Asa isn’t the only one celebrating a birthday this month. Mom is too. Now it is no secret that Dad likes to give Mom practical gifts. Last year he gave her rain gutters for the house. There was also the year he gave her snow tires. And who can forget the year he accidentally cracked the glass stovetop just before her birthday, and gave her a new one. These are just a few highlights of the thoughtful and much needed gifts Dad has given Mom over the years. However, this year he had a dilemma. All appliances were in good working order, and the house didn’t need any upgrades or repairs. What to do? That’s when Dad had a spark of inspiration!

One day while drying her hair, Mom’s hairdryer caught on fire! There was a loud crackle and pop, a weird smell of burnt metal, and Mom looked just in time to see sparks fly out of the back of it along with some smoke. Now if this had happened when Dad was home, she would have accused him of sabotage. However, Mom’s hairdryer went down in a blaze of glory when Dad was away earlier this month. She does admit though she was suspicious when he sounded a little too happy when he heard Mom’s description of the sad demise of her faithful hairdryer.

Flash forward to this past weekend, when Asa and Mom were happily opening presents at their party. They share a cake each year, but this is the first time they also shared a gift from Dad – a new hairdryer! For you see, Mom blamed Asa’s recent bath for the loss of her hairdryer. His fur is very thick, and she uses her hairdryer to help him dry, which can be a fur raising experience with flooffy fluff flying everywhere including into the hairdryer’s motor. Boy were they excited to see their gift…especially Asa.