Emily Haines

I've obviously lost my mind. We have a new family member. Meet Emily Haines, named for some singer my son likes and new to our family as of Monday.

Nope, we weren't looking for a pet. We lost our schnauzer about 5 years ago and I haven't wanted another pet for lots of reasons the big one being none of us are home much. But sometimes one feels fate in the works conspiring to let you know that life happens when you are making plans.

My 16 year old's girlfriend has moved to Texas and he has had the blues. He had about two weeks to adjust to the idea and they have been an item for over a year. My two nieces went to the pound to adopt a puppy to cheer their mother (my sister) up. I got a call Monday morning that the temp part-time job I've been doing is on hold for the time being. Turns out my sister didn't want the dog and the puppy was slated to return to the pound early Tuesday morning. The nieces slyly call my sons to come see the dog. I freely admit I didn't want to be the bad guy to the sad 16 year old and told him if his Dad says "yes" they can keep the dog. This is where I was stupid...I thought he'd call and discuss it with me. Yeah, no...meaning, no he didn't call me to discuss it. It turns out he was ready for a dog in the house again. Yes, the rest is history. Emily has a new home.

Emily is supposedly a chihuahua and Jack Russell terrier mix, so she won't get very big, thank God. I'm not a big dog person. Heck, I'm not really a pet person. The pillow she's on in the picture is inside a laundry basket. Since I don't like chasing after her all over the house, she has a tendency to disappear under furniture, I put her in the basket in the same room with me and she usually sleeps because she is still a baby. I babysit. Because my sons know she's their dog and they are responsible for all things Emily. Really, I'm not going to get sucked in by that cute face...I'm not!