these are my confessions.

My sister sent me a link to this yesterday - the signs that you treat your dog better than you treat yourself. If you haven't seen it yet, you MUST check it out because the pictures are awesome. Here's what I have to say about the whole thing:

1. You shiver half the night because you let them steal all the blankets. Truth. I also sleep curled up in a ball because she tends to sprawl out in the middle of the bed.
2. They have their own personal tablet to watch animal shows on. Um, no, that would be weird. She uses the TV in our bedroom so she can get comfy and relax. Also, Animal Planet has some shows that are not age-appropriate for Claire, so she tends to watch The Food Network.
3. More people show up to their birthday party than to yours.  Again, truth. People and dogs. The neighborhood pups aren't willing to come to mine...
4. You take your job super seriously but you never get mad when they slack off at theirs. Yes. I mean, how can you get mad at that sweet little face?!
5. You sing them lullabies to help them get to sleep... every night. Well, I sing along with the Spotify playlist that I made for her. She finds The Civil Wars very soothing.
6. You pay top dollar for their groomer but you haven't been to a hairdresser in ten years. She has short fur so she doesn't need a trim, but she does get "manicures" - and I haven't been to get my nails done in a really long time... Pretend you aren't looking the next time you see me.
7. You took the time to teach them to surf, but you can barely swim. Not true; I'm a Cape Cod girl, so I love the water! Though I did take up running because it's Claire's favorite thing to do.
8. You take the day off work to make sure they don’t overheat on the hottest day of the year. I have done this in the past. Thankfully I won't have to do this at the job I have now because I can work from home and personally make sure that Claire is comfortable with the temperature set on the AC control.
9. You spend your life savings on emergency surgery for them and would definitely do it again. A few things about this: (a) I'm a social worker, therefore I don't make enough to have savings, and (b) I'd cash out the ol' 401K if I needed to. But praise God that she hasn't needed emergency surgery because my heart would break for her!
10. Your significant other is convinced you love them more. I don't  have a significant other. Probably because everyone knows that nobody puts Baby in the corner. No second place for my girl!
11. You take them to the dog park everyday after work instead of going out and having fun with human people. I did this every day for the first three years of her life - and I met some of my good friends because of it (humans, not dogs). Now she tends to have more low-key afternoons since she's a mature 4-year-old.
12. You sleep on the floor with them when they're not feeling well. I have done this on the few occasions that Claire was too sick to come to bed. When she had pancreatitis, she couldn't get off the couch one night, so she slept there and I slept on the floor next to her.
13. You spend more money on toys for them than your parents spent on you as a child. Hahaha! When we were home on Cape Cod, even my mother commented on the endless supply of toys!
14. You spent more time stressing out about their doggy wedding to the neighbor’s dog than your own. Not applicable, people! Besides, the neighbor's dog hates Claire. And Claire's many boyfriends would be jealous...