Kids in the Capital City

Kids in the Capital City: We're gonna need a bigger minivan

Wonder if my mom got that dress at Marshall's?

Photo by Shawn Horn Photography

The concept of having a second child was a hot topic in the Kinnison house, one that didn’t exactly come with easy conversations. Growing up an only child, I’ve known since I was wee that when the time came for kids, I wanted two. My husband was a different story.

Sure, my parents let me have friends over all the time. Vacations typically involved bringing a friend. It wasn’t a bad way to grow up. But flash forward 30 years, and it’s a bit of a different story. I have two half-sisters, and we're very close. But with a decade-plus between us, the relationship we had when I was a child was different. They humored me and shared Captain Crunch, but we didn’t exactly play dolls together.

When my father died six years ago, we mourned together. They lost their dad too, of course, but after the funeral, they went home to the West Coast, to their own lives, families, and mother. My own mom and I were left to navigate the situation alone, figuring out what it meant to be the last Floyds standing. That’s when I really learned that my future child needed a forever buddy.

Don’t get me wrong — I’m happy to be my mom's "person," but sometimes life gets busy, and she’d appreciate another kid to chat with or go to Marshall’s. (She loves Marshall’s).

So, as our son approached two, I lobbied my husband to make it happen. And … life found a way.

That’s right, Kinnison, party of four coming October 2019. (Just kidding, we’ll never be able to go to a restaurant again.)

Like any “#boymom,” I hoped desperately for a girl, and even did the early genetic testing to ease my mind, certain that I be buying bows, dresses, and feminist T-shirts until the cows came home.

And then, the phone rang. “It’s a ... boy,” the nurse exclaimed.

I’m not proud to admit it, but I cried. I had so perfectly envisioned the future with our little boy/girl duo (plus an extra shot of estrogen to this testosterone den — even the dog is a male), that it was a shock to me to process that it didn't work out that way.

I texted friends and was bombarded with both excitement and support. “Congratulations! It’s okay to be sad.” It was so refreshing to hear that so many in my network could relate. I have a few friends with buns in the oven at the moment, and several admitted that finding out the sex of their child is a disappointment they're eliminating completely. When that baby comes out, no matter the parts, you’re going to love it unconditionally. So why set yourself up for any amount of disappointment?

I promise I’m not a monster. Nor are my friends. I will love my new son wholeheartedly. And I know that giving my son a brother means he’s getting a pal for life. (Or maybe not. I’ll let them work that out.) We have the clothes, we have the cars (oh, the cars), but we won’t have the maxi pads. It’s going to be great. I’ll just need to schedule some me time … in about five years or so.

And don’t worry — he’s still getting a feminist T-shirt.

kids families

Shelter to Service

Dripping Springs nonprofit trains service dogs rescued from shelters

Photo courtesy of KVUE

The group estimates that it's gotten more than 1,000 dogs out of the shelter system.

For the past 35 years, a service dog training nonprofit in Dripping Springs has transformed unwanted dogs into essential partners for Texans living with significant challenges.

Sheri Soltes, founder and CEO of Service Dogs, Inc., says the dogs they train help serve people with hearing or mobility disabilities. The canines also comfort those enduring traumatic events.

In a time where most animal shelters in Central Texas are over capacity, Service Dogs, Inc. is handing out second chances to pups with potential to make a difference in people’s lives.

“They're sort of like the cousins to guide dogs,” Soltes said. “Except we're unique because we get our dogs from animal shelters instead of having a breeding program. So we help the dog and we help the person.”

She says the nonprofit can’t adopt every dog because the pups must meet specific qualifications, narrowing down from their age to their temperament.

Soltes says dogs must be at least a year and a half old in order to be X-rayed to assess their health, must be extremely people-oriented and should be comfortable being in public settings.

She says Service Dogs, Inc. may bring back one out of 500 dogs in a shelter.

“We've probably trained well over a 1,000, probably closer to 1,200 dogs by this time over 36 years. Any dog that we adopt from a shelter, if it doesn't complete the training, we don't take it back to the shelter, will find it a good pet home. So, they're going to win either way with us,” Soltes said.

Depending on the pooches’ temperament and personality, they’ll be trained in any and all of four programs available.

Soltes says the nonprofit trains the canines to be hearing dogs that can alert people who are deaf or hard of hearing. They could be trained for people with mobility disabilities, learning to open and close doors or steady someone’s balance.

She says they also train dogs to work in areas devastated by catastrophic storms, in courthouses in the victim's assistance departments or with first responders struggling with their mental health.

“They're not always the right tool for every kind of job, but they're very, very helpful,” she said.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

animals pets disability shelter