Invest in cleaner. And patience.

Chris and I have traditionally kept a fairly clean house, according to our standards. We were also both raised in very clean homes. So trying to keep up with the household chores with four animals can sometimes prove daunting. Sweeping, mopping, vaccuuming, and shampooing the rugs happens several times a week. Dusting (which I loathe) about once a week. Cleaning up the litter boxes, messes outside, keeping everyone watered and fed. Pete's "happy tail syndrome" spots our walls with blood which sometimes make it look like a crime scene. Cleaning off the walls is probably my new least favorite task of all. All of this, not to include, the chores that keep Chris and I functioning, like laundry, mowing the lawn, cleaning the cars, dishes, etc. And, El Paso's naturally dusty and windy climate somehow creeps into all of the corners of our house. There are days when I look into our front lawn and realize I haven't picked up our daily Wall Street Journal in four days. One paper will be on our front bench, one on the sidewalk, one tangled in the front bush. Chris and I both agree that the house we eventually buy will be about half the size of the one we're currently living in, for our sanity's sake. We've through about 79 gallons of pet cleaning products in the last couple months in the battle to keep our home bacteria free. With Pete outside now most of the day, this battle is much less difficult.

These last couple weeks have been really hectic around our house. Chris now has a platoon which takes up a lot of his energy, starting at 5:00 am every morning. This is the last week of the federal fiscal year for me, so a lot of extra hours put in supporting the team at work. By the time we both get home and eat dinner, we look like zombies. Not to mention the nights that Chris has schoolwork due. With Josh being in the hospital, we try to hang out up there every other night for an hour. I do sometimes feel guilty about not spending more time with our animals, but I try to play fetch with Pete every night and this always involves Grace chasing him the entire time. We also try to hang out with the cats for awhile before we go to bed (this is when Lil' Lou is at his best). Chris and I have a date scheduled for Saturday night, so we're pretty excited about that. Marathon training will also eat into our days starting next week. While we're exhausted most of the time, we both feel that this is pretty standard for this point in our lives. We're running the rat race now so that we can spend the golden years with our cheeks in the sand and margaritas in hand. Right?

I believe that every couple and young adult should be made to be responsible for a dog prior to their decision (or lack of decision) to have children. It will either completely deter them from any further responsibility, or at least build up their tolerance to patience and being a little more selfless. Being woken up by Rhino at 5:30 because he has to potty is pretty tough sometimes. Side note: I like calling Pete anything but his name - Rhino, Gremlin, Yoda, My Little Circus Bear, etc. Trying to relax on the back patio while trying to keep Grace in the yard and quieting Pete from barking at rocks can be stressful. The constant panting and wrestling and jumping could put anyone on the verge of an anxiety attack. Grace can be getting yelled at for eating an entire bag of tortilla chips pulled off the counter, while at the same time be wagging her tail. They can be incredibly frustrating, and in the next second make us laugh. They have definitely taught me a sense of patience that I've been striving to find my entire life. But then we remember that they're practically still puppies. Their years to calm down and grow old are still far ahead of us. And then, yes, I'm sure we will miss this.