The first 24 hours

Roscoe spent all day yesterday sleeping. I think he was comfortable, cool and on cloud nine because he was inside. He's also still on the mend, so I think he'll be lounging for the next several days.

When I picked up Kennedy from school, I told her on the way home that Roscoe was inside now. I reminded her that he is an old puppy dog and is fragile like Grandma Faye. (Grandma Faye is 83... Roscoe is 84 - more on that in another post)

So when she walked in the house, she tip-toed around. He was still sleeping in mine and Chris' bedroom so she didn't actually see him in the house before swimming lessons. After she got home from lessons, the poor boy was still sleeping. Finally, after dinner and bath time, he wandered out into the living room. At that point, Brady was in bed so they didn't get a chance to see each other.

But Kennedy was awake and watching a movie in the office. Since I knew a meltdown was looming, I went into the office and told Kennedy to come out into the living room with me.

"Why mommy?"

"Because I want you to see someone."

"Who?"

"Just come with me."

"Okay."

We hold hands and start walking into the hallway. She sees a furry black object and starts whimpering. I remind her that she is not allowed to scream.

"Kennedy, I understand you're afraid. It's okay to be scared. But do not scream."

"But mommy I DON'T want to get close to him."

"Okay, you don't have to."

Office door slams. She peers through the glass of the french doors to make sure the coast is clear. About 20 minutes later, I open the doors to the office and just ask that she please leave the doors open. She has this panic look on her face and timidly answers, "Okaaaay."

I walk away. A few minutes later, she walks into the living room very slowly. She sees me and Chris sitting on the couch and searches the room for Roscoe. He is laying on the floor by the windows and doesn't even hear her walk in. Kennedy quickly jumps on the couch and into her daddy's arms.

Again, no movement from Roscoe. Chris explains to her (for the 100th time) that Roscoe is not going to chase her, bite her, maul her, bark at her, etc. I walk past Roscoe into our bedroom and Kennedy decides she wants to follow me, but that means walking past "him." She gets up the courage and does it, staring at him the whole time. A huge smile comes across her face and you can tell she's pleased with herself. We praise her for being brave. Now that it's bedtime, we tell her it's time to walk back to her bathroom to brush her teeth. I guess she didn't want to walk with her back to him because she immediately asked her daddy for a piggyback ride.

This morning, Brady came face to face with Roscoe. At his young age, he has no fear. Brady walked right up to him and started talking to him.

"Hiyah... baba dada yah!"

Roscoe just looked at him and Brady kept talking to him. They'll be fast friends. I have no doubt about that. They even had breakfast together. Brady talked to him through the entire meal.

When Kennedy surfaced this morning, she walked around the house timidly but didn't panic or scream. And in fact, when she got ready to leave for school this morning, she turned to me and said.. "Mommy, I want to blow Roscoe a kiss." She turned around, walked into the living room, got within five feet of him and blew him a kiss.... and then said to herself, "I love that big 'ol puppy dog." Me, too.

My first child

My first child has been through quite a bit with me. We've gone through some tough times together, not knowing life would take us to far off places like Maine and Boston. We have a lot of history together. This sweet child is loving, loyal and these days - he needs my personal care and attention.

I adopted Roscoe from the pound in Ruston when I was a junior at Louisiana Tech. Everyone told me adopting a puppy while I was in college was not a good idea. I didn't listen. I wanted one, so I got one. True, it wasn't the smartest idea because animals cost a lot of money to maintain. They need a lot of attention, space to run and play. But I wasn't listening to them. I adopted him anyway and he has been with me every since. That was 12 years ago.

Since then, he was taken the journey to Maine with me. He rode in the back seat of my white Camry (which I also still have) for three days to get there. Each night on that long drive, I snuck him into hotel rooms. That's extremely difficult when you have a dog that is scared of tile floors. At one hotel, he yelped SO loud about walking on tile that I thought we were going to get busted!

It was not easy having him in Maine. Finding a landlord that will allow a 100 pound dog to live in an apartment was a challenge. At one point, I thought I was going to have to give him away because he kept getting lose from the runner in the backyard of one place I lived. So to find him a new home, I put an ad in the paper and a family came to meet him and wanted to "test" him for a weekend to see how well he would manage in their home. I cried my eyes out and decided to keep him, no matter what.

When we moved back to the south, he spent another three days in the car with me. Chris has learned to love him... but not nearly as much as I do. Chris is more of a cat person. But I think Roscoe has found a special place in Chris' heart.

So Chris, Roscoe and I became a family and lived in Texas for several years together. In that time, Roscoe had two surgeries and many health issues, but since he was our only baby - we did whatever it took and spent whatever was necessary to make him better. Shortly after Kennedy was born - I decided to make Roscoe an outside dog. He has spent some time inside, but not much. I didn't want Kennedy to crawl around in dog hair and I also really felt like I was protecting her. Roscoe has never bitten anyone, but I was an EXTREMELY overprotective first-time mom. Everything had to be perfect with regards to Kennedy... and that meant no animals in the house. If you know me very well, then you know I have an obsessive personality. I'm very particular about some things. I have a tendency to be "anal." (Sorry, I know that's not PG-rated, but I can't think of another way to describe it!). Anyway, I am trying to break those tendencies. Some days are easier than others.

Since the time that Roscoe moved outside, Kennedy has developed a severe phobia to animals. And over the past few years, Roscoe's health has deteriorated quite a bit. Being 12 years old (84 in human years) means he's slow moving and pretty sedentary. When we moved into our new house in October, we set up a kennel and dog house for him and recently we put a tarp over it for shade. But even with those measures, he looked miserable.

So the LaPierre family is taking on a new adventure. Despite Kennedy's panic attacks around Roscoe, I decided that Roscoe needs to come live inside the house with us. (Notice I said "I decided." I don't think Chris is as happy about this as I am.) I don't want Kennedy to scream bloody murder every time she comes in contact with an animal. And I don't want to lose Roscoe in the next few years. My predictions? Roscoe will be the happiest dog on the planet. Kennedy will be a very unhappy little girl .... but only for a few days.

PLEASE FOLKS - don't think I am torturing my daughter on purpose! 99% of her screaming fits are PURE DIVA. When we lived in our rent house, we had to bring Roscoe inside for a few weeks because of the severe rainstorms last spring. The rent house was HALF the size of our current house. The first few days, Kennedy avoided him like the plague... but after that, she calmed down and learned that he wasn't going to attack her; he wasn't going to bite her; he just wanted to be near us all. Dogs need love, too.

So this morning, I packed up Roscoe in the Camry (which brought back so many memories of our trip to Maine together) and we headed to the vet for our annual vaccines and check up.


I hadn't planned on bringing Roscoe inside until this weekend after his appointment at PetSmart for a good washing and shave. After those appointments, he always smells SO good and is very soft and clean from the shave. But after his appointment today, I decided (notice "I decided" again - didn't really consult with Chris on this one.. sorry honey!) that he needed to come in the house today. Besides the fact that the temperature is supposed to reach 100 degrees today, he had a battery of tests run and I was notified that he has heart worms. On top of that, his thyroid levels are low again and will need to be on daily medication. His arthritis is getting worse, so another daily medication. And his chronic ear infections have turned into a yeast infection. You don't want to know how much the vet bill was.

I told Dr. Lasiter that I was planning to bring Roscoe inside and he thought that was a great idea. He said that if he moves inside and is nursed back to good health - he could probably live another 2 to 3 years.

I cried.

Two to three years? That's all the time I have left?

And thus - Roscoe is inside... TODAY. He was extremely confused when I brought him inside after the vet appointment. When I called him to come inside with me, he stopped and stood in the doorway because normally, that's as far as he is allowed to go.

But when I looked at my sweet dog with tears in my eyes and told him, "Come on buddy.... come in" - he slowly stepped into the laundry room anticipating that I would "shoo" him back out. He doesn't smell the best, but I wiped him down with baby wipes, filled his water bowl, gave him his medicine. And after a few minutes of checking out his new digs, he made himself at home.

Chris e-mailed me just a few minutes ago and told me that Roscoe is doing well and other than a quick water break, he has been sleeping for the past several hours. He is probably enjoying the air conditioning! I have been pretty emotional about him today because of his vet visit. I imagine that will fade the minute Kennedy sees that he's in the house when she comes home from school.....

Pets are family members and while I temporarily lost sight of that, I know now that Roscoe belongs inside with us.... and really, with me. I have had him longer than I have had kids... and longer than I've known Chris! Roscoe really is my oldest child.

Brady's first big boo-boo

Mornings are hectic in our house. Brady wakes up anywhere between 6:00 and 6:30 and he's usually ready to eat. My boy is always hungry. His noises usually wake up Kennedy, who always wakes up groggy. She is VERY slow moving in the morning. Actually, she's slow moving all the time. We cannot make this child move faster on anything, not eating, getting dressed, cleaning her room, brushing her teeth..... I digress.

Back to mornings. Hectic. Packing bags for each of them: Kennedy's for swimming lessons and Brady's with bibs, snacks, etc. Meanwhile, Chris and I TRY to shower and get dressed while juggling the kids. (This is where I would like to say that being a guy is SOOOOOO much easier than being a girl. Chris takes 20 minutes to shower and get dressed. Me? More like an hour when I'm getting ready for work. Can I please shave my head? Having long hair is time consuming. Again, I digress.)

Between Kennedy taking her sweet time and Brady demanding ALL my time, Chris and do our best to get everyone dressed, fed and out the door in one piece.



So, now the point of this lengthy post. This morning was going smoothly until Brady took a tumble in our bathroom and got his head stuck between the tile floor and one of the drawers in our vanity. He cried... and cried... and cried... His falls usually scare him more than anything, but this morning, he ended up with two purplish scratches from having his head stuck under the drawer. We put a cold washcloth on it and tried to calm him down (with Cheerios). You can't see the marks very well in this picture, but as you can tell by his sweet face - he was quite cranky the rest of the morning at home.

His curiosity about what's in mom's vanity drawer got the best of him. Funny thing is, we have a basket FULL of toys in our room for him to play with. But he'd much rather play with round brushes, Biore pore strips, and bottles of hair products. They don't light up or sing to him, but yet he is enthralled with all the adult things in the house. Don't even get me started on our kitchen drawer with Glad containers and lids.

Laundry Lane

With two adults and two children, we have a LOT of laundry. Kennedy has had swimming lessons every night for the past two weeks (with two more weeks to go) so there are wet towels everywhere. Brady is constantly drooling, so he has wet clothes. I work out a few times a week, so in addition to my dirty work clothes, I have dirty work OUT clothes.

So this is what my hallway looked like yesterday afternoon. I call it.... Laundry Lane.

These are the loads that are patiently waiting their turn for the washer. Keep in mind that there is already a load in the washing machine and a load in the dryer.

This does NOT include our bedsheets and regular bathroom towels. Fortunately, my housekeeper is washing those for me today. Thank goodness because that would be another two hours of laundry!!

Father's Day

I have a special place in my heart for my daddy. In fact last year on Father's Day, I wrote a column for The Shreveport Times talking about how a dad doesn't necessarily have to be a blood relative to be a loving father. Daddy adopted me and my sister when we were very little. My biological father died when I was only five years old, so I never really knew him. There is no doubt in my mind that my life would not be as wonderful as it is today without his guidance.

And because of that guidance, I met and married the most amazing man I could have ever imagined. I truly believe God led me to Maine in 1999 where I met this wonderful man. We have been married for eight glorious years and have two amazing children together. Chris is such a loving father. He plays in the floor with the kids, chases them around the house, lets them crawl all over him. He helps me around the house doing laundry, taking the kids to and from school. Working from home has allowed him to help me around the house and for that, I am eternally grateful. I am so in love with this man and I believe we are soul mates.

So on Father's Day, I am blessed beyond measure to have an amazing father, an unbelievable husband, and an adorable son who I know will share these same qualities as his daddy and "Papa" when he grows up.

Art projects

I love art projects and I think that's something I passed along to my daughter. She loves to draw, color, glue, glitter, cut, create..... I hope she will keep this passion.

Here are some recent art drawings. This one Kennedy claims is me in a lake. Apparently I can walk on water.

This one is of an angel, according to the artist. We have been reading a book at night about angels and how little girls should act like little angels by picking up their toys, being nice to their grandparents, not waking the baby, etc. Kennedy loves the book, especially when the angel appears to the little girl who is the main character in the book. The angel helps the little girl realize that her behavior hasn't been the best lately and that she should be helping her mommy by picking up and being nice. At the end of the book, the little girl has been on her best behavior for quite some time and her parents give her an angel necklace. The book comes with a necklace and Kennedy has been wearing it all week.

These next two projects are from Brady. His art isn't quite as story-driven obviously. But in the nursery at school, they do let the babies play in paint every now and then. My favorite is the spring flowers picture with his hand prints. Priceless!

Boston Red Sox Birthday Party

It's no secret that Chris is a Boston Red Sox fan. So what better way to celebrate his son's first birthday party than with a Red Sox themed party at the ballpark?

It was hot as blazes, but that didn't stop the kids from running around the field, playing tee-ball and catch. The parents lounged in the shade, understandably so. I think it was 93 degrees at lunch-time!

Brady was such a handsome birthday boy, sporting his Boston Red Sox outfit from Aunt Kelly in Maine. We had a special bib for him since he is still drooling uncontrollably. Yes, you read that right.... "Yankees YUCK!" We will forgive Uncle Ford for wearing his Yankee shirt and hat to the Red Sox party. Uncle Ford is a die hard Yankees fan... blasphemy in the LaPierre house! Can you tell by Brady's expression that he is utterly shocked??

We grilled hotdogs, had peanuts and cracker jacks and ice cold drinks. Brady was hungry and scarfed down two hotdogs (minus the buns). My sweet boy has yet to meet a food he doesn't like. I am extremely grateful for this because his sister is quite the opposite.

And then, the big moment. C-A-K-E! Chris made the cake and I decorated it. I was happy with the way it turned out! But Brady didn't care what it looked like.... just what it tasted like.

We are blessed beyond measure to have such great friends and family. Some co-workers brought their families, too. The Arnold family was there (with kids Anden and Cole), the Fiser family (with Jessica and Olivia), and the Fentress family (with Peter and Dorothy). Two of the three Stinsons were there. Rebecca and Brian were at home with their sweet newborn Sophie.

My sister, Trey and my angel niece Lauren drove down from Arkansas. My parents, Nina and Papa, were there.

And I honestly consider these next folks part of my family:

I'm sure you've heard the saying, "It takes a village to raise a child." I believe that! We have two kids and rely heavily on our "village" for support. I do have a hard time asking for help, but these people provide so much emotional help, and they love my kids as if they were their own.

So once again, Happy Birthday to my sweet boy!!! And Geaux Red Sox!!