"The Girls"

When Tony or I say "the girls" most people are confused: are we talking about Rebecca & Mary-Gail? Or are we talking about Pixie & ArlaMae? Long before Rebecca & Mary-Gail were even a glimmer in either of our eyes, we had "the girls": Pixie & ArlaMae. The original babie babes.

Pixie, my 18 lbs baby, was my 24th birthday present in July 2001. We named her Pixie because when we'd be outside playing, she'd pick up sticks and bring them to us and gnaw on them.

Pixie can always be found sunbathing

ArlaMae basking in the sun too

ArlaMae, my 28 lbs baby, was my Mother's Day gift. We picked her out of a litter of 6, 4-week old, all black pug puppies. We drove 30 minutes outside of Charleston, SC, to pick her up in 2004. She was so small and wrinkly - she could have easily been mistaken for a little piglet. We named her ArlaMae after my grandma (dad's mom). I wanted a southern-sounding name, and I love, love, love family names, so we asked grandma and she said it was OK.

Pixie was less then impressed with ArlaMae, but with Tony and me at work all day, we thought she needed a sister. Arla used to bit Pixie so hard that Pixie's neck would bleed. Arla was a vampire with Parana teeth when she was a little baby. Now, she just uses her weight to push people around.

So, when we talk of "the girls," you can understand why most people get confused as to which girls we're talking of.