5 more minutes ...

Hathaway has been sleeping in my son's bed lately. I apparently take too long to wash my face and brush my teeth, so rather than waiting for me to claim my spot in the queen-size, he hops into Josh's twin bed and snuggles in to the fleece Red Sox blanket he finds so comfortable.

Recently, I peeked in before either one of them was awake and they were side by side, both heads -- the boy and the bully -- sharing the pillow. It made me wonder which one of them had hit the snooze button.

Hathaway has always been a good sleeper. On the weekends, when I don't have to be up to make the lunches and herd the children, we sleep in. I still stir around 6 or 6:30, often because a certain furry companion has taken all the covers or all the space. Sometimes he moves, sometimes he doesn't. I usually start waking up for real around 7, fully intent on staying under the covers as long as the dog will let me. So I ask him: "What do you think pal, is it time?"

Now and then, he wags his tail,stretches, gives a kiss and starts to sit up. That's when I know we've got to go. But most of the time, he just blinks those big brown eyes, gives a snort or a snore and rolls over. Giving me at least 5 more minutes ...

Catching up

I was making my traditional holiday calendars for the grandparents the other night and came across a bunch of great photos ... of the dog. Not so many of the kids as they start to get older, but lots and lots of the dog.

My mom doesn't mind that one of her grandchildren rarely bathes, has a wet nose, is a quadruped and thinks the world is his bathroom. My step-mom, however, states emphatically over and over that "the dog is not one of my grandchildren!" Of course, this makes my sister and I even more emphatically insist that she is, simply for the pure entertainment value.

The irony is that the dog (mine or my sister's) is probably the best grandchild ever. He'll eat whatever you want to feed him without being picky or complaining. He doesn't want you to chase him around the house all day unless you want to. He's happy just to lay at your feet while you play Scrabble on Facebook or do "research" on the computer. He doesn't fight with his brothers or his friends or his cousins and he doesn't pout. He doesn't leave his stuff all over the house. You can read the books you're interested in and he doesn't hog the TV or the video games.

Of course, he prefers crunching Legos to building with them and he's kind of a sloppy eater. And he can't call to say hello or thank you or 'I got all A's on my report card." He can -- and does -- give just as many kisses and hugs and never gets tired of sitting in your lap.