Am I crazy?

Merry Christmas! I have not yet had a chance to blog about what a great and wonderful Christmas we have had. I am sad that it is already gone and passed. But I am getting in trouble by my husband for not blogging about the kids "best Christmas present EVER!" Yes I do think I am crazy. This is Bella.... our puppy German Shephard. We got her from a breeder that Mike assisted at work. Mike instantly fell in love with her. Once I met her I understood why. She is the sweetest thing ever. The kids have been asking for a dog for about the last 6 months. When asked what they want for Christmas the first answer out of their mouths was "a dog"! We had no intention of fullfilling this wish until Mike met Bella. On Christmas morning I wrapped 4 things.... A tennis ball, a rawhide chew toy, a rope toy and a stuffed german shephard. Jimmy opened the tennis ball and was actually kind of excited about it. Then Sara opened up her raw hide and had NO clue what it was. "What in the world is this?" Then Katie opened her rope toy. You could see a little flicker of hope in their eyes. Then Eberly opened her stuffed dog. The look of confusion was priceless. I then told the kids "You said you wanted a dog, well there is your dog (pointing to the stuffed dog)... Sara handed her chew toy to Katie and said "here.. you can have this". They were horrified. They couldn't believe that I would be this "mean".... Eberly than said "I am going to check in the back yard... just in case".. Mike was not yet back there with Bella. I then told the kids that Daddy had just gotten home from work and was out in the back getting fire wood. So they all ran back there to see there dad AND to tell him to hurry up so they could open up their "real" presents. All of a sudden I heard a gasp and Eberly ran outside. "Is that a REAL dog? Is that a REAL dog?" Then Katie asked "Do we get to keep it?" I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it was to see their excitement. It was the best feeling ever.
And I have to report that she is a FANTASTIC dog. She is already housebroken. When she comes inside the house you lay down a towel, say "down" and she lays down until you tell her she can get up. She plays soccer with the kids. (Eberly is thrilled about that). She doesn't bite. When you tell her "no" she actually stops. She even gets along with Betty Boop. Betty did make sure that Bella knew who was queen bee though. The only issue she has had thus far is the leash! She is so mortally offended that we would even think about putting a leash on her. She plants her buns down and just sits there. I have been watching the Dog Whisperer and I even bought his dog training cards. I used his technique and it worked. She actually walked on the leash yesterday! Go Ceasar!
Those that know my Katie know that she prefers animals to humans any day. This morning she told Eberly that she thinks she is half dog and half human!
So, yes I might be crazy, but I have to admit, I have been sleeping a lot more soundly knowing I have a guard dog. AND the kids happiness is worth it :)