Puppysitting Lucy DANGAH: An Epic Evolution

Growing up, I generally thought adults were batshit crazy when they cried, "Oh my GOODNESS!!! I can't believe how much you've GROWN!!!" Years later, I now find myself in the same sad, old lady-associated mindset as I watch Lucy grow. My little baby's getting so big-- Oh no. I'm turning into Great Aunt Maude.

On the other hand, she still has that baby face and always-energized puppy demeanor, which means I have more baby time with her. She still likes to get into chewing fits and chases my hand around with her gums and pointy teeth playfully bared.... Looking exactly like a bat. Until next time, think of Stellaluna.

My friend Laura was in love with her. Who wouldn't be? She's impossible not to love, the little bat.

Dog Sitting Lucy DANGAH

My best friend came to town a few days ago for the rest of the summer, and as a great welcome present, we got to puppy sit the wonderful Lucy together. There was one downside to this: it was yesterday. The. Hottest. Day. Ever.

It was hard to breathe and hard not to faint on the ferociously sizzling pavement, but I felt even worse for Lucy. She's got a black coat, so she essentially attracts the sunlight. Needless to say, when we walked back and forth on Comm Ave, I carried her a lot of the way. Her poor sensitive puppy paws would have gotten burned otherwise.

On a happier note, my friend and I created a middle name for the infamous Lucy. Her name is now Lucy DANGAH (like "danger," only pronounced with an accent and a whip of the tongue to mimic the strike of the word). If you can't see the irony in the name considering she is a 10 week old puppy with a lot of extra skin and teeth the size of a clump of toothbrush bristles, then you and I don't share the same sense of humor. But I think it's perfect.

Either way, we confirmed that day that Lucy is a major flirt and a major dude magnet. Of course girls and boys alike stop to whimper at how disgustingly adorable she is, but she has a knack for running up to men to get their attention, and they always bite the bait. I think it's because she lives with a man, so maybe she associates the men with dad. Does that mean I can be god-mommy?

Puppy Sitting Lucy

I had the special honor of puppy sitting Lucy again a few days ago, and it's insane how much she's grown already. I wouldn't be surprised if by next week she had grown to the size of the Eiffel Tower and had trained herself to take over the world using her cuteness as a mind manipulation tool.

Every time you go for a walk with this little girl, it's an experience. Giant, tattooed men who look like they'd eat chihuahuas whole stop in their tracks and start blubbering like little girls about how adorable Lucy is.

Black lab puppies are always cute, but Lucy's an extra special case. Look at those eyes -- judge for yourself. Apologies about the bizarre snapshots -- my new camera screen is broken so I can't see what I'm shooting.