Who’s Forrest? Well, he’s a dog…and the newest addition to our family. He’s only 9 months old and he’ll be the subject of many blogs, so I thought it only right to introduce him.

I still can’t believe we adopted him. You see, we already have two Golden Retrievers, Koda and Cosmo, brothers who just turned eleven a couple of weeks ago. So when my daughter asked if she could adopt this puppy from the local pet shelter, my answer was emphatically “NO!” After I said “no” about 193 times we adopted Forrest. And yes, he’s named after Forrest Gump.

It all started when my son and his fiancé were adopting a dog from the shelter and it broke their heart to leave his brother behind. They spoke to my daughter and suggested we adopt him. (Oh, that reminds me, I never thanked them for that.) I did not want a third dog. My reasons? …we don’t have the room …I didn’t want the extra work … and I didn’t want the extra expense. Then I made that dreaded mistake — I went to the shelter and met him. After I held him, then hugged him, then told him that I would be his forever grandma, I had to bring him home.

Ironically, just like Forrest Gump, he’s taken many pictures with his eyes closed. And can he “Run, Forrest, Run?” Well, yes. He can also jump onto a table with no assistance from a chair, clear the fence in a single bound, and takes pleasure in diving through the spindles of our back deck…instead of using the stairs. Although he’s a mix, the vet said he has the markings and characteristics of a Whippet, a type of English Greyhound (they say the fastest domesticated animal of his weight). Hmmm.

He’s a handful — more than I bargained for — and his energy is clearly fueled by the protein that he finds in eating our shoes. But, I just love that dog so much! Right now, my main goal is to protect him. Even if that means chasing him around my neighbor’s lawn in my pajamas, with my boots on, and my Phyllis Diller morning hair while they tap on their window pointing and laughing at me. It’s all good. After all, I am his grandmother.

I can’t help but think of him as human. Every morning when I blow dry my hair he waits patiently for me to “pretend dry” his hair too. He loves to wrestle with Cosmo, but leaves Koda alone…almost as if he knows he’s arthritic. When I get out my camera he immediately poses; he’ll even cross his paws as if in a senior photo shoot. He helps me clean by getting the broom out of the closet every day. I guess he doesn’t like to bother me, that must be why he taught himself how to open the back door and let himself out. When he jumps the fence to visit the neighbors, he won’t go more than one lot away…probably because he knows it’s not safe, and he’ll possibly be grounded. And even though he loves to chew up everything in his path, even the sweetest stuffed animal, he has a heart of gold. And when he’s in trouble he stares you right in the eyes, with a very serious look, until you laugh.

He’s crazy…but he’s ours. And we can’t imagine life without him.