Chili Cudzilo

My dog doesn't trust strangers. When they come around (especially in our home) she gets a mohawk and growls the entire time they're there. And, other dogs...she only has one friend. His name is Jake and he lives in Memphis (which doesn't do us much good now that we're in Cincinnati). Chili is also completely terrified of anything that makes noise. If she's walking through the living room and her tail hits...say, the wooden box that holds our remotes...she's outta there! Straight up to our bedroom. If she's playing with a toy and it squeaks to loud....you got it... Chili also hears loud noises outside long before we do. Motorcycles, for instance - she's hiding miles before they pass the house. You can imagine what happens when we pull the vacuum cleaner out. {Once, while staying at my in-laws, my mom-in-law took the vacuum cleaner out to their unfinished, outside deck. Chili, whom she was unaware was out there, took one look at it and jumped off the 2nd floor porch. Somehow she got away from the incident with only a sore leg.}

Corey and I know that other people think we're crazy for having a dog like her, but what most people don't see is how she is behind closed doors.

She's the sweetest, quietest, most laid-back-practically-a-cat-dog you could ask for. She's incredibly loyal and extremely obedient. She doesn't require much except for food, tons of head rubs and a short walk a day. And, the biggest thing (and reason why I'm writing this right now) is that she really makes the statement: "man's best friend" true. We live in a city where we know very few people. I am married to an intern who works the most ungodly hours you've ever heard of (please don't let your kids become doctors!!!!). Without her, I could very well be the saddest girl in Cincinnati. But, with her - I have someone to go on walks with, someone who puts her head on my lap at all the right times, someone who makes me laugh when her tail hits something and she bolts from the room, someone who I feel like I must be available for in case she needs something. It's amazing to me what one dog can do for the soul.

I'm writing this random post because I've had a rough day. Corey had to go to bed early because he has a 30 hour shift starting at 6 a.m. and I'm feeling a bit lonely, expecting tomorrow to be a quiet day around the house (I hate Sundays alone). Chili just came downstairs and gave me this look...

...as if to say, "I was just upstairs snoozing away and I got this sense that you are sad. So, here I am. No more worries."

And, here she is today in the foot of snow resting on our back porch: