JB's June Writing Challenge: M is for ... Menagerie

Admittedly, I received some quality suggestions for "M" today--magnificent, mind games, murder mystery, mustache. I even considered migraine, because I've had one for three days now. But as a foot-square spot on our bed is currently being guarded carefully by our youngest pet, I decided menagerie would be the most appropriate subject for me to explore tonight. As in, since my bio includes the fact that the WGH and I share our home with a "small menagerie of cats and dogs", may I introduce you to ours? If you're not a pet person, you have my permission to stop reading. The rest of you will, I'm sure, understand a mummy's pride.

In order from oldest to youngest, our menagerie consists of:

Haydn. Our oldest is a gray and white male, feline, 15 years old. The WGH rescued him after he was thrown out of the back of a pickup truck in the middle of Interstate 65 (whether intentional, we aren't entirely certain). He's gone deaf in his old age, but is otherwise a healthy and happy king of the roost.

McCartney. Also referred to as "Mac", "McDog", "Sir Barksalot" and "Bear", he's an 8-year-old, 80-pound Shepherd-Chow mix who looks like a long-haired Rottweiler. After we lost our Alaskan Malamute to a stroke, we decided we were going to wait a while before getting another dog. A week later, we brought this fuzzball home from the Humane Society. (And he's the biggest baby of the lot.)

Calliope. This is Mama's girl--a 7-year-old miniature beagle with a major attitude. She doesn't know she's not a big dog.

Merlot. Our oldest daughter brought this gorgeous classic tabby home when she split with her ex (after a brief custody battle, which we won). He's 5 now, and such a lover--he wakes me up some mornings by licking my earlobe.

Dahlia. By far our best-behaved, sweetest, smartest dog, Little Bit's beautiful 3-year-old baby is half miniature border collie and half Siberian husky. She's very good with commands, but we're still working on the Frisbee-fetching.

Mimosa. The baby of the family is a mackerel tabby, 11 months old and sweet as honey, but she thinks she's a dog: she fetches! Her favorite toys are my ponytail holders. She will actually climb up onto the vanity in the master bath and fish the elastic bands out of the Longaberger basket that holds my sundries. It's downright comical.

And there you have it--proof that we are crazy pet people.

The migraine and I are going to take a pill and rest in a dark room now. We'll see you tomorrow for a halfway-point recap of the writing challenge. Until then, read a book. It's good for you!