October 9, 2012

White Dog, who was sitting on the arm of my chair, looked around the room and asked, "Are you sure you didn't sneak in new members of the White Dog Army during the night?" I feigned shock and laughed which brought the rest of the WDA over to get in on the joke.

I had to admit with the hot breaths of five White Ones breaking over my lap and WD's body heat at my neck, the room did seem a little smaller today. When Quinn settled flat with my foot trapped under him I found that I had no room to wiggle out because Puff slept in front of me and Nuka was butted up against her on the other side. Oso filled in the crescent the two girls created and YoYoMa slept on the outside of the chair below WD.

It was heartwarming and cozy but a tad claustrophobic. In fact, White Dog panicked for a moment when she went to hop down and found the floor littered in white further out than she could leap. My problem-solver stepped down to my lap then jumped in the opposite direction to make her escape.

I noted in the back of my mind the sound of Oso dragging his bed out of the closet as I worked at the computer. It wasn't until an hour later when nature called that I realized that he had dragged the bed right next to my chair and was snoringly asleep. Quinn now rested directly behind me with his tail curled around the wheels. YoYoMa was sprawled on my left pressed against my leg. I was trapped against the desk! The more I tried not to think about my need, of course, the more demanding my bladder became.

"OK everyone, momma has to go potty, you have to move," I at first stage whispered and gradually spoke louder. "COME ON! I have to GO!" I pleaded before Oso lifted his head and looked at me. "Let me out, Little Man," I reached down and pushed. He licked my hand and shifted to face the other direction. "Thank you, White Dog," I mumbled as she sounded the Mailman Alert bringing everyone to the front room. I RAN to the loo.

...And when I looked up there was the WDA all crowded in the hallway around the bathroom door. Just waiting to surround me where ever I went next. I thought about closing the door but caught myself.

There are a lot worse things than being smothered in love, I thought. How can I possibly complain about having a devoted Army that just wants to quietly lie at my side? There will be a day in the future when I will cry at the loss of these perfect partners who push and crowd and overwhelm at times.

So I finished and washed my hands, bending down so each pup could smell the soap spice. "All right, let's go read for a while," I suggested. And we headed to the big chair to sit together, closely, and fill the room with Eskie white.