welcome to the newest member in our family

Last Friday was quite a special day. Instead of insisting to take Leila to school on time I allowed her and Coline to play after lunch, just because they are always in the best mood for playing right after a meal. A few minutes later we set off, not to school, but to hospital. While I thought that Coline had broken her arm at the same spot it got broken last year, I was, thankfully, wrong. She just had a dislocated elbow, which apart from being visibly very painful, was put back in place in a blink by a very annoying yet sufficiently competent intern. This all happened in less than an hour (I am grateful to the hospital staff who made sure that Coline was attended in a hurry simply because she was weeping).

After coffee (for me) and ice-cream and chocolate cake (for Coline who does have a sweet tooth lately) we then had the rest of a sunny afternoon to enjoy in the parc. This is where the idea germinated in my heart that I was going to the pet shop and adopt the adorable young dog who was being given away. As I said, we are moving to a house with a garden soon. And well, I just fell in love with her at first sight, and Cristiano kind of gave me a go-ahead when I mentioned her. She is very shy and soft and easily frightened. She gives Scratchy a lick on the nose when she sees him. I think he is the member of the family that she likes the most. Actually, she does not seem to be very interested in the girls, and rather scared of Cristiano, although she does like the hands that give her food and cuddles. She has a few names already, we are waiting to see which one will stick. A true nature lover she has eaten all the radish leaves from my vase and some other leaves too and she has been confusing my bedroom with her bathroom. I am working on a better understanding of the house rules.

Just because we have a new member in the family does mean that I am allowed to forget the others, quite the opposite. Scratchy - "the King" makes a point at sitting on top or above any of us and gets his share of dog food and water before she "the dog" does. Leila and Coline make sure I take pictures of them too.