Rescuing dogs

I've now had Pixie, my rescue chihuahua, for about 2 months. The changes in her are remarkable!
She had a floppy ear and was very insecure! She barked and whined anytime someone left the room. She had to be constantly by or on me.
Now, she is much more secure with her new home. She sits with me in the mornings, during prayer and bible time. As the kids begin to get up, she will slowly decide which child to spend time with, and sit with that child. Around noon, when hubby gets up, she sits with him a while. Evenings, she sits with someone or by herself! More and more often, she will lay on the floor, a pillow, or sofa, by herself for a nap. sShe does not feel the need to be on top of someone to be secure.
She will go into her crate when we leave and only bark a couple of minutes before quieting down to play and rest. When we return, she does not go into a barking frenzy, but waits until we open the door. She then jumps from person to person to greet them.
Her floppy ear is now standing straight out - Yoda style, just like a chi is supposed to do! She is getting a bit more fur, and it's much softer. She has gained over 3 lbs, and is borderline chunky. We call it "fluffy", as the humidity here makes for bad hair days for all... LOL! (yeah, vet didn't buy it either!)
We began with Science Diet and switched to cooking for her very quickly. She does not like her veggies, unless they are little frozen bits. But dogs are carnivores, so veggies aren't a necessity. If the dog feels the need for greens, they instinctively know which grass to chew on and how much.
Now that I see all the changes in her, I wish I had blogged and photographed each step!
I do have 2 short videos of her... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VerEM16prg0 is her "princess dance" and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqy3ZJk is my grandson laughing at her playing! (adorable baby laughs here)
I have decided that I will rescue another dog, but a bit later. Pixie has a lot to teach me about rescue dogs. And like Pixie, when the dog and the time are right, it will just happen.

Coffee Cookies

1/2 cup cooking oil
4 TBS unsweetened cocoa powder
2 TBS instant coffee crystals
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup powdered sugar

Mix oil, cocoa, coffee crystals, and granulated sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well between. Add vanilla, flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well and refrigerate several hours.
Heat Oven to 350. roll tsp size ball into powdered sugar and place on greased baking sheet. Bake 9-12 minutes.

A man's dinner (or how to bribe your husband)

This dinner is a husband pleaser. It does not contain items from the government food pyramid, rather from the real man's triangle.

Thick pork chops - NOT boneless. (real men pick them up and eat them!)
Potatoes
Ranch style beans
Ice cream
Double stuff oreos
Chocolate syrup
Air freshener (lysol or stronger)

How you cook the pork chops depends on him... to just make him smile, you can broil them. To make him do backflips, fry them!

Mash up potatoes - the way HE likes them. That means a little salty...

Ranch style beans

Serve with his favorite beverage. For extra brownie points, serve on a TV tray with his favorite movie or sport on! And if you really want him to smile, let him wipe his hands on his shirt or the sofa...

When he's so stuffed he can't move, fill a big bowl with ice cream and top with oreos. Liberally drizzle chocolate sauce. Remove his dinner plate and place ice cream on his tv tray.

Do not expect him to do dishes this night - he's as stuffed as a tick and can't move.

Once you join him in the living room, expect "manly noises" to begin. Have your lysol ready, or invest in a timed automatic sprayer. Set for most frequent sprays on man dinner night.

Dog teaching God...

Since I've adopted Pixie, I've seen a variety of lessons God is trying to teach me in her!
First, I have promised to pray regularly, but always get tired, something comes up, don't feel like it, etc... Well, we adopted our dog and dog's don't know excuses. They know routine. If you wake up every morning and take them outside, then to your prayer closet, they learn that after waking up, the prayer closet is the place to go.
So, when I have a lazy day and try to sleep in, she whines until I get up. When I have a lazy day and try to sit and watch tv instead, she whines at the door of the classroom until I sit in the chair where she gets on my lap.
Since none of my friends are up at 5:00 am to chat, there is no excuse once I get to my desk. A little, abandoned dog has taught me a lesson on commitment. On being faithful.
Second is unconditional love. I am the one who rescued the dog, I cook for her, I train her and she is mine. But, let my granddaughter hold her cookie too low, and Pixie loves her for being short and "offering" a treat. Rub her belly and she loves you. It's not what you have done repeatedly for her, you just walk in my house and she is ready to love you. It's really that easy!
Third is how to rest in God. My husband is a doom and gloom kind of person, searching the net for all the doomsday info. It gets rather scary for the kids to hear it, and depressing to hear all the horror going on. I was getting very stressed over it, until I began to watch my dog. She has her "people" for times. Every morning, she lays on my lap, and just rests. No cares, no worries, just rest. Every afternoon, she rests on hubby's lap or by his leg. Every evening, it's the kids, taking turns to share the love with all of them. She doesn't worry about food, money, or chasing cats (ok, sometimes she will stop and chase a cat). But resting in God is that easy. You just DO IT.
So, I guess Preacher Pixie was supposed to be my dog from the start. She kept running away from people to get to me, because I've been praying for help to be faithful in my prayer life, to learn to love unconditionally, and to rest in God and not worry.
Now, should I tell my pastor that my pooch is preaching and reaching me better than he is at the moment?? LOL!!