Speaking of the dog again...

...I kinda have to forgive him about chewing up the photos when he comes and sits outside the window and looks at me like this.

He likes to be near and follows me around the house and sits outside the door or window of the room I'm in (he stays outside during the day).

This time I was at the living room window taking photos and he came and lay down right there. I tapped the glass and said hi and he put his head up on the ledge to say hi back.

And then he made himself comfortable and had a sleep.

So gorgeous.

You know I heard once that God gave us dogs, cats and horses because He knew we'd need them. He gave those animals the ability to love and be companions like no other animals can. And he did it for a reason, because He knew we'd need their company and that they'd give us the love we needed. Well, cats put that into question (ha ha) because they're different to dogs in the companionship department, but they're all the same in the love department.

We grew up with cats and had as many as six at one point when one of them had kittens. Chippy was our family cat and lived to be 18. Sue (my sister) was responsible for all the other cats and continues with her cat love to this day.

How many cats have you had, Sue? 10? Leave a comment! And that includes Sarah's cats too (Sarah is my niece and she loves cats as much as her mother).

Here's Minka, Sue's cat.

This is something Cody can't do!

Don't you love it? All sprawled out there and snoozing away.

Actually, Minka did that to me while I was at my sister's once. We were scrapping and I was sorting photos. She was still a kitten at the time and walked down the table, plopped right on my photos and went to sleep. She was so gorgeous I left her there and tried to sort photos around her.

Are cats acid free?

:o) ha ha

Okay, forget what I said about cats not being the same as dogs in the companionship department! They're good companions, they're just a different type. Yep, I think we'd all agree on that, which is precisely why God gave us horses, cats and dogs. All of them and for different types of companionship.

That's so God. Really, He rocks.

And that's why they're furry too - you know, so we'd pat them. They reckon patting a dog, cat or horse relieves stress. God was the instigator of that. He knew that when he made them in the first place. Yep, I'll put some nice fur on these animals, so my people will pat them and they'll feel better. And the dog will love it too. Win, win, I say.

Told ya, rocks.

Ah, cute.

We like our goldy, yellowy, creamy tones around here and you can see he fits right in! So funny.

Look, I've gotta say it. God gave us this dog. Cody is a gift from Him. Purely. And I know it for sure. This is why...

My favourite dog has always been the Golden Retriever because of the gold and the cute. Not the hair though, too much hair!

Andrew's favourite dog? The Australian Kelpie. Smart, alert, active and a man's dog.

I've never wanted a dog, too much work.

Andrew's had dogs and has always wanted one.

Issue - one wants a dog, one doesn't.

Secondary issue - even if we got a dog, what type would suit us both?

It all went in the too-hard-basket and that was it.

A while ago though, I knew Andrew needed a dog and told him to get one if he wanted one and that I wasn't standing in his way.

He started looking online on the Trading Post and in the animal shelters and last September, he sent me an email with a Trading Post ad in it. Golden Retriever x Kelpie pups for sale..."I like the gold one" he said.

And get this - $180. There's no way Andrew would pay $800 for a dog. Me neither, actually! Plus, we didn't have the money for that anyway.

After some thinking (because really, did I want a dog? Oh man) we rang the guy and bought the dog. Then we had to wait because he was only about four weeks.

Here he is. Look how little!

In the time we waited for him, I looked at this photo and got used to him being my dog. I was actually starting to get excited. Of course the day we picked him up, the adventure started.

What's amazing to me is that I'm still not a dog person. I love Cody, love him so much, but I'm not a dog person. That's God though, He gives us what He knows we need usually in ways that we don't think of and in the one dog.

For Andrew - part Kelpie, active, intelligent, trainable, personality, a smaller dog because he didn't want a big one, not too much hair, $180 price tag that he could swallow.

For me - part Golden Retriever so cute (God knew I needed cute because otherwise it'd be all over!), goldy colour, loyal, some hair to brush but not too much (honestly, he's got just the right amount of hair), soft fur for lots of pats, personality, not too big so I can get him in the car.

Amazing.

We've had Cody for 7 months now (he's 9 months) and it's still amazing to me that I have this dog and that is so perfect for us. God knew what we wanted and needed when we didn't know ourselves.

Amazing. You're amazing, Lord.

I wonder if I could punch art Cody using this punch?

I don't have the punch, so maybe I could go make something like this...

Whatever I make, it'll be cute.

(I know, that's the one thousandth time I've used that word on this blog)

Have a great day!

:o)

Oh PS. Andrew came up with the name Cody. I liked it and went to the computer to look up what it meant. It meant 'cushion'. That's when I knew it was a done deal!