1-1-11

I'm a fan of numbers and first days of the month. I can't say why, other than it is just pleasing to me. So I can't let 1-1-11 go by without a post. And the fact that I haven't posted a thing for the entire Christmas and New Year Holiday is justification enough. There are lots of goings on here in the Whittaker household.

Coco.
We began entertaining the idea of adding a dog to our family a few months ago. Dogs are a lot of work and I simply have not wanted one more living thing to demand my attention for awhile now. But we have begun to soften our stance on the issue seeing how much Dylan and Sophie especially love animals. We did not want to spend a lot of money on a dog, and were very particular on the characteristics we would find acceptable in order to actually take the leap. It couldn't be yappy, too aggressive, too timid, too big, or shed a lot. It needed to be house broken, somewhat smart, trained, protective, even tempered and playful. I liked the idea of getting a dog from the pound, I guess because it's sad that so many get put down, and it makes me feel heroic to be able to save one. But we have been scanning Craiglist ads a lot too, and even called on a few and saw one of them. After several visits to the County Shelter, we finally found a dog everyone bonded with. He was a sweet Golden Retriever that had been brought in as a stray. We gladly would have brought him home that day, but there is a 4-day waiting period to allow any possible owners to surface first. Fair enough, so we were told to come back first thing in the morning two days later, which happen to be Christmas Eve. We came prepared with all our paperwork filled out to take him home only to discover that he had been euthanized that morning for not passing the "aggression test." There was not an ounce of aggression in that dog towards us or the kids, so the story is a bit suspect, but it was not as if we could bring him back to life. That's what is so tough about that place is that any dog locked up in a cold, hard, tiny kennel 24 hours a day is going to be frustrated, angry, confused and terrified.  So it is hard to get a good read on what any dog is really like. All we could do is look around at the other dogs who had passed the "aggression test" and were available, but none seemed right. We were walking out through the lobby trying to explain to the kids why once again we were leaving without a dog when a lady with a dog on a leash turned around and began to tell us all about her dog. We were polite at first and listened to her tell her story of how sad she was that Coco had not worked out and how distraught she was about having to bring her back to the shelter and how desperately she just wanted to find a nice family for her. I could tell Wes wasn't really interested, but Coco turned on the charm and it wasn't long before we were loading her up in the van to spend Christmas with us. She is a sweet dog and despite some poor decisions for chew toys (namely Barbie and the remote) we couldn't be more pleased with our new addition.

 I say we got the dog for the kids, but Wes may be her biggest fan.

 Coco likes Jake..he is less prone to teasing than her other young house mates, but she'll cuddle with anyone who will let her.

She is very interested in the kids and is every bit the companion we hoped she would be.

We also had some fun Christmas festivities the past couple weeks.

 The kids acted out the Nativity at a Family Home Evening party with the Palmers. Jake was Joseph, Dylan was a donkey who strangely was also an ASU fan (see if you can find him), and Sophie was an angel. The kids had a such a great time that we did it the next night for the Hatch Family.

 Milan was a shepherd, Dylan a wiseman, Sophie promoted herself to Mary, and Jake had mastered the role of Joseph by the second time around. I'd like to think the kids know the true meaning of Christmas by now.

 We've recently started a new tradition of spending Christmas Eve at Macaroni Grill with Wes' family, courtesy of the Munks. I love it because I get a break from kitchen duty and I get to enjoy time with the world's best in laws.  The kids love it because they adore their Kelcee.

 Christmas morning was quite the surprise for the boys as they take a look at the quad that Ken and Kacee got for them.

They even let Jake and DB take it for a Christmas day ride. It took about two seconds before they were riding like pros. They can't wait for more fun outings with Uncle Ken and Aunt Kacee, who have seriously elevated their standings in the favorite relative category.

 Speaking of favorite relatives, we always have lots of fun when Bruce and Becca come to town for Christmas.

 The kids love to reconnect with their cousins. (Sophie, Kate, Kiki)

 We also got to hang out with adorable little Hudson, the newest cousin to join the gang.  The kid is ridiculously cute and melts our hearts with his ready smile, complete with the irresistible dimples. He's definitely a keeper and Tiffany knows I'd totally take him if she ever grows tired of him. In fact I've told her that so much that I think she is beginning to fear that I may kidnap him.

Hudson could not contain his joy when he spotted Sophie and Lani's new baby dolls they got from Grandma Ruth. He's proved himself to be a lover, not a fighter when he showered this plastic beauty with affection.

And a final note from an already long and rambling post..
It was a great holiday with lots of little Christmas miracles along the way. I'm just so grateful for the blessings in my life. I spent New Year's eve at the funeral of Vern Watkins. He was a neighbor, home teacher, bishop, stake president and sealer who married Wes and I eleven years ago. He was an amazing person, one who I strive to be more like and was moved by the chance to be reminded the impact that one good life can have. It'was a great way to start a new decade. Thanks President Watkins.