We are an animal household.  We always have been.  I’m a firm believer that children need to grow up with a dog.  Of course, I came to this conclusion at the most inopportune time in my life, having just moved to a new city with a 6 and 4 year old, didn’t know anyone, where anything was, etc and decided to get a dog.

Not just any dog, either.  A black lab.  Clearly, I wasn’t thinking straight because it never dawned on me that the cute little puppy, just 13 weeks old, would grown into a monster of a dog.  But, while making sales calls, I called on the local kennel and as I did before I left every other time, I would ask to go back and see the dogs animals that were boarded.

Except this time, there was an dog there that wasn’t waiting on an owner to come home from vacation or business trip as she was thrown out of a car window just weeks prior and had no home.

“Wouldn’t you love to take her home to your kids, Heather?” the owner asked.

No.  Not really.  We don’t need a dog.

That’s what I WANTED to say.  What actually came out of my mouth?

“Oh the poor thing!  Who could do something so cruel to an animal, especially one that is so cute?  Of course, I’ll adopt her.   I’m a firm believer that children should have a dog.  I’ve not found any, but I’m sure there is research that would support the affects of animals on childhood.  I had dogs growing up and I loved it.”

Yeah, that’s what came out of my mouth.  I couldn’t believe how cute “Gracie” was.  She was timid, shy, even, but I fell in love with her instantly and I knew that my children would, too.  I had already envisioned trips to the park with her and playing fetch with her.  Yes, I had it all worked out.

I mentioned something about getting a dog to the kids that night and as expected they begged for me to get a dog.  They PROMISED to take care of it with me and help me, walking, feeding, playing, etc.  They PROMISED.

The next afternoon, I went back to the kennel, only this time, I wasn’t trying to sell ad space, I was getting a dog.  I was bringing Gracie home.

The only problem with Gracie was (a) her name and (b) she stunk.  The latter was rectified with a bath when we got home but the former?

Oh dear Lord.  Gracie is a great name.  I have no problems with it, however, I was dating a man at the time who had a daughter named Grace.  That just wasn’t going to work.  So we renamed her.  After much deliberation between my co-workers, children, mother, and I, we narrowed it down to Pouncey and Rhoda.  My co-worker and I sat in my office and called an imaginary dog to determine what we liked better.  Both names were suggested by my mother, and personally, I hated both of them, but eventually, we settled on Rhoda.

Why Rhoda?  Because she was found on the road.  (Coincidentally, my mother had a dog named Highway.  Three guesses where they found her and the first two don’t count.)

Rhoda’s been in our family 5 years this April.  We love her.  We couldn’t imagine life without her.  Everyone loves Rhoda.  I never have any problems finding someone to dog sit my now 70 pound black lab. In fact the boy often jokes that he’s only using me for my kids and my dog.

Last spring we added another animal to our humble abode… Casey.  Somehow, she managed to find permanent residence here despite the fact that I told Sam that she would not have a cat.  She’s allergic to cats.  I hate cats.  But Casey is now a member of our home and she’s a great cat (most of the time).

But these animals?  Smell.  I mean, it’s not their fault, but I hate the smell of dog.  Wet dog is even worse, and we live in a home that has very few windows that open and it’s hard to air it out.  (I’m having a similar issue with my 12 year old.  I don’t like “boy” smell either.)

Air fresherers cover it up and we’re all about some Febreeze on the bed and the couches.  But the carpet?  You know, where they play and lay and chew toys?

A little more difficult.

So, when the opportunity to try out Carpet Fresh by the WD-40 company. (Is WD-40 not the best?  Do you know all the things you can do with a can of WD-40?  My grandfather used to rub it on his body swearing it helped with his arthritis, but i didn’t see that on the list of 2000+ uses... lol)

Anywho, Carpet Fresh comes in Country Potpourri, Morning Rain, Apple Cinnamon, Fresh Scent and Super Pet Neutralizer.  I chose the pet one because, well, I think I mentioned, I can’t stand the smell of pets.  My mother flew into town last night and even though I had candles lit I could still smell it.  So I sprayed it on the carpet and let it dry (while screaming at the kids for 15 minutes not to walk on it) and immediately, it was better.

And it was easy to use.  I have issues with the carpet deodorizers that you shake on your carpet and then vacuum up.  It’s messy.  It’s a hassle.  And the powder is everywhere.  Not with Carpet Fresh. the Carpet Fresh Quick-Dry Foam format allows you to simply spray your carpets and walk away without scrubbing or vacuuming.  It dries in minutes, leaves no residue, and is safe for use around your family when used as directed.  (Carpet Fresh is a great resource for drapes and car interiors as well.)

Easy peasy.

Carpet Fresh Carpet and Room Odor Eliminator permanently neutralizes carpet odors and helps keep entire rooms smelling fresh by delivering odor-fighting agents deep into carpet fibers and reaching places air fresheners can’t and leaving a long lasting fragrance.

Want to try it out?  (You should, by the way…) Simply go to the Carpet Fresh website and you’ll get more information on how exactly it works as well as a coupon for $1.50 off.  What more could you ask for?  (I mean, short of someone to come in and clean the carpets for you?)

Until next time…

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