Wednesday, February 20, 2019

And puppy makes FIVE...


Bodie has been begging for a dog for a couple of years now. Actually, full out campaigning is more like it. He wanted one more than anything in the whole world. We held off, mostly because our life has so many moving parts and so much uncertainty already that we just couldn't justify adding another living being to our chaos. But a couple weeks before Christmas, I really started feeling the pull for a dog, feeling in my heart like the time was right. A day or so after I started feeling it, Dusk came home from work and told me he had been feeling like it was time. Clearly, God was moving both of our hearts in the same direction. Kinda futile to keep resisting at that point. ;-)

We managed to keep it a secret from Bodie until Christmas, where we gave him a box with a bone and leash in it. If you have a tissue handy, you need to watch this video - especially starting around the 45 second mark, where it all starts to come together. 
(If you're having trouble viewing the video, the link can be found here)
It was worth every second of keeping it a secret!

Once we got back to LA after Christmas, we started looking in earnest, hitting up many of the local shelters. Nothing felt quite right and we were feeling fairly discouraged. And then, we happened to find the most amazing little guy on Craigslist, of all places! 

A wonderful woman had a change in her life circumstance and needed to rehome her year and a half old Corgi Mix. The kids and I went down to "just to meet" him, and fell in love instantly. We walked back in the door a few hours later with the newest member of our family (and all of his belongings that his former owner graciously gave to us as well!).

Meet Maxi.

(I'm campaigning to change his name to something a touch more masculine, but Bodie appears to be sticking with the name his former owner gave him, so apparently, Maxi it is.)

He officially joined the Bennett clan on January 3rd.

Not exactly a "puppy" (he'll be 2 in March), but I'll be darned if we didn't end up with a dog that will forever look like a puppy! At around 20lbs, he's fully grown and the cutest thing EVER. We're not 100% sure what he's mixed with, but we're guessing Chihuaha. 

He is obsessed with me. We laugh that we got Bodie a puppy, but somehow Maxi didn't get the message and thought we got ME a puppy.
But there could be worse things. Maybe I needed someone to think I hung the moon, since I don't exactly get a lot of daily positive feedback on the whole homeschooling gig. ;-) 

But he loves everyone (ok, LOVES LOVES LOVES the kids and I, and is getting there with Dusk - but always picks him to snuggle with first in the morning), and is really bonding more and more with Bodie, which we LOVE seeing.


He goes to bed with Bodie, and oftentimes falls asleep with his head right next to Bodie, sharing his pillow.


He LOVES to dive under the covers and snuggle up any chance he gets - and smothers you with kisses the second you walk in the door (even if you just went out to the car to get your cell phone charger).

He lives for treats and is such a quick learner. The kids have already taught him to sit, stay, shake, dance on his hind legs, turn around on his hind legs, and give hugs. Bodie is having a blast.

He and the cat are getting along - more or less. He chases her. She screams. And then comes back for more. And then she hits him in the face over and over and gets mad if he walks away while she is "playing" with him. I stopped defending her some time ago, once I realized she's actually enjoying it!
He LOVES to be with us, wherever we are - on walks, snuggled up on the couch, exploring in the backyard, playing ball and going on car trips (he's already been to both Palm Springs and the Central Coast). He is the silliest, sweetest dog ever.

He gets spooked, especially by men (not sure what that's about), but has finally stopped barking at Dusk in the middle of the night, so we're making progress. I predict that these two will be besties eventually. :-)
 He's settling in nicely, and we expect that nervousness to continue to diminish.
In the meantime, we are all falling in love with the sweetest addition to our family - and wondering how we got so lucky to get this little guy! 
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Sunday, February 17, 2019

A Birthday fit for a King

As hard as it is to believe, Bodie turned NINE yesterday (I know, right???)! 
We celebrated his birthday with a special dinner with BOTH sets of grandparents last night, and then a birthday bash today. Because he's Bodie, and he came out of the womb keeping me on my toes, and he's obsessed with King Tut and all things Egypt, he chose King Tut as his birthday theme.

Because, where's the fun in doing Lego or army dudes, or anything easy to find on the shelf at Party City - when you could ask mom for a PYRAMID CAKE and Egyptian decorations??? 

Thanks to the help of Dusk, my parents and inlaws, and Sierra and her sweet bestie Olivia, we managed to pull off a teensy bit epic + a whole lotta chaos birthday party with 17 of Bodie's closest friends. 

If you know Bodie, you know he's stubborn. So when he asked for a costume and I agreed to purchasing the headpiece only, he went right to work making his own costume. And the added makeup and gems were just the icing on the cake.  
He was so proud of his costume and he definitely owned his version of King Tut.

The pyramid cake was actually made out of Rice Krispy treats, cut to shape (thank you Grandma Jan!), covered in molding chocolate and then frosted. So fun!
Bodie had such a wonderful time with his family, friends, grandparents all the way from San Luis Obispo and Reno
and even his favorite teacher from Venice Lutheran, the beloved Mrs. Rehrer. 
We felt so blessed. 

Bodie, Daddy and I could not be prouder of you. This has been such a year of transition, as you navigated moving from a traditional school to homeschooling. I know it's not always easy. And I know that trying to navigate all of that while being in heart failure is just sometimes too much for you. But you're such a trooper and you keep trying. You're growing. You're learning. You're stretching yourself. And you're owning who you are and who you're becoming. Bodie, you are so special (not so special you can get out of chores, but yes, special) and so unique. Please don't ever forget that. We will always be here for you, to pray with you and for you, to shepherd you, to push you, to support you. We love you so much and are so grateful for you, buddy! 


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