The White Family Show

I love to watch my family life through the french doors.  Being out on the deck with the doors closed, I can only imagine what is being said.  It is best when the lights are off and I can only see the cats running about by the glow of the street light.  Then there is a block of light while Harlow lumbers by.  Sometimes she stops at the front door and peers out the side window.  It is best when Sophie is also looking out.  This giant sitting so gently next to this itty little kitty.  I imagine Sophie is, in her mind, preparing to hunt rabbits or chipmunks.  In Harlow's mind, probably only crickets chirping.
So last night, Jacob got off work at ten.  Danny and I were all settled in to watch the White Family from the deck.  Harlow perked up a bit when she heard Jacob's car door.  Then she actually got up and walked to the back door when she heard the gate.  But Jacob wasn't coming.  She walked into the kitchen.  Ashlyn talked to her a bit.  Her ears perked and she got that look on her face.  It is the look of confusion and recognition.  An odd combo, I realize, but we are talking about Harlow after all.  She heard Jacob.  He was out on the deck with us.  She searched for him in the blackness to no avail.  She gave up and walked off.  Her body language showed defeat.  Her boy was home, but she could not find him.  Then Jacob went into the house.  Harlow lurched to her feet, trotted to him and rammed her head into his belly.  Jacob, after years of Harlow, knows to direct Harlow's massive snout above the belt line.  She is going to give a thorough sniff over no matter what, so it is best to just keep her above the belt and let her sniff.  Her tail was agoing, her ears were up, she was almost smiling.  Jacob was mugging her face, scruffing her ears.  All was right in the world.
Harlow followed him around the kitchen.  He almost went to the basement so she looked down the stairs in the hopes that he would return.  He did return from an entirely different direction which confused the hell out of her.  Out of nowhere, Sophie came side galloping by.  There was a brief scuffle between Ashlyn and Jacob.  That ended quickly with no declared winner.
Emmitt, from down the hall, sprinted up the stairs.  Elsa was in hot pursuit until she reached the stairs, then she stopped and sat.  Later in the show, Emmitt came tearing down the stairs with absolutely no one in pursuit unless Jacob and Hayley's haunting theory is true.
Harlow went to the watering hole then was admonished by Ashlyn.  We couldn't hear her, but the hand signals were clear.  The straight arm to the Harlow snout is a diversionary tactic to avoid any drips, drops or full on smears of Harlow goob.  Then there was the repeated pointing to the floor.  That was a perfect "lay down" hand signal that Harlow always ignores.  Finally, in an act of desperation, Ashlyn got up from the kitchen counter and marched, yes, she marched, into the family room with Harlow right behind her.  I imagine that there was much jostling but Harlow finally (after a four to seven turn pirouette) laid down.
By that point, we were ready to come in, but the show was so good that I hated to have it end.  No worries though, it plays nearly every night and is always good for a laugh!