Maisie

When I met Maisie, it was love at first lick. She crawled up into my lap and my heart was lost.

We were at CAP on a sunny Saturday morning, and by lunch the papers were signed and we were on our way home.

In those early days, she clung to me like a tick. She climbed into the bath tub while I showered, sat on my feet as I worked at my desk, followed me everywhere as I cooked meals or tidied up. When I sat in my recliner and put my feet up, she crawled up onto my chest, tucked her head into my shoulder, and fell into contented sleep.

She needed me almost as much as I needed her. I had just lost Ada a few days before.

Here's the first photo I ever took of her. Funny thing: when I sent the photo over to my brother, he didn't read my note at first, just saw the photo and thought I'd sent him a photo I'd found of a dog we had when we were kids, Oreo. Here's Oreo - you can see why he made that mistake!

A black and white dog This dog looks identical to the first, except the ears are a different shape

2021

Couches are Hard

Dog wedged behind a couch cushion Dog draped over the arm of a couch Dog on her back between couch cushions and a pillow Dog with her back legs on the couch, the frong on the floor Dog draped across the back of the couch, head on the console table behind it Dog on her back making an L, stomach against the back of the couch, head turned 90 degrees up against the armrest

September, South Llano River State Park

The first time I took Maisie camping, it was to this little state park near Junction, TX. It’s a pretty nice little park, and in early fall the weather was comfortable most of the day. We went walking, and wading in the river. The kids were back in school, so it was pretty quiet.

Since it's nearly west Texas, the earth was sandy and dry, the grass grew thinly, the trees tended to twist upward, covered only sparsely with leaves. But in autumn, it wasn't desolate; it was lovely, with a bright blue sky above.

Maisie wasn’t crazy about having people walking along the camping loop road, past the camp site. She’d growl and get her hackles up about it. But she liked the exploring, and watching the wildlife.

It was pretty in the evening light She's watching something intently, poised for action

The best bit, though, was the armadillo.

See, armadillos are neither bright nor sharp-eyed. They kind of bumble around, completely fearless. And one bumbled right up under Maisie’s nose. That was when the armadillo realized it was inches from a predator, and panicked. It did that sudden vertical hop forward that they're famous for, and Maisie jumped back in surprise; then it dove back into the nearest bit of cover. Not that it stayed there. It was seconds, not minutes, before it was bumbling right back out again. Maisie watched the armadillos foraging around the camp sites very attentively after that!

2022

Ball is Life

This dog loves chasing a ball. She will chase it as long as I'm willing to throw it. Second to the ball is the pool to cool down in, to splash in, so that she can go chase the ball again! I never had to teach her to chase it or bring it back; I just had to show her that if she brought it back to me, I'd throw it for her again. She loved it so much, it took about two throws before she became 100% reliable about bringing the ball back.

Her favorite ball is one that Kong makes, with a stretchy cord on it. The elastic is a great cheat, because I can stand at one end of a soccer pitch and throw the ball to the other end.

Dog in a green bandana, running with a ball, looking very sporty Dog in a shallow pool with her ball stil in mouth

Holiday Portraits

Her day care used to do really cute photo shoots, where they'd dress the dogs up, take pictures, and then mail us printed copies. Here's a couple of my favorites.

Dog wearing an orange bandana in front of a Halloween-themed backdrop Dog wearing a feather boa and a bobbly bat headband Dog in a tiny straw hat with lots of bright colors and a pinata

2024

February

I was trimming branches in the garden. As I cut them on one end, Maisie was chewing on the other. What teamwork!

March

I tested my sprinkler system today, to prepare for summer. Maisie helped.

Maisie playfully biting the stream from a sprinkler head

June, Quintana Beach County Park

I took Maisie to the beach for the first time this weekend. She had a great time sniffing everything - the seaweed and bits of shell and pieces of driftwood; she put her nose right down into the little crab burrows, and was deeply interested in the remains of sand castles and moats after the children had left for the day, though she showed no inclination to expand the excavations. She didn't like the waves coming at her; she shied back from them every time they approached.

I know she isn't crazy about driving around in the motorhome - it makes a lot of noise and she spent most of the trip going and coming pressed up against my seat. But on the return trip, she at least wasn't shaking, just watching nervously lest something jump out at her. I'm hopeful that if we do these short trips more often, she'll relax a bit.