I know in another blog I admitted that one way I could ease my worries about the economy and its affect on my pocketbook would be to cut out buying toys for my pets. But I had to make an exception for Halloween.
See, a couple of weeks ago Murphy’s best friend Tucker came for a visit when his parents had to come through town on their annual trek to Indianapolis for the pet shoot they do up there every year.
Since Murph’s down and out with his cast, he wasn’t able to play with Tucker. (Not because he didn’t want to. He was raring to go, cast or not, but his mean mom was making him lay down. I’ve never seen him give me so many dirty looks!)
Anyway, Tucker’s mom, Murph’s Aunt Karen, came bearing gifts like she always does. A huge cube full of toys and treats for Murph, as well as a big old bag of toys for the cats. And all I had to give Tucker was a measly box of gourmet dog treats shaped like footballs. (Which I had first thought were cute and would make a nice gift, but when I saw how much Karen had spoiled my trio I was so ashamed! I failed Tuck as an aunt!)
But I knew I could redeem myself. They’ll be coming back through on their way home, so I knew there was time to get Tucker a gift. And since Halloween was on the way…I could make it a seasonal gift.
There’s a few ways I could go about picking such a gift:
- Make something myself.
- Go shopping at a Petsmart or Petco or comparable.
- Order from a catalog.
As much as I’d like to do Number 1, I don’t have much time and I’m not all that crafty. (Well, I’m pretty good with crafts if they come with instructions. But I’m not all that good at thinking up projects on my own.)
Physically shopping in a pet store means having to leave the house and drive to shopping centers not on my normal weekly errand routes. That leaves only shopping on weekends when Wayne’s home and in tow. Not going to happen. He (a) hates shopping and (b) will be there to put the kibosh on my spending.
That only left Option Number 3. Shopping from the comfort of my own home while Wayne’s at work. And what better catalog to shop than one of my favorites, Doctors Foster and Smith?
So that’s what I did. But how I ended up with the toys I did is a story in itself and one I’ll save for tomorrow.
Courtney Mroch writes about animals great and small in Pets and the harmony and strife that encompasses married life in Marriage. For a full listing of her articles click here.
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