Granddoggies Never Forget

Elephants and grandchildren never forget. ~Andy Rooney

When grandma Pat met her first grand-puppy, Huckleberry, there was an immediate bond. Grandma wanted to spoil and Hucky wanted to be spoiled. She wrapped grandma pat just perfectly around her little paw. Hucky was just a puppy back then and was in what they call the 'chewing phase'. A phase in fact, that she has never grown out of 4 years later. She kept sneaking into the guest bedroom and stealing items from grandma's luggage but we'd catch her in the act everytime for she wasn't a very sophisticated thief at her young age. But she did put one up on us finally. Somebody left the guest room door open and when we realized what had happened it was too late. Grandma's slippers had been chewed to itsy bitsy pieces and were scattered all over the floor. Lucky for Hucky, grandma wasn't mad and she laughed and forgave her instantly.

The next time grandma visited, she actually brought an old pair of slippers for her to chew with permission even. However, Hucky was a bit older this time and had taken to ingesting the items she chewed now so we had to supervise the destruction of the slippers then take them away when she started swallowing the pieces. Over the next couple of years, it has remained a steady joke each and every time grandma comes to stay, Hucky makes a bee-line for her suitcase, perfecting her thief-like stealthiness each time. Last summer grandma unknowingly left her slippers behind. We had no idea because we cleaned the guest room and didn't see anything left anywhere. However, not long after grandma left, we walked in to find Hucky happily taste testing grandma's forgottten slippers.

This year, grandma arrived as usual and as we absentmindedly stood around hugging and swapping gifts and giving welcome hugs, suddenly Hucky came flying out of the guest room with one of grandma's pink slippers in her mouth. Her eyes were wide, her tail was wagging and she pranced around the room as she gave the slippers the death shake. Then she looked right at grandma all proud of her find. Hucky never forgets. Never, ever. She sees her grandma and she immediately thinks that grandma has brought her slipper treats again. Makes sense you know? Us girls never forgot the specials we got to partake of at our grandparents houses for they always had their kitchens stocked with our favorite indulgences we rarely got at home - candy bars, sugar cereal, root beer floats, ice cream, white bread and real butter.

I'm happy that grandma and hucky get along well. They are both tough mamas and you wouldn't want to mess with either one of them. However, they have hearts of gold and will love you, support you and stand by you loyally until the end of time, oh and they both love slippers!