Bit by Bit

Colin seems to be making progress, bit by bit. He seems to have a better handle on school and there has been a slight uptick in his grades. Colin had another PR (personal record) at the cross country meet this past weekend, shaving almost 2 minutes off of his time. He started the season with a 32 minute 5K and he is now down to a more respectable 23min 18 sec. and has moved up from one of the last runners to the middle of the pack. His coach noted that a combination of new shoes, consistently attending practices and that our son is finally listening his coaches seems to be paying off.

 Friday Night Lights

Colin has been attending his school's Friday Night football games regularly. Usually he goes with his 16 year old brother, although they go their separate ways once they are dropped off. This past weekend he went to an away game by himself. Dad dropped Colin off and picked him up when the game was over.  Colin apparently has some boys that he sits with and seems to enjoy these outings. We are impressed at his school spirit and efforts toward socialization. Even Aunt "P" has been impressed!

Kill Her, Kill Her Now!

Colin still shows little or no reaction to former triggers and the only real bad behavior is shown only to my husband and myself. We have limited conversations unless our son needs something or joins a discussion we are having with our other boys.

Just over a year ago, my son would tell me non-stop that he loved me. It was a bit excessive and we were concerned. Now the messages of love are replaced with our son using the dog to communicate such "niceties" as "Kill Her (Him) Now",  "Sumpter wants to kill you and eat you",  "Vicious puppy wants to kill people" and dozens more variations. It almost seems like an automatic Tourettes-like  reaction and we wonder how much is anger and how much might be in response to a trigger. I am sure there is some jealousy over how much time I spend with the dog as his care falls mostly in my lap.

As annoying as this behavior is, all I have to do is remember where we were a year ago and it doesn't seem all that bad.

Permission to move the Fridge

One of the issues we have with the puppy is that he is a notorious counter and table surfer and will steal food every chance he gets. When we eat, he needs to be crated. Sumter's crate is in the spot where our refrigerator used to be.

A few days ago, Colin mentioned to me that we should move the fridge back into the house and put the crate in another room. I was surprised and asked why. He thought if Sumter couldn't see us eat, he wouldn't bark and want to get out of his crate. I didn't answer and shrugged. I'd love to know what sounds still bother our son and how he is able to cope but I know better than to ask him.


There are so many questions I'd love to have answers for but I realize it will take time.

All in good time. As always, we are a work-in-progress!