Boy Meets Dog

Yesterday, Matt, Patrick, and I did something we haven't done in a long time: we went out for the evening and socialized with friends. We drove all the way across town to the part of Houston where we used to live to hang out with my good friend Cathy. She hadn't gotten a chance to meet Patrick yet, so this get-together was a big deal. We went out to eat at Freebird's, one of Matt's and my favorite restaurants. There isn't one near where we live now, so we have to drive all the way to Clear Lake when we want to eat there. It's just down the road from the hospital where Patrick spent the first month of his life, and Matt and I ate there regularly before and after visits to see Patrick. Eating there again last night brought back memories. It was interesting being there with Patrick for the first time. He was very well-behaved, even eating his solid food like a big boy, despite the many distractions. The cutest was when we remembered he needed his few sips of water after he ate. Matt went to get a cup for water, and as soon as he got to the table, Patrick reached out his hands for the cup. I have no idea how he knew the water was for him, as Matt wasn't even moving it in his direction. I guess Patrick's just smarter than I've been giving him credit for.

After eating, we headed to Target to wander around for a while. It was a completely random destination; we were just killing time before we got hungry enough for ice cream. Patrick started to get fussy while we were there, and I ended up carrying him around most of the time. I don't usually carry him that long at a time. I was surprised at how heavy he's gotten. He doesn't feel that heavy when I carry him from room to room in the house. Maybe all that food he ate while at Freebird's weighted him down.

We went for ice cream after leaving Target. By this time Patrick was comfortably asleep in his carseat, so we were free to eat our Shake's frozen custard in the car in peace. Shake's is another of our favorite places, introduced to us by Cathy, that we don't have in west Houston. It is seriously the best ice cream in the world.

Matt and I were having too much fun with Cathy when we finished the ice cream, so we headed back to her place to hang out for a while before going home. Patrick woke up enough to play and act cute for one of his new favorite people, Cathy. I thought ahead and had the camera with us. Here are a few of the best shots:
Yes, there's another picture with me. It was the end of a long night, and I didn't photograph well, but somehow it's still one of my better recent pictures.
Patrick loved sitting in Cathy's lap. She must have passed the test because he squirmed as much as he does for Mommy and Daddy, and he liked the taste of her fingers just as much.
This, however, was probably my favorite part of the night. I am completely in love with Cathy's dog Rusty. He is the sweetest, gentlest dog I know, and he apparently loves both Matt and me. I would steal that dog from Cathy if I didn't know how devastated she would be. Last night was more proof of how special Rusty is. While at first Rusty and Patrick didn't know what to think of each other, eventually curiosity won and they started checking each other out. We knew Patrick had passed the test when Rusty started licking his feet and hands. Patrick clearly loves Rusty too, as you can see by the look on his face in the picture. He was never the least bit scared of Rusty. I'm not sure if that just means Patrick is a born animal lover (not far-fetched, considering his parents) or if Rusty is simply that special a dog. Either way, Cathy had better keep a close eye on her dog, because I have even more incentive now to plan a dog-napping.