Sunday, August 2, 2009

My Puppy Wants the Baby’s Toys


I have a one-year old puppy named Lenni. She is an adorable German Shepard/Golden Retriever (we think) mutt. So sweet. So loving. And SO spoiled! Because she has been the only “little one” in our house for the past six months, she thinks every toy that she finds is automatically hers. Even when we visit our friends’ homes who have children, she thinks any squeaky, fluffy or fun toy was put there just for her enjoyment. I can’t blame her though – I would probably think the same thing! But now that we’re starting to acquire baby toys and stuffed animals, I can’t figure out how to keep her away from them. First came the fuzzy lion. I was downstairs one day and noticed the house was pretty quiet. That was until I heard little Lenni bolting out of the guest room. By the time I got up there, she was laying on our bed in the master bedroom, smiling at her find. Somehow she had nosed her way into a bag of goodies I had been gathering for the baby and found the stuffed lion. The latest incident was earlier this week. My half-unpacked suitcase from my trip to NY was on the bedroom floor, slightly unzipped, but definitely not sprawled open. While I was in the bathroom getting ready for work, it dawned on me that I hadn’t seen Lenni lately. After a few minutes of searching, I found her downstairs on the couch, cuddling with a Cookie Monster stuffed animal that I had brought back for the baby. To this day, I have no idea how she found it or got it out of my suitcase. I of course took it away from her, but I could tell she didn’t understand. She really loves the fuzzy, squeaky toys – but how do I teach her which ones are for her, and which ones are for the baby? I have 4 more months to figure it out… I’ll let you know when I have a good idea : )