The Perot and The Puppy

Every year, we do a Family Christmas Outing.  This year, we went to the opening of the new Perot Museum of Nature and Science.  It is an excellent museum, and an excellent value for what is available to you.  B and I have been looking forward to this for a couple of years, and it didn’t disappoint!  I didn’t take any pictures inside the exhibit hall because it was incredibly crowded and any photos would have been mainly of the backs of strangers’ heads, or other people pointing  cameras, but I did take a few shots of my little GQ man.

Thor was really happy with all the interactive items in the museum.  It is 4 floors of finger-food for thought, well designed to be interesting to all age groups.  I was impressed with the layout, the natural lighting, and the friendliness of the staff.

We watched a 3-D movie about prehistoric sea-life in a nice sized theater (I did not need to see that 3-D shark, thank you), and will go back again to see the 3-D meerkat movie that Thor was sorry to miss.  I wimped out (due to knee trouble) before seeing the animal/human life exhibit, and the physics, engineering, and robotics sections, but B assured me they were well worth seeing when the museum isn’t so crowded.  We went ahead and bought a membership, so we can go regularly.

Meanwhile, my mom and I have been working hard to conceal the existence of the Christmas Puppy.  Thor went to spend the night with her on Thursday, so when I left work, I went straight to her house and collected the dog, while she went to our place to collect the child.  When she returned the boy, this morning, I hid in the back yard with the puppy, and ran him (in his kennel) and all his accessories into her car, while they went in the front door.

We still haven’t planned out exactly how we will a) get the dog back over here on Christmas without Thor knowing it, or b) how we will do the big reveal, but I’m pretty excited.  I might be more excited than Thor will end up being.  I told B, and I know it sounds ridiculous, but with the dog it feels like we have the right number of living things in the household.  That feels pretty darned good.

We had two nights with the puppy in our care, and had the same experience Mom has had.  He goes into his kennel quietly, sleeps through the night, and understands where to do his business.  I was amazed that he already understands how to play fetch, but I might be underestimating at what age puppies do things.  It’s been a long time since I’ve had a healthy puppy in the house.

He seems to be the right mix between playful and cuddly, considering he was happy to sit on my lap for over an hour, while B and I made our way through the last part of the first season of Parks and Recreation.  Makes a good thigh warmer!  I think he and Thor are going to get along just fine.  I only worry that he’s going to end up with a name that will be a cause for ridicule in the dog park.