a gift for our neighbors.

My weekend was filled with puppies. No complaints here! How can anyone see a sweet little munchkin and not smile?! Personally, I can't see a puppy without running over to pick it up and kiss its fuzzy little head. All of these sightings this weekend got me thinking about Claire when she was a tiny thing just two and a half years ago.

I remember when she was about four months old, and I could still walk around my apartment complex without having her on a leash; she followed me wherever I went. She was more curious than usual on this particular day, and she heard people talking up on the third floor of the building. We were working on recall anyway, so I figured I'd take this opportunity to see if she would come back when she heard me call her name. After I called for her twice without her returning to me, I started walking up the steps to go get her. All of a sudden, I heard people screeching. I ran up two flights of stairs just as I heard a man say, "Whose dog IS this?!?!" I got to the top floor just in time to see people running out of an apartment - Claire had taken it upon herself to invite herself in when they opened the door to leave. I peered into their apartment and saw Claire zooming around their living room, jumping on the couch, circling their kitchen table, and sliding down the wood floor in the hallway. I pushed one of the women out of the way and dashed in to get Claire, all the while apologizing for my wild dog puppy causing a ruckus in their apartment. I saw an older man running after Claire with a broom, and yelled for him to stop chasing her so that I could catch her. She saw me and leapt into my arms, tail wagging the entire time, and smothered me in kisses. I continued to apologize to the family profusely, explaining that she was just four months old - a little thing, really - and tried to make a joke about me learning my lesson through this experience that it was time to put her on a leash during our excursions outside. They didn't find it funny, if you can believe it.

I remember myself thinking, "She's just a puppy, I don't understand why they were flipping out." You know, despite the fact that a little black furball went beelining into their apartment when they opened the door. I also remember noticing, as I walked out of their apartment with Claire in my arms, that she left a little present on their doormat. As if her unexpected visit wasn't enough?!