Friday, May 7, 2010

Lawton vs. Bike

This last week has been beautiful here in good ol’ Northern Cali. The hills are bright green, the trees are blooming and the weather has been hovering in the paradisical 70’s. It’s a rough life, but someone’s got to live it, right?

Any hoo…the other night we were eating dinner on my in-laws patio…enjoying leftovers from our big Sunday dinner. The two youngest boys hoovered up their meals, (because really, is there any other way when you are 6 and 8?) And then began riding their bikes around the patio table.

They were giggling and laughing, hard and loud enough to bring my father in law outside with his threatening fist in the air. I love this image. He’ll come out and yell “HEY!” and thrust his fist in the air like he going to knock them to moon, all the while sporting a giant smile...or trying his damndest NOT to smile. He can’t be mad at those boys…he tries…but the smile always comes.

So they were riding and Lawton comes up and alerts me. For those who are new here, we have a dog from Dogs4Diabetics. He is our miracle. I don’t write a lot about him, I kinda feel like Braggie McBraggerson when I do…but he so deserves his own post this week, so I’m REO Speedwagoning it...AKA “I can’t fight this feeling any longer!”

Okay, Lawton alerts. The boys finished dinner less than 5 minutes earlier. There is no way. I’m lazy, I’m comfy, I let it go. Lawton walked off indignantly…I was so enthralled with the doves that were perched on the fence I didn’t think much of it.

About 5 minutes later…Lawton goes up to B and jumps in front of his bike. Stopping him from riding. I mean literally, he jumped in front of a moving bike people. What was he thinking?? B avoided hitting him, just barely, and then moved his bike around him to continue riding, only to have Lawton put his head on his lap to stop him again. It was a sight to see: B was peddling, and Lawton was keeping pace with him, his head stubbornly perched on B’s lap.

My sis in law and I looked at each other. "What the heck is Lawton doing??" And before finishing the sentence we both knew. Almost in unison we yelled, “B! Check your sugar!”

He was 72. He had loads of insulin on board.

Now before you go chastening me…I don’t often ignore Lawton. It’s just he has a history of a few false alerts when it’s right after dinner at my in laws. He alerted once, and got a treat when he shouldn’t have…and now he tries every once in awhile to get away with it. He was the little doggie who cried wolf, so I suppose he had to go to great lengths to get us to believe him this time.

Lesson learned.

The dog has been ON FIRE. He has caught so many impending lows this week, he is a rock star. And the brilliance of it all is he is alerting me when they are between 80-100. Before things get out of hand. He knows they are dropping and he has been spot on with his alerts.

Lawton is crazy wonderful.

When I count my blessings…I for sure, ALWAYS count Lawton twice.

20 comments:

  1. I LOVE LAWTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    He is my hero and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it when you post about him. Brag away, my friend. Lawton ROCKS and he is TOTALLY blogworthy :)

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  2. Lawton rocks! So glad your family has that extra support. Dogs are so special and I love that you all have a perfect match.

    April

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  3. I want a Lawton

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  4. Hi! I just found your blog. My 9-year-old son was diagnosed in early March. Lawton sounds incredible!! What a blessing! I want one, too! :)

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  5. I want MORE Lawton posts!!! =)
    I think he is a crazy cool dog, and an incredible blessing for your family. I love this post Meri! Thanks for sharing! =)

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  6. You should brag about him! I feel extra special because I've met this doggie superstar, and I love it when you post about him.

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  7. God bless Lawton. Give him an extra treat at dinner tonight. What a wonder dog. Please post a picture of him in his cape (wouldn't that be funny?)

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  8. We all LOVE Lawton and LOVE his stories! I'm SO happy you have him in your family!

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  9. Lawton is a SuperDog! How awesome he is part of your family! Encore, encore! - Mo

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  10. Lawton sounds amazing! Oh how I wish I had one for my girls :) I would love to read more about your super dog!!!

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  11. Now thats dedication. Lawton is awesome :) I think we all love Lawton stories... so write away!!!

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  12. I had no idea Lawtons existed. How amazing and how wonderful.

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  13. Amazing isn't it...I remember reading about a local sheriff who started training ex-patrol dogs to become diabetic dogs and it was a really neat story. So glad it works for you guys...I'd like to say I want a Lawton, but I'm just not ready for another family member that I'll have to clean up after! Now if they had a diabetic fish I'd be game!

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  14. Ooo, ooo, ooo! (hand waving frantically in the air). What Sarah said about the fish! But, with cats! We've got two totally awesome cats. The Best Cats Ever. Couldn't we just train them to be "alert" companions? Oh, except they'd probably be out hunting birds or pooping in the neighbor's yard or zonked out on the couch when T-Bear was going low. (sigh) Oh, well. It was just a thought :) - Mo

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  15. I LOVE Lawton. What a blessing!!!!!!

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  16. Lawton rules!
    Lawton is a blessing!

    I guess your new motto is "Listen to Lawton!"

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  17. Ah WOW...Lawton ROCKS.

    I cannot even imagine having a Dexter and a LAWTON...life would be amazingly wonderful! Glad that he is helping you keep your beautiful boys safe.

    Sounds like fun ... at your in-laws btw. I could totally picture the shenanigans...with the boys, the bikes and your father-in-law! Sounds like you have an awesome family!!!

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  18. I must admit that one late night when I couldn't sleep I read your old posts and read all about Lawton.

    My husband is dying for a dog and I have informed him that if he can get me one of those, he can get one. But only if it has a super sniffer...

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  19. What a great dog Lawton is!!!! I want one! :)

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