Dear Kid,

Yesterday (after the weeding and the trip to the lawn mower doctor), Booker and I were snuggling in the hammock.

“Can I have another treat?”
“Yes, you’re being a very good boy.”
“Thank you.”
“Put your head down and relax.”
“Okey dokey”

It was overcast and slightly breezy, so it was quite comfortable outside. Dad came over to chat for a bit, Booker asked me to scratch behind his ears (which I did), and everyone was quite content.

The breeze blew, we relaxed, and

“I hear something”
“Go back to sleep”
“I think it might be a moose”
“We still don’t have moose in this area. Go back to sleep.”
“I’m pretty sure something is there”
“I’m pretty sure it’s not a moose.”
“Yup, something is definitely there”

And then before I knew what was going on, Booker leaped off my tummy (making sure to dig his nails into my shoulder), flew off the hammock with his ears flapping in the wind, and raced off.

I sighed. I was not in the mood to chase him six miles around the neighborhood.

Fortunately, he only went three trees along the side of our house.

“I’m on it, I’m on it, I’m on it, I’m on it!”
“On what? There’s nothing there.”
“Yes, there is, you just have to sniff, why aren’t you helping? Here, this tree”
“Um, what about this tree?”
“It went up the tree, up the tree, up the tree!!! I have to climb up the treeeee!”
“Sweetie, dogs can’t climb trees”
Then Dad chimed in. “I don’t know about now, but there used to be poison ivy at the base of that tree.” Oh, joy.

“Someone has to climb the tree, up the tree! Up the tree!”
“Baby, I don’t see anything up there”
“I’m circling the tree. But there’s nothing here!”
“Booker…”
“You have to climb the tree”
“I’m not going to climb the tree”
“You HAVE TO CLIMB THE TREEEEEEEE!”
“Hey Booker, I have still have treats.”
“You have to climb the, what? Treats?”
“How about we go inside and have a treat?”
“I could have a treat.”

And with that, our time in the hammock was over.

Love, Mom

For more puppy conversations see Puppy Conversations and Food Observations, Spring Puppy Conversations, New Puppy Conversations, Winter WonderPuppy | Baby It’s Cold Outside,  Puppy Conversations Translated for the College Kid, Puppy Conversations and FIFA World Cup Soccer, and Puppy Conversations and the Joy of Quirkiness