Little Kids, Big Love

I laughed until I choked yesterday - and I had a good time doing it.  I took Rosie out for her walk a little later than normal because she had an in-home vet treatment.  We strolled regally around the neighborhood, and ended up at Kathy and Jim's back gate.  We entered, and I removed Rosie's harness and leash, and handed her the orange squeak bone that lives in a tree when she's not there.  We walked over to the patio, where I placed Rosie's gear on the picnic table, and I grabbed my chair.  I saw sudden movement inside the house, through the double sliding glass doors.  I had forgotten that Evie was spending the morning with her grandparents.  Evie had spotted Rosie and me, and came at a run to the back door.
   Evie is 17 months old now, and everything goes into her hands and then her mouth.  Kathy followed Evie over to the door and opened them both by about eight inches.  Rosie, standing 6 inches lower than the house floor, immediately shoved her nose inside in hope of finding an edible offering.  She put her nose in Evie's face.  Evie gently placed her hands on either side of  Rosie's nose, opened her mouth wide, stuck her tongue out, and licked Rosie's nose.  A big, wet, juicy tongue lick...   Now Rosie is a full-grown Irish Setter, and she has a big nose.  Rosie looked at me by rolling her eyes; I managed to say, through snorts of laughter, "You're a very good girl, Rosie."  My sister and I looked at one another and again went into gales of laughter.  Evie, meanwhile, gently released Rosie's nose, wrinkled up her nose and eyes, and started giggling, while bouncing up and down.  Rosie eased slowly backward in retreat, leaving the foolish humans grinning and laughing at one another.
   Then, this morning, as I took Rosie out to the street, we ran into a group of six boys from the Waldorf Pre-School; the boys were aged between three and four, and their male teacher was taking them for a hike through the neighborhood.  The boys immediately stopped and asked if they could pet Rosie; I looked at their teacher, got an affirmative nod, and said, "Sure you can."  They made much of her, and she soaked it up.  Then they asked how old she was, and I said, well, you can see she's got white hair on her nose and around her eyes - and that she was 13 years old.  After a few moments, one of the boys asked me, "Do you have teeth?"  When I said yes, they asked me to show them, so I kept my teeth together and raised my lips up and around my teeth.  Then the kids wanted me to take them out of my mouth.  I told them I couldn't - and finally let one little boy try to wiggle and pull my upper teeth out.  They were impressed that I didn't have "fake teeth".  I told them that mine might be a little ugly, but that they were real...  They were asking their teacher all kinds of questions as they left the yard, after giving Rosie more pats and hugs.