Pug Puppy Problems

Now, you may be looking at this photo and find yourself asking, "Why is David Levithan leaving Jarrett Krosoczka's house while sporting a Smurfs backpack?" Honest question.
David, celebrated YA author, higher-up at Scholastic, is an old and dear friend of ours. We first met while book touring Philadelphia in 2003. We are lucky to steal any time we can with him, even luckier when his book tour sends him to our town, as it did this past Sunday. We had a great visit. Gina laid out an incredible spread for us to dine on, we talked books, shared tales of book festivals past... But inevitably, it was time for David to leave—he had a book signing to get to. He grabbed his backpack off of our couch. As he prepared to leave, Gina and I looked at the couch. Ugh! Frankie (our pug puppy) peed! Right there on the couch. Then, the world stopped. We looked at each other with the realization—David's backpack! We rushed to his backpack, which was now placed on the kitchen chair. Soaked. Absolutely soaked.

Luckily, David had a good sense of humor about it. Luckily, I had just been given a Smurfs backpack by a school I had visited. (Thank you, Webb!) So while we laundered David's belongings, he left our house with his book-tour gear in a brand-new backpack. It sorta felt like our son's first day of school.

Frankie wrote a heartfelt apology letter. And tomorrow is his "special surgery" that will stop the little guy from trying to be alpha to household objects...