuahua) Oh my GOD!! You know
Chihuahuas always looked weird to me, but this little man is just DARLING! He just looks like a normal dog, only tiny and SO CUTE!!* Can I pet him? You are just SO CUTE! Yes you are! Yes you are! My widdlepuppywoogiewibble…it then decomposes into “Not English.”
This is how many people react our new puppy, Euclid. Those who know Katie and me are probably not surprised at the nerdiness of our name choice. I personally love the sound of the name, and that it is so very nerdy. As the above paragraph reveals, Euclid is a very charming puppy.
In fact, our walks are regularly interrupted by eager children and adults who want to fawn over him. Even people in stopped cars will melt at the sight of him. I occasionally see a silent “…so CUTE!” through a car window. Nobody can resist.
And Who can blame them? With his big eyes, tiny body, and hilarious way of bounding through grass, he is the puppy-est of puppies. In fact, he is currently trying to use his wiles to con me into to playing with him instead of blogging about him. Must…fight…adorableness!
Once upon a time, when I lived with my brother and sister-in-law and their 1 year old daughter, I learned a major theme in child rearing: They always need you. If you take time to do anything for yourself, you’re momentarily fulfilling your own needs at the expense of fulfilling theirs (with resulting guilt). Kids rule the lives of their parents, and it baffles me how parents keep sane. Seriously, Steve and Lara. You guys are amazing.
Raising Euclid has the same theme to a much lesser degree. Many of the things I do to Euclid would qualify as child abuse, i.e. having him sleep in a cage twice the size of his body, having him poop on a pad on the floor, and anything involving a leash. But many things are similar. I am always fretting about if he’s fed, watered, if he peed or pooped, if he’s tired, if he has toys, and most of all how to keep him out of trouble. I look for him every 30 seconds. I feel best if he’s nearby, so I know he’s okay. And most parental of all, I cherish the moments he is asleep, and when he is I creep around like a cat burglar to keep from waking him.**
Having a puppy is a lot of work and also a lot of responsibility. Everything we do now will shape little Math Man's future***. Fingers crossed we raise him right.
P.S. As any proud parent or puppy owner must do, I will continue to flood my blog with pictures of the little critter, and you will swoon.
*At this point a small squeal exits their mouth and, were they a dog, they’d be wetting the carpet.
** This is practically impossible, since Euclid’s ears are half his body weight and he can hear a pin drop 20 miles away.
***Math Man is my favorite nickname ever, and was thought up by Katie's roomate, Kelly.
