The Totem Pole

In the animal world, or at least the canine & chicken world, there is a definite pecking order, a totem pole of how the animals view the alpha order of the pack. This is a record of Foster's view of our pack.


Top of the Totem: Mommy

~ I am pretty certain this is similar to how I look to the dog.~

Mommy has secured her place at the top of the totem pole. She is MOMMY and she is to be obeyed, at least most of the time. That would be a similar view point the kids hold as well.
However, since I am still a puppy I still want Mommy's undivided attention. No-one else may love on Mommy because Mommy loves only me. If someone else tries to love on Mommy then I must throw a fit and try to get Mommy's attention by biting at her. I am a Mommy's boy.
Mommy also gives me more treats than Daddy, including knowing that I like extra goodies in with my meals.

Next on the Totem Pole: Daddy

Daddy ranks #2 on the Totem Pole. See how serious and mean he looks?? He doesn't let me on the bed. He doesn't give me treats on my food. I don't bring him toys. I still love him though.
I've even been practicing how to sit on the couch like Daddy. He used to not let me do this, but now that I'm learning to get my butt fully on there (with my front paws on the floor) he seems to like it.
Daddy sometimes likes to think he is head of the totem pole but we all know that Mommy rules the roost.


Up Next: THE PUPPIES

There are three puppies in our house. Here is the order in which I see them.

Head Puppy: ME!

Of course I am HEAD PUPPY. The other puppies don't know how to be head puppy. I have to tell them what to do. I don't think it is fair that the other puppies get to be on the bed and I don't though. That is just wrong.

Middle Puppy: Shannon

Shannon sometimes thinks he is head puppy and sometimes he thinks he is the baby. This makes him Middle Puppy. I think Shannon needs to be taught how to behave properly and, as head puppy, it is my job to teach him. Shannon doesn't like this. Neither does Mommy. Or Daddy. They just don't know that, as Head Puppy, I HAVE to do this. See how silly he acts?? He is not acting like a proper Mastiff.
He does help Mommy out though. Today he even held our pet rabbit Logan after he finished giving her food. Of course I had to make sure he held her properly so I stayed nearby, nosing at Logan to make sure she was held securely.
I like Shannon though. He has cool toys. He has legos and cars and trains and trucks. I like playing with them. But Shannon acts like a baby and cries when I try to. I just don't get it, but I do know this is another reason why he can't be head puppy.

And Finally, the Baby Puppy: Tristan

Tristan is the baby puppy. See how he has stuff in his mouth?? I do that too but I get scolded for it. Tristan gets scolded too, but he still does it.
Since Tristan is the baby puppy it is my upmost responsibility, as Head Puppy of course, to make sure he is ok. When he walks through the house I have to make sure he doesn't fall over, so I have to constantly wrap myself around him and lean against him, securing him with my strength. I do such a good job of this that he usually stops in his tracks and yells for Mommy or Daddy to come help him walk. Babies don't know how to walk on their own.
When Tristan climbs onto Mommy and Daddy's bed I really worry about him. I have to nose at him to make sure he gets up there, sometimes even guide his feet with my mouth. He doesn't appreciate this. Babies rarely appreciate all the things you do to keep them safe. Mommy doesn't always appreciate it either and sometimes yells at me for it. She yells at Shannon when he tries to help out sometimes too. Mommy is a little crazy.
I also have to make sure he is tucked in securely when he goes to bed for naps and at night. I nose him all over. He sure must be fussy at bed time because he tends to cry about this. I guess he is just tired. Babies get tired easily and they cry when they're tired. It's ok, as Head Puppy I understand these things.
Tristan has lots of neat toys too. He has stuffed animals that I really like, including a little stuffed dog. He has cars and trains and toys like Shannon's too. And, like Shannon, he acts like a baby when I try to play with them. They don't like sharing their toys with me, this is why I am Head Puppy and they're the babies.

This is my family. I love them a lot.

"I don't care if you think I'm strange.."

"I ain't gonna change!" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RAQXg0IdfI ~ Thank You Joan Jett!!


~This is me, Fall of 2008~

Early Fall 2008 my mother and stepfather took the boys to the beach with them for the week. One condition, I took care of her dogs. No worries, I just scooted over there a couple of times a day (though her aging St. Bernard did make that week more hellish than it ought to have been).
On my way back and forth from her house to ours, I would see mothers out, pushing little ones in strollers. It transported me back to earlier days.

*Back to frat parties where I was the only person with dreadlocks, wearing a rugby shirt and cord pants. Only person - no chicks with 'em, no guys either. Where I looked around and noticed that all the girls were wearing the same basic 2 outfits, just in slightly different colors. *ALL OF THEM*

*Back to when I was pregnant with Tristan and in a friend's store with Shannon in tow, running about the racks of clothing. She introduced me to a fella she was talking to, and he made a comment: "So, now you're whole life is just your kids?" My instinctively sharp response of "No!" shocked not just him but me as well. I love my kids, and to some degree they ARE my world. But I haven't stopped being me. Since when did being a stay-at-home mom mean that you have no life other than your kids? Add being a homeschooler to this and you've sealed the coffin on your own life in too many people's eyes.

So .. what do these memories have to do with moms walking kids in strollers? Well, for starters, they all looked alike to me. Same 2 or 3 strollers, same work-out wear, same hairstyles.
Ah .. hairstyles.
Yes .. I kinda had a freak-out moment. An "I'm not one of those moms" moment. And so I died my hair pink. Really PINK. Pink enough that people stopped calling me Justin, aka my husband,'s mom and started ID'ing me for booze. -- Seeing as I've now been called Justin's mom 5 .. yes FIVE times now, I do like the effect the pink hair had on getting me carded again.
A friend later told me that I could don a brown wig with a conservative haircut, khakis, a button-down shirt, and loafers and I still would stand out. -- Probably true. Thank you Joann.

I feel like a dad, for lack of better description, among mom's groups. I stand there talking about beer and football. I am not dressed like they are.
Even when I try to go girly, at least in my mind, I don't fit in with the moms. As part of the Alice in Wonderland merchandising frenzy, OPI has released Alice-themed nail polish colors. Oh yes, I HAVE to have them. I will have them!!! Glittery, sparkly blue? Mad Hatter sparkly purple? Oh, come to mama! However, these apparently, are not mom-approved colors.

And you know what, I don't care if you think I'm strange, I ain't gonna change!


*****NOTE - Justin read this, patted me on the shoulder and said "Yep, you're a dad among moms" .... yup .... ******