A Love Story

When I was younger, I was ruthless and incessant in asking my parents if we could please, please, please get a dog. They never agreed, and I eventually gave up, deciding that I'd just get, like, 20 dogs when I grew up and could get a dog on my own. Turns out I didn't have to wait that long, because during my senior year of high school, just days before I graduated, we brought home our super cute, super sweet chocolate lab puppy, and we called her Nestlé.

Nestlé grew and learned so fast, we were all amazed. My parents had never had dogs before either, so it was kind of a learning experience for all of us. I think it's fair to say that through Nestlé we were able to bond together in ways that we hadn't really been able to--or bothered to?--do for what seems like ages beforehand. We all think she's the bomb. And she totally knows it.
I love her a lot and all, but don't get me wrong--she's got her quirks (read: she's nuts-o). She can run around on the super slick ice outside in the winter, but getting her to walk across the kitchen tiles can be quite the production. For a while she wouldn't eat or drink out of metal bowls, because she could see her reflection in them and that freaked her out. Every time we take her to the dog park she's quite popular with the boys, if you know what I mean, and she's not so good at asserting herself, if you catch my drift. Getting her to go up the stairs at houses other than our own takes some planning. Oh, and did I mention that she usually refuses to get in a car? And she's a big dog, so getting her in there is no easy feat. I'm sure there's more, but you get the idea.
Despite her not making any sense at all, she's the love of my life. She'll put her head in my lap and look up at me with those big puppy eyes while I tell her what's been going on in my life (such a good listener), or we'll just sit in silence. She tosses toys to me when she wants to play, or put her paw up to my knee to get my attention, and if all else fails, she'll bark the cutest little bark. She has playdates with other dogs in the neighborhood, and she's such a sweetheart during intercanine interactions. She gives the best kisses. She loves everyone and has no qualms about letting them know.
I miss her so much when I'm at school. That's really the reason I joined PAWS in the first place: I missed my dog and thought that playing with the dogs at the animal shelter would make me happy while I was away from her. And it has!