What I Want But Can't Have

On Sunday, we took a family outing to a "national-retail-chain-store-that-is-all-about-fishing-and-hunting-and-outdoor-stuff" - I hesitate to state the name because I really dislike this store. Now, I'm sure if you are into fishing, hunting, and outdoor stuff, this is the place to go. But, as I am not into any of these things, I do not enjoy going to this store. My boys like it because they have a huge fish tank and they do fishing demos/talks and other totally boring interesting activities. They were having some kind of fishing expo or something, as well as a big sale. The store was packed - I'm talking packed like you can barely navigate through all the people. As hubby and the boys were looking at fishing lures and stuffed deer heads and such, my daughter and I spied something that saved our day. Starbucks! I have to give them credit, they are pretty smart for putting a Starbucks right inside their store. This was the perfect escape so my daughter and I went and enjoyed some nice hot beverages - she had hot chocolate, I had caramel apple spice. As we were sitting and sipping our drinks, we couldn't help but notice there were quite a few people who had brought their dogs along. I thought that was a little strange, but, maybe that's "the thing" to do at these types of stores. Anyway, being a dog lover, I had a great time watching all the dogs. There were two ladies, in particular, who each had a dog with them. I was immediately drawn to these dogs because they were so big and so pretty, and I wasn't familiar with the breed. As I said, they were big dogs, but, they acted so gentle and docile; many small kids were coming up to them and petting them and the dogs were perfectly behaved. I absolutely fell in love with these dogs!

When I got home, I jumped on the Internet to try and find out what type dogs they were. Turns out, they were Bernese Mountain dogs (here's a picture from Wikipedia). The picture doesn't give a true idea of their size; their big ol' paws seemed massive to me.



Is this not the most beautiful creature! Their coats were so shiny and looked soft as silk. In reading a little about this breed, I learned that they are indeed very gentle dogs and great for families and children. They cost around $1500-$2000. I'm now obsessed with these dogs. I found some of the sweetest videos on youtube showing Bernese Mountain dogs - they are so cute and smart.

Here's our sweet dog, Emma. She is an airedale terrier and we all love her to pieces.


We really couldn't ask for a better dog - she is somewhat of a lazy-diva, but she also loves to play with the kids. She never gets into mischief when we leave her home alone (other than occasionally sneaking a nap on my bed, which is not allowed - that's a story for another post). She really is a treasured member of our family. I have been hinting to hubby for awhile that I would love to have another dog; a friend for Emma. He is adamantly opposed to that, and really, I see his point. We have our hands full with four kids and the dog we have. So, I will be content with our Emma, but, someday, I will own a Bernese Mountain dog.

On another note, while we were at the above-mentioned store, my husband decided to make us pose for a family photo next to the big fish aquarium and rock wall - right in the middle of where all kinds of people are walking to go to the next level of the store....uhhhh, you might be a redneck if you pose for a family photo in the "fishing store" My 13 yr. old daughter was mortified, LOL!