I realize this isn't the best photo, but it's all I could do to get each of them sitting at once and somewhat represented in the frame of the shot.

Wally had a friend over today for a doggy play date. It's an attempt at sanity for all parties involved. Sonja (you can probably spot her...the non-lab-like one of the bunch) is Hunter and now Wally's running buddy when Danni and I run in the mornings. Danni and I take Friday mornings off from our early morning ventures, which leaves Wally (reminder: he's a 10-month old pointer-lab puppy) and Sonja (a 1-year old husky, bred from true blue sled dogs) a little bit...how do I say this..."out of control" from a break in routine?!?!?

Poor Hunter has taken the brunt of Wally's extensive energy stores and has reached his limit of ankle biting and neck pulling, so Ty and I brainstormed the idea of inviting over Sonja to help channel some of Wally's exuberance into running around with a furry friend who was digging the whole "chase me, chase me" scene. Sonja has an equally frustrated older brother at her house (Zeke: 7 year old husky), so the idea proved promising.

To top it all off...Wally has become smitten with Sonja. I hesitate to use the word "love" and "girlfriend" when referring to our pets, but in this season of St. Valentine, what the heck...Wally has a GIRLFRIEND!!! It's true...these two have exhibited behaviors similar to those you'd find in the classic stories of forbidden love. Not quite as extreme as the tragic love of Romeo and Juliet(no sword fights or suicide attempts yet), but definite "don't leave me...I'm not sure I can live without you" moments have surfaced. Here are a few occurences that have - no lying - taken place the past few weeks:
  1. Danni turned to run home from our house and Sonja passionately resisted the pull on her leash, taking her away from...gasp...Wally.
  2. After a run concluding in our drive-way, Wally refused to return to the inside of his very own home with heels dug in. He wiggled away from my grasp and returned to Sonja - panickly bouncing around her, as though he was saying "don't go, don't go, don't go."
  3. Wally watched Sonja leaving down our street from the front window. He even craned his neck to get one last glimpse as she trotted out of sight.
  4. Wally and Sonja kissed. Running side-by-side, on numerous of our runs, they both paused, looked at each other, and leaned in. They even took the time to make sure their tongues touched (sorry if this is grossing any of you out...but it really, truly happened!!!).
  5. Sonja has memorized the running route from her house to ours. Every time Danni leaves her house to run, regardless of whether or not they plan to run to our house, Sonja turns right and attempts to convince Danni they MUST charge on to Wally's house.

I think you get the idea. It's pretty funny to watch them interact. Today's playdate was no different. They ran, played, chased, ran, and played some more in the back yard for close to three hours. And what happened when the beagle next door happened to catch Sonja's attention? Wally put on his best show...grabbed a bone in his mouth, shook his head back and forth vigorously, and romped past her with quite a charge, saying "look here, Sonja...I'm way tougher than that dude!"

Here's to a quiet Friday night for Danni, Ted, Zeke, Ty, Leanne, and Hunter. Cheers!