Too Many Cooks...

Wednesday night found us baking in the kitchen in anticipation of Thanksgiving dinner with my husband's family.  We weren't doing anything too complicated; it was simply molasses cookies and caramel apple cookies.  However, anybody with dogs probably knows that even the most simple task can become more challenging and entertaining when dogs get involved.

It started out innocently enough.  Bunny came into the kitchen to satisfy her curiosity about what we were doing in there.  My husband had all sorts of baking ingredients and paraphenalia up on the counter beside the mixer.  I'm sure it's not an accident that she appeared just as the aroma of molasses cookie dough was starting to waft through the air.  Being a fun-loving sort of fellow, my husband gave her a little taste of molasses on a plastic spoon.  Bunny's tongue was soon performing acrobatic flips around her nose as she kept licking and licking and licking the sweet sticky mess in her mouth. 

Lilac somehow caught on that Bunny was sampling something in the kitchen with that uncanny radar that dogs have for those sorts of things.  She soon came in to supervise what we were doing.  When my husband offered her a small taste of molasses, she turned up her nose and went back to the orthopedic dog bed where she lay watching us intently.  She likes to rest a lot, but she is one spry little old lady and I don't kid myself that if something were to drop on the floor in there that she would be the first member of the clean up crew to arrive on the scent.  So, she kept vigil while Bunny tap danced around the kitchen with us.

Blueberry, of course, was busy snoozing on her favorite bed.  Or was she?  Miraculously, when the first batch of cookies came out of the oven, there she was at the edge of the table snagging one before we'd even frosted them.  She is so tall that she doesn't even have to reach up to get things off the table, but she usually employs some degree of stealth when it comes to filching our food.  Cookies must be worth the risk of scolding, however, because she was pretty bold about her intentions. 

Of course, after the cookie theft occurred, the girls were relegated back into the living room and the baby gate went up.  There were sad looks and sighs, but eventually they all went and laid down somewhere, although all three positioned themselves where they could seen what we were doing.  Bunny went on patrol every three or four minutes, passing by the gate and gazing at us with adoration.  It's funny how much more devoted she seemed to be to us when we were in the kitchen with cookies. 

Finally, my husband realized it was turn out time.  We decided it would be a two person job.  He went in and got the dogs, telling them it was time to go outside and potty.  I stood guard over the cookies, ushering them past the cooling sweets.  After they went outside, I went back to mixing frosting until it was time for them to come back inside.  I got ready to defend the cookies when Bunny came in.  However, she pranced right through the kitchen and into the living room.  Lilac arrived next and did the same.  To my great shock, Blueberry also went straight the living room without so much as a sniff at the cookies cooling on the table.  My husband came in and gave them each one of their own cookies and put the gate back up, for security's sake. 

It was quiet on the Midwestern front until I got done with my part and went into the living room.  Bunny took the opportunity to sneak past the barricade and made a beeline for the table where my husband was frosting the last two dozen cookies.  I called her, she came towards me, then turned back around and went back towards the table.

Me:  Bunny, come here!

Bunny:  Oh, coming!  Oh, I smell cookies!

Me:  Bunny, come!

Bunny:  Of course!  Oh, those cookies smell good!

Me:  Bunny!  Come here now!

Bunny:  Coming!  Oh, I heard a cookie calling my name!

Me:  Bank on Benefit!  In the living room right now!

Bunny:  Oh, a cookie crumb on the floor! 

She ran into the living room with her prized tidbit and grinned at Blueberry and Lilac as she gobbled down her prize.  After that, I felt bad and gave Lilac a sympathy taste since she didn't get to steal one.  I wonder if I'm going to have to get chef's hats for them.

I am surprised to realize that this is our one hundredth blog post.  It's been fun to share parts of our lives and the human and canine condition with people who get it.  I hope that it's been entertaining for people to follow along with us.  Thank you to everybody who's joined us on this journey.