My family loves dogs. In fact, I don’t remember a single year of my life when we didn’t have a dog in the household. Now, they weren’t always pedigreed, but they were always loved.

For the past few years, we’ve had the Dalmatian named Shaolin guarding our perimeter and warding off intruders whether big or small. (He’s also very handy when you’re feeling low and need someone who accepts you even if you have eyebags the depth of the Marianas Trench…) Now, in a development that seems all too sudden, we have a Labrador Retriever puppy we’ve named Ashton. Yes, Ashton like the actor–but I’m quite positive he’ll grow up to be better-looking. Ü

It feels like we’ve had him for a while, but we only took him home with us yesterday. Glossy black from nose to tail, bigger than his siblings, Ashton was the dominant pup in his litter. He pooped and threw up in the car as we drove home, but I’d already fallen for him and didn’t faint from disgust. Marielle is sitting outside with him right now; she absolutely adores him. Despite his barking and howling every time we leave him, he’s a gift from God. I hope we train him well.

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