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| Enzo and Ella |
Marley, my middling, has it in her head that she wants to write a blog... "A KIDS BLOG" (Is there such a thing? Is she my kid?).
Well who am I to stand in the way of creativity? But, I am a bit wary...
You see, while I am thoroughly a woman of the 21rst century (love my gadgets, love my internet, love my access to the world) I was mostly raised BEFORE computers and the internet, so I have an inherent dose of fear of what lurks in cyber-space, especially when it come to my littles. What creep or perv is just around that cyber-corner lying in wait for my little innocent dreamer.
So that is where I have to be -- Right here to protect her while she lets her juices flow.
I am a bodyguard. A heavy. A Cyber-goon.
I will allow her to write her blog as long as I have full access and final say. I will review her posts and be the one to hit "publish post". I may even interject occasionally. My daughter has been known to inspire me in the past, so I'm leaving that option open.
If you have read her posts to-date, you probably have an idea about the subject. Marley has dog allergies .. pretty bad ones. I was always allergic to dogs, too. But, that fact never stopped my parents from having the biggest shedding-est dogs on the block. Needless to say I was a goopy mess of a grade-schooler; but, I didn't mind. I loved my dogs... more than anything. In fact, Brutus, our St Bernard was my roommate growing up. I would sleep all cuddled up to him and go to school the next morning with hives and swollen eyes. I was sent home from school more than once for fear that the red icky crud that covered my neck and face was horribly contagious (who was I to say it wasn't? I wasn't complaining).
I love dogs. SO much so that the first thing I bought when I got my first "real job" was Elemeno, a "hypo-allergenic" 0.5lb Yorkshire Terrier puppy.
Ella was 8 when Marley was born. I was lucky, she never gave me any problems... how allergic can you be to a non-shedding dog who'd max'd out at 4lbs? Well, Marley showed us at 6 months. My husband was first to notice the rash on her. He knew right away; but, I was in denial. No way Ella could be the cause of the Ezcema. A few months and a lot of tiny pricks on her baby-back later, we found that Ella was the cause. This is where I was torn. When I was a kid, I lived through my allergies; but, was it right to assume my daughter would want the same? My husband was determined to help our daughter be comfortable and my sister was dying to have Ella, so, with great ambivalence, we decided to let Ella move in with Sam. I had unlimited visitation; but, she lived in a different state, which was limiting to say the least.
We let Marley grow comfortably for while; and, after much cajoling, I convinced my husband (did I mention that he's an allergist) to let me bring Ella back to the home on a trial basis. We got Ella back when Marley was 2. We had moved to a bigger house, with hard-wood floors (easy to keep clean), and Ella was limited to the first floor. And it worked! Marley was pretty much symptom-free.
Now, Marley is 8, Ella is 16. Ella rouses to eat and "do her business". She is on "hospice care" which, basically means we are keeping her comfortable with anti-inflammatories for her arthritis and as little handling as possible. We love her, we will care for her and make sure she is as happy as she can be; but, we also want to play....
Now, here is MY dilemma... I had Ella before Marley, so I had a case for letting her stay with us. I didn't bring her into my family knowing she might be bad for someone other than me. My risk was with myself, no one else. Now, I have a daughter who I know has allergies. Is it fair to try to bring another dog into our family? I struggled with this for 3 years. I believe in "the family dog"; but, what if this addition to our social well-being causes my baby sleepless nights, congested and coughing. What if she can't swim a lap because her lungs are weak from constant exposure to "the enemy", her allergen. I would choose to live through the allergies for the joy of a dog; but,would Marley? And is she even old enough to make that choice?
For a long time, we were resigned to a life with no other furry animals in the house... pretty sad; but, we did it for her. Until we realized that to have a dog doesn't mean to necesarily have fur! After much research, we found the American Hairless Terrier, an adorable little breed that looks much like a mini-doberman but feels like a peach! They are still allergen-laden, all dogs are; but, with the lack of hair/fur, the allergen is much more manageable.
... or so the story goes.
After years of deliberation and a quick flight of fancy, we went for it and got Enzo. He came to us right after Christmas and we are loving every inch of his entirely bald body. He is truly a great dog.
About allergies: Well, the first 2 nights, I had an itchy nose (that familiar tickle), which really scared me. (remember, Ella had never effected me and did Marley. I was terrified that Enzo might have "more potent "(?) dander.) But, after those 2 days, not a symptom to be had! We are so happy. For now. (knocking wood) Of course, there is always the chance that as he grows in size, the amount of dander in the house will also grow and we might get some reaction from Marley. But, the good news is, it is probably manageable -- just like it was with Ella. We'll see. Fingers crossed.
That is our story. I'll let Marley take it from here.
(But, you creeps, just remember, I got my eye on you! -- imagine my fingers to my eyes, then pointing to you... very intimidating-like)
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