Strange Bedfellows

I had finally gotten my bed empty of all children. It was me and a king size bed. Heaven... But then we got Sugar Bella, the new puppy. In a gesture to Fifi, my 7 year old Yorkie, that she was still Alpha dog, I let her sleep on my bed. Then on the puppy's second night she joined us. But you know, 2 small dogs and a king size bed--I was still doing pretty well. Until last night.

Strangely enough, the girls didn't know the puppy had been sleeping with me. They thought she was still sleeping in the kennel. But I accidentally let it slip to Jenna last night. Julia was spending the night at a friend's house and Jenna didn't want to sleep alone. She will usually sleep on her nap mat in the babies room and she asked if Bella could sleep with her. I told her that Bella would wander away in the night and poop who knows were but she could sleep in my bed-- with the puppy. It was like a dream come true for her. She was all over that.

I was tired last night and feeling the effects of a cold so I was actually in bed before 10:00-- an absolute rarity for me. I wasn't sleeping, just reading and watching tv and eating pita chips, my late dinner. But I forgot to turn the sleep timer on and fell asleep with the tv on.

Around 3:00 I woke up and realized the tv was still on but also heard something next to my bed. I looked down and there was Emma, sitting on the floor next to my bedside table eating pita chips. She was absolutely wide awake and acting like sitting next to my bed eating pita chips at 3:00 am was the most natural thing in the world. So I picked her up, put her in my bed with a a pita chip still firmly in her grip and made her a bottle.

"Go to sleep, Emma. Mommy needs her sleep." I told her sweetly. Amazingly enough, she obeyed.

Hours later I was awakened by the presence of something on my neck. I woke up enough to realize that Bella was lying across my neck, Jenna was on the opposite side of the bed, Emma was between us lying parallel to the headboard and Fifi was at the bottom of the bed. It was then, as the sun was beginning to rise, that I realized that my bed was becoming a 3 ring circus. Yeah, like that's a revelation, huh?

Puppy Update

A funny thing happened with Julia's dog. Jenna took over. Not in Bella's feeding or pottying, Julia's still doing the feeding and noticing that puppies poop a LOT. She especially notices and minds when I find yet another puppy pile on the floor. "Julia! More puppy poo for you!" Its the gift that just keeps giving.

Its a wonder that Bella has a chance to even poop on the floor. Jenna has latched onto the dog like she's a little doll and the puppy loves it.

All day Sunday and this afternoon, where ever you saw Jenna, the puppy was there too. In her arms. Bella spent most of Sunday afternoon asleep.

I didn't think that Jenna would be able to go to school today because of the acute pain the separation would bring. Frankly, I also wondered how Bella would do. But both survived, and Bella actually got a chance to romp around without being snatched up and forced into Jenna's make believe land, not that Bella seems to mind.

Part of Jenna's play sometimes involves putting her in her kennel. She how peaceful she is sleeping there? That's because its not night time!

The first night found Bella singing her mournful song of loneliness and despair. When she announced her protest to the entire house in the middle of the night she found herself banished in Jenna's empty room with the door closed.

Last night, the wailing started off loudly from the beginning but settled down quickly. Then at 4:00 she began crying again, waking Emma up in the process. Once I got Emma settled down I realized that Bella sounded quite terrified. So I got her out and she crawled up my neck frantically in fear and my heart just melted. I've always been a pushover with babies and puppies.

You know how my bed has been empty for about a month now? Since I got Emma kicked out, I've had my king size bed all to myself. But with the addition of the puppy I've been worried that Fifi, our almost 7 year old Yorkie, would think she was being replaced so not only have I been giving her extra attention but I let her onto my bed. Hey, its a big bed and I just gave her a bath.

So last night/this morning, I brought the puppy to my bed too. And there we slept, Fifi on one pillow, me on the other and Bella curled up on my shoulder. So long empty bed. But guess who won't go to sleep in her bed tonight? Emma. I think the revolving door to my bed has been reinstalled.

Oh well, sleeping is overrated.

When I said there was room for one more...

When I created There's Always Room For One More and its title I only had 4 kids. So maybe the title should be There's Always Room for One More At A Time.

We added to our family yesterday because there just wasn't enough craziness around here. (JD, I like how you called us the crazy bus!) And keeping with tradition, I traveled to get this one, although not as far or as long as with Jenna, Emma and Ryan.

Without further ado introducing our newest family member:

Sugar Bella

Sugar Bella, affectionately known as Bella, is an 8 week old Maltese Puppy.

She is supposed to be Julia's responsibility. She had to take care of FiFi for a few weeks to prove she was responsible. (Check back with me in a week or two on that one.) So now we have 6 kids and 2 dogs, and 3 of those 8 have no bladder or bowel control. Welcome to the Nut House. Or the Stinky House, only I don't know it because I can't smell.

Oops, gotta go. The puppy just pooped on the ottoman. Yes the same ottoman the babies decorated. Why's everybody gotta be hatin' on my ottoman?