The God of Frolic

"The dog was created specially for children. He is the god of frolic." 

-Henry Ward Beecher, Proverbs from Plymouth Pulpit

For a long time, it seemed like Maeve and Patches were destined to be frenemies. They would sort of play together one minute, and the next, I'd have to separate them from each other with much screaming and fighting and growling. Patches would sidle sweetly up to Maeve and then steal her beloved stuffies and eat their faces gleefully.

Now, this is not to say that we are all peaceful around here now, it's more like we've gotten a better handle on keeping Maeve's special toys out of reach. But there is considerably more peace between the two of them, especially as Maeve learns more about the nature of dogs, and has adapted to playing with Patches.

I know it's not really like having a sibling, but I think having Patches in our family has helped Maeve learn to adapt herself to others, and maybe to have an ounce of empathy for the furry creatures. And I know for sure that Patches loves having a playmate closer to his size.

Both sweeties on my lap