My Life as a Lawyer's Wife: A Decade-Old Dog

After my serious last post, I think we should lighten the mood around here a bit, don't you agree? And what better way to do that than with a dog's birthday party?

Birthday Boy Achilles!

This past Saturday, Achilles celebrated his 10th birthday (in people years). We don't know the exact date of his birth, of course, as we rescued him from a shelter in Gainesville. When we got him, the shelter estimated him to be about a year old, so each year we celebrate the anniversary of his adoption as his "birthday." So, this year is the ninth anniversary of Achilles' entrance into our lives, and so, his 10th birthday. Happy Decade, buddy!

Achilles sure has been through a lot with us in those nine years. He has lived in eight different homes in six cities. He has witnessed our wedding day and has endured the birth of our first child. He has also suffered through countless Halloween costumes. He has definitely caused us stress (see here and here for a couple of examples), but he is a part of our family. And really, as far as I can tell (KNOCK ON WOOD), he's the only one of us going gray so far.

On the left is the very first image we ever saw of Achilles, as he was advertised on the shelter website. On the right, Achilles just a week or so ago. Hard to believe it's the same dog, isn't it?

Plus, you know, his tongue doesn't fit in his mouth anymore (thanks to his lack of front teeth due to his separation psychosis, as evidenced in the above linked videos). So there's that.

Shameful.

Given all that Achilles has been through with/for/because of us, it only seemed fitting to celebrate his decade of life with a proper party. So, we hung the decorations, thawed the doggie ice cream (peanut butter and cheese flavor, YUM), donned our party hats and sang a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday" to our (somewhat bewildered) birthday pooch.