Buster

Yesterday: Dave tells me about a stray dog, lame in one leg, that a woman in the village wants caught because she found someone who wants to adopt it. 

Today: I’m out walking with Julia and lo, behold, I see three dogs, two that I recognize and one that I do not recognize. The unknown dog is also limping. “That must be the stray” I think to myself, and endeavor to catch it using my jogging stroller wrist strap for a leash. After several comical tries, I do indeed manage to catch the dog, and secure it with the stroller strap. Now I have a baby, a stroller, a dog that is none to pleased at being on a leash, and ankle deep mud. I slog over to the nearest person, standing outside the store, and ask if he knows if the dog belongs to someone. He shakes his head. I see another woman, and slog over to ask her. She also shakes her head. I head to the house of the woman who wanted the dog caught. I am only guessing that it is her house, as I’ve never met her. I can’t navigate the stairs, so I tap on the window a couple times. Nobody is home. “Well what the #$@ to do now?” I think. At least I am out of the ankle deep mud at this point, though the dog has kindly seen to it to give me a good pawful on each leg. I head towards the school and am contemplating banging on Dave’s classroom window and asking him “what the #$@ to do now,” when I run into two more people. I ask them if they know if the dog is a stray. More head shakes and shrugs. Instead of banging on Dave’s classroom window, I go and bang on neighbor Taylor’s window. He comes out and eyes me and the situation. I blab on about finding and catching the stray and the woman isn’t home and what to do, and he kindly informs me that this is Buster, and he belongs to Chelsea’s brother. I promptly release poor Buster who takes off as fast as his gimpy paw allows and contemplate my gratitude that I did not run into Chelsea’s brother while hauling his dog around on a leash, and also contemplated how 4 people had no idea who’s dog this is. I mean really, there’s only 100 or so people in this village. In retrospect, perhaps they simply had no wish to get involved with the lunatic white woman who was hauling her baby and Buster through the mud and pounding on windows.

Dog adventures aside, we had a really encouraging nap time development. I put Julia in her crib this morning, after she nursed and wasn't falling asleep. she fussed halfheartedly for 8 minutes while I rubbed her back, then she went to sleep! The next nap, she fell asleep while nursing and stayed asleep when I moved her to the crib. The third nap, she nursed and wasn't falling asleep, so in the crib she went and she fussed mildly for 2 minutes while I rubbed her back and then she went to sleep! And just minutes ago, I did the bedtime routine, nursed her, she wasn't going to sleep, so in the crib, and again, about 2 minutes of mild fussing with some back rubbing and singing of the bedtime song, and there we go! This seems encouraging!