I never thought of myself as a tree hugger before, but now...

I'm so tired. My house was filled with children all day while I was trying to sleep. My husband said there were eleven neighborhood children here at one point all fawning over the dogs (who ate it up greedily - they LOVE kids). I heard woofing and children's squeals of delight all throughout the day. Wonderful things, but not when I'm sleeping. Then after I got up, the kids and I took the dogs outside for a bath. Heh heh. I had to send one of the kids inside to get the hub to come out and help. I was holding the leash of the alpha of the pair when he took off running. Luckily, there was a palm tree handy and I wrapped my arms around its trunk and I had had the foresight to wrap the leash around my arm for some extra traction. I'll bet I looked pretty silly out there hugging that tree to stop the dog and needing my husband to come take the leash and save me. I'm still practicing saying the 'no' command correctly. They listen to the hub right away because they are used to the male voice of the man who trained them. As soon as I put THAT idea together in my head, I came up with another one. See... if this is some kind of doggie/ human gender habit thingy, then I totally get that. And these are male dogs, too. And if the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, then I figured the same might go for male dogs. So... I brought the dogs into the kitchen with me and let them stay there and watch while I cooked them some salmon for their dinner. They watched me put it in their bowls and present it to them. And then they wolfed it right down while I petted them and said sweet things to them. When it was potty time, I took the alpha dog. He sensed something out there and started barking and pulling on the leash. I said, 'noooo'. The tension left the leash immediately and the dog walked right over and stood next to me. Then after he did his business, I said his name and told him to come, and he immediately walked with me back into the house. Yup. I think I have gotten to the heart of the matter. Via the stomach. I'm glad I figured it out because the muscles in my arms and back are getting pretty darn sore from having to battle to keep control of the leash with such a powerful dog on the other end. Perhaps I will boil a couple of eggs tomorrow and let them watch me chop them up and add them to their bowls. Yeah, Papa may have the more authoritative voice, but Mama makes delicious, health-enhancing food and graces you with praise and flattery while you eat it. What guy doesn't like that? I figure I'm on my way to establishing myself as the alpha of this here pack. Instinct trumps everything else and the provider of food is one to be respected and obeyed instead of dragged down the street on the wrong end of a dog leash. Cute little guys. They had me pegged for a lightweight before they knew about the culinary skills and the ability to reason their importance in the order of things. They are asleep now. I hope they are dreaming of broiled chickens and lean ground beef. And maybe they will dream of me and my desire to lavish good things upon them. And I hope to dream of them and their soft, silky fur. They have such a sweet and loving nature and I want to give that back to them in a way that they can appreciate on a gut level. I want them to know that I love them and intend to care for them for as long as they live and that I will feed them in a way that helps that be as long a time as it can possibly be.