My Good Boys

We had such a nice morning with Rational Jenn and her family last week.  We just hung out while the kids played for a couple of hours.  There were a million things I wanted to talk to her about and didn't have the time.  It's pretty nice to make friends over the blogosphere; normally it would take me a couple of years to become that comfortable with someone.   

The kids got along great.  I had forgotten that Jenn's son is a bit afraid of dogs, but luckily we had put Toby in his crate before they arrived.  Ryan was visibly nervous when he arrived to the sound of a barking dog.  Toby, although he is the friendliest dog ever, can sound pretty scary!  Paradoxically, everyone immediately falls in love with Jinx, who is the real terror. 

Adam is so good with kids and animals that I think he kind of took it upon himself to cure Ryan of his fear.  First, he helped ease Ryan into petting Toby through the crate.  Then he had Ryan stand on top of a trunk where Toby couldn't jump on him, and he opened the crate while making Toby stay inside.  Then he called Toby out in a controlled way (I think he used the leash, too) and made him sit again.  Adam showed Ryan how Toby obeyed his commands.  Ryan liked it when Adam sent Toby up and down the stairs over and over just to show that he would do it.  Ryan was not "cured," but by the end of the morning he was able to handle being in the same room with Toby loose, which was awesome to see.  Yea, Ryan! 

I was pretty proud of my dog.  As we always say, "Toby: he's a licker and a lover, not a fighter and a biter."

But I was even more proud of Adam.  I wasn't paying that much attention to the whole thing, but I know how he is - he is so empathetic and patient - it's what makes him a great dad.  Come to think of it, that must be where Samantha gets her strong sense of empathy!  I never made that connection before.  Neat!