A big man with an even bigger heart

Love this story:

This NFL Player Just Adopted A "Not-So-Adoptable" Dog And People Love It https://www.buzzfeed.com/leticiamiranda/people-are-in-love-with-this-nfl-player-for-taking-home-a-no?utm_term=.ci64MPWBb7#.ci64MPWBb7

I may just have to become a Ravens fan! At the very least, a Ronnie Stanley fan. 

My favorite part of the story is the closing paragraph:

“I think it’s so special when the dog meets their person and gets to trot right out of here,” Deacon said. “That’s why the pictures were so blurry, because all she wanted to do was kiss his face, and it seemed that’s all he wanted too.”

In my spare time, I volunteer at an animal shelter. Here's a photo of two puppies I cared for not long ago (this was taken right before I cleaned their pen, which happens every morning for all dogs) - look at those beautiful, hopeful eyes.

These two were so sweet. They came in at night on a transport from a high-kill shelter and fell asleep, curled up together, while I cleaned. I had to gently wake them with some cuddling before putting them back into a sparkling clean pen. I hope, hope, hope they've found loving homes. 

The heroine of my new book, Kiss and Confess, works for an animal shelter and becomes a contestant on a reality TV show, hoping to find love and win money to help the shelter build a new wing. Guess you could say my work at the shelter greatly influenced that part of the story!

Do you have feel-good news stories or experiences to share?

Outside of a dog…

I found one of my favorite quotes on a wall hanging. It’s attributed to the comedian Groucho Marx: “Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to see.”

Love it! Combines three of my favorites – books, dogs and humor.

Don’t know what I would do without my two miniature schnauzers, who are noisy, opinionated, spoiled, partly-human, and infinitely lovable.

They help me when I’m writing (usually with their eyes closed), listen patiently when I need to talk, lick my hand if I’m upset, and press their warm, furry bodies against my husband and me as we sleep. 

I nearly always write a dog into my stories. The hero and/or heroine need more than one kind of love.

Also love cats, but because of family allergies, we can’t have one live with us. So instead I wrote a book (Say it Again, Sam) about a heroine who accidentally turns the man she loves into a cat.

Here are pics of my two. Murray (top) is a rescue and we’ve had Coco since she was six weeks old. How about you? Would love to see a photo and/or story about your fur babies!