Ten Minutes

My boys had their friends Kevin and Treyvonne over after church on Sunday. It was chilly outside, but that didn’t keep the four boys from playing basketball and completely wiping out Marlboro Man’s ice chest in a way that only four boys between the ages of eleven and thirteen can do.

I went outside for a mere ten minutes to see what they were up to, and had to chuckle at the canine craziness all around me.

First of all, we have this fella on our homestead now. It’s a long story, but let’s just say German Shepherds are quite a different ball of wax than Basset Hounds and Labs.

What I wanted to do is take some action shots of the four boys shooting hoops.

The sun was shining for the first day in a long time, and I was happy to have the warm light bathing everything.

Unfortunately, I can’t sit down on the ground without all the dogs thinking it’s about them. Here comes Walter…

Here comes Presley…

(Yes, Presley. Todd got to name him and rejected all my suggestions, which included Thor, Flash, Rocco, Zeus, Astro, and Trooper. Todd simply got it in his head that he wanted to name his very first dog Presley, and there was no swaying him. I even suggested Elvis! No dice.)

Then Lucy showed up to start licking Walter and drive him crazy.

She likes to do this at least three times a day.

Right now, Walter is trying to decide whether to allow Lucy to continue her shenanigans or teach her a lesson.

Great restraint, Walter! Such a sweet boy.

The basketball continued in the background…

He shoots…he scores!

Then Charlie came into the picture.

And then Yo-Yo showed up and a brawl broke out.

It wasn’t really a serious brawl—just Charlie trying to act like an Alpha dog and show Yo-Yo who’s boss, with the labs assisting him. There was barking, snarling, howling, and nipping…

And Presley ran off because he didn’t like all the trouble.

Then he came back…

For Bryce’s Pepsi!

Ohhhhh, Presley. You are playing with fire, little one.

And I know this photo is blurry, but check this out! Duke heard Bryce scold the puppy for taking his pop, so he pawed the Pepsi right out of Presley’s mouth.

I’ve never heard of a loyal family dog protecting one of the family member’s soft drinks.

Anyway, Presley ran off again after that.

Then another brawl broke out.

Then I caught Treyvonne jumping out of the back of Marlboro Man’s truck with another pop.

Please be impressed by my shiny, pristine vehicle in the background.

Thank you.

If Marlboro Man had caught Treyvonne with one of his precious Dr Peppers, he probably would have pulled a Duke on him and patted it right out of his hands.

You don’t mess with a cowboy’s Dr Pepper stash.

So then the Lab brawl resumed.

Please keep in mind as you look at these photos that they are actually having fun.

Please keep in mind that these two roam the ranch and hunt together.

Please keep in mind also that these two sleep in a bed together and cuddle in their spare time.

Please keep in mind also that our homestead is a complete and utter nuthouse.

I love this ending shot. Duke is totally saying “You’re reeeeeeally starting to eeeeeeeeritate me.”

“WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AROUND HERE?”

“It’s okay, Little One. Stay close to me and I will teach you the ways of the homestead.”

And that, my friends, was ten minutes of life around here.

The end.