A Boy and His Dogs

I love that Brayden is growing up with dogs in the house. Considering our boys (dogs) are big guys, I was a little concerned with how gentle they would be with Brayden and how considerate they would or wouldn't be around him in the first few years while he is still a "little guy". They quickly taught me I have nothing to worry about and are gentler than I ever hoped they would be. Brayden's always loved watching them, occassionally cuddling them, etc., but in the past month I have seen a big change in how he plays with them and is always looking for them. When we get up in the morning, the dogs wait while I get Brayden up and as soon as he sees them, he starts smiling and laughing and they give him quick kisses. He tries to feed them (usually rather successfully, unfortunately) whatever he is eating, even if it's something he loves, such as graham crackers (as a side note, this is one of the millions of things I love about Brayden, he always wants to give, give, give, whatever he has, food, toys, etc., he wants to share with you, something I hope he continues his whole life!) or peanut butter sandwiches. If I ask him where "Bear Bear", "Bruttie" or "Your Doggies" are, he looks for them, and will usually crawl over to get them. And, I've caught him this past week trying to imitate me saying "doggie" and I told Mike last night I think that might be his first word when the time comes.
But this post isnt just about how much he loves them, but how much they love him too. Brutus comes with me to Bray's bedroom every naptime/bedtime and waits while I put him to bed, the same way he lays on the floor of the bathroom while I give Brayden a bath. Bear puts up with Brayden tugging on his ears even though he has very sensitive ears and never winces, barks, or anything. They both put up with Brayden's fingers up their noses, pinching their skin or poking their eyes (we do continue to try to teach Brayden to be gentle) and not only do they both sit there and allow it, but give him kisses afterwards. Of course, having only two other dogs in the house and no other children does have its disadvantages, like when Brayden tries to drink the bath/pool water like he sees the dogs drink water, or even eat his food off his high chair tray like a dog would eat food out of a bowl, but those are minor in comparison to the joy and love they all bring to each other! Mike and I both look so much forward to them all "growing up" together and sharing many an adventure! Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog tails, thay's what Brayden is made of ;)!