November 1st was Pancho’s FOURTH birthday. I really wanted to do a post about him, but then I remembered that Leia turned 3 in June, and I never did a post for her. And that’s just not fair! Mooooooom! I never get anything! But wait, I did, didn’t I? I logged onto WordPress and yep, right there in my drafts, was a post all about Leia’s birthday that I never finished. Look at how good I am at being a mom already! When I have a real kid maybe I’ll be able to throw some store-bought cupcakes at them 3 days after their birthday! Hey, what’s your name again? Sorry that you’re 45 and I never finished your baby book!

So, even though Pancho’s birthday was 2 days ago, today is all about Leia. Pancho, you’ll get your recognition soon. Here’s a bacon-flavored treat to help you forget about it. I’m already using food to make my children love me.

In her (over) 3 years with us, Leia has made quite an impression in our lives. When Michael decided he wanted a miniature Australian Shepherd, I knew nothing about the breed. All I knew was that I was happy with Pancho and didn’t see the need to complicate our lives with another dog. But one day, we drove out to “just look” at some puppies, and came home with Leia. She was the tiniest one of the litter, but also the prettiest. The breeder assured us she would get bigger, probably 25-30 pounds. She quit growing at 18 pounds, almost leaving her out of the miniature category and more in the toy category. That doesn’t stop her from thinking she’s the real deal, though. She tries to herd everything in sight and barks with ferocity at dogs four times her size.

When she was a few months old, I started googling. I can’t remember what exactly, probably something to the effect of “HOW TO NOT KILL YOUR AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD PUPPY” or maybe “ARE ALL AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD PUPPIES LUNATICS?” or even possibly “WHY DO MY AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD PUPPY’S FARTS SMELL LIKE DEATH?” Whatever it was, I stumbled upon Dooce. Reading about Coco made me feel much, much better about Leia. I imagine it to be something like the support you mommybloggers get from one another. And so, despite the first 2 years of her life looking like something straight out of Cujo, we made it. And now she’s one of the best dogs ever.

Here are some things you should know about Leia:

• She used to have a windowsill addiction. Through much rehab, she kicked the habit.
• She typically looks a lot fluffier than in the above photo. She had a haircut recently, which made her even tinier. That pink bow around her neck lasted all of 5 minutes.
• If you’re sitting on the couch and not petting her, she will paw you until you do.
• She’s pretty fancy.
• We can’t take her anywhere without several people stopping to ooh & ahh and/or ask questions about her (i.e. what kind of dog is she, is she full-grown, etc.)
• She’s deathly afraid of thunder. The only place she wants to be when it’s storming is wrapped around your NECK.
• She’s a rawhide snob. Don’t even TRY to trick her with the Kroger brand. She will turn her nose up at you and your cheap rawhide. Name brand only for this girl.
• She gets the crazy eyes.
• She thinks it is her job in life to herd us from room to room of the house. She also enjoys herding Chihuahuas and small children.
• If Pancho ever gets outside without us knowing, she will stand at the window or door and bark until we realize he is gone.

All in all, this dog is pretty spectacular. She’s even learning that 6am is NOT an appropriate time to wake me up, and to go to Michael for that one. She’s got a huge heart and a hilarious personality. I’m glad we added her to the mix, after all. I can’t imagine our house without her. Happy Belated Birthday, Leia! We love you!

(And yes, I’m totally tagging this post under “crazy dog lady.”)