Fur on my heart - Madison M. (top 100 books of all time checklist .txt) 📗

I always wanted a dog. When ever I got the chance, I would ask my parents for a dog. 

It was a sunny Christmas Eve and the leaves were turning brown. Birds were flying and there were not bees in sight. My Christmas list was almost full. I wondered if I would ever get a dog. I saw someone pulling up in the drive way, so I went inside to bring them a coat. (It was very cold.) I went to greet them. As they opened their car door, I saw it was my uncle and he had a big present in his hands. I took the gift from him so he could get out. I was very carful not to drop it just in case it was a dog. Inside, my parents were cooking roast beef and king cake. I placed the present on the floor. My parents got out of the kitchen to greel my uncle. "Hello Barry." My mom said. "Have a seat. Watch some tv. Your favorite channel is on." Said my dad. "Thanks but I think I will help you guys with them food." Of course I would be ok with that but my parents were very respectful and insisted for him to relax. He did not relax, instead he helped with cooking the roast beef. About one hour later, I hear a knock at the door. "I will get it!" I yelled. I opened the door and to my surprise was my neighbor, holding her pet cat in her left hand and present in the other. "Come in I bet you are very cold." I told her. She gave me my present and said, "I must go, my parents are waiting for me to start their party." We hugged and she left. I felt bad because I forgot to give her a present. "Emily!" My dad called. I walked over and he grinned. He had something behind his back and he gave it to me. It was a necklace with my name on it. I hugged him and he stroked my hair. My mom opened a door and my grandpa and grandma came in. "Now, the party can start!" My grandma lightly hit him to tell him to stop saying that. The food was later out on the table and we all ate. "Now let us get to the presents." I said. My dad gave me a stare. I knew I wasn't allowed to say that but, I was so tempred to open presents. My mom and I cleaned up the table and my dad washed the dishes. When that was done, we opened the presents and right when I was about to open Uncle Barry's present, I hear a dog bark and a scratch at the door. I opened it eagerly and a tiny dog jumped on me. His tail was wagging and he liked my face. I picked him up and pour him water into a cup. Once I named him he would be my dog. 

I named him Ash. My mom picked Ash up and said,"I will take him to the vet." Abut one hour later, she came back with a dog bowl, dog food, and a dog bed. I feed Ash and later he fell asleep. It was getting late, so I took a bath and went to sleep. In the morning, I woke my parents, uncle, and my grandpa and grandma up. Under the christmas tree were about nine presents. I opened them and I got a candy cane, a tee shirt, a dog bone, and one sewing kit. I know you might be thinking that's not a lot but I am very thankful I got presents. Last year I only got one present, a doll. After I opened the presents, I walked outside with Ash. It was snowing lightly. I looked at the Christmas decorations and I thought we could of bought more. After my dog did his business, I went inside. "Mom, what is for breakfast?" I asked. She answered my question with pancakes. I only get pancakes on special occasions. "Thank you." She stared at me like she was telling me to share it with dad, Barry, grandpa, and grandma. Syrup was scarce in my family. We were not broke but we did not waste a lot of money to save up for my college. When we were done eating, I went outside with an old cat toy to give as a present for Beath. I knocked on her door but no one answered so I left the toy at her door step. After we eat on Christmas, we drive to the woods for a picnic. We packed up and I begged my parents to Ash so we did. The animals we not running around as they usually do. Thank God I brought my book to read. While everyone yalked, I saw Ash run to chase a bird that didn't want to fly. "Ash!" Everyone yelled "come back!" I yelled. He wouldn't come back so I chased him. I ran a few miles and I saw Ash run into a lake. I jumped into the lake and said to myself, "This never happens on christmas." I was very mad and I could not reach Ash yet.

I swam until I grabbed Ash. He yelped in surprise as I picked him up. Once we got back, we immediatly went home. My dad ticked me in bed and my mom took my temperature. They said I had a fever. They gave me medicine.  Later on, Grandma went into my room and showed me pictures of London. She said that she had to move to London because her parents got a new job. She showed me her diary and how sad she felt to move without her friends. She kissed me goodnight and I went to sleep. I woke up hearing the TV turning channels and my dog barking. I got out of bed slowly and I got ready to do my chores. Once my mom saw me holding a broom, she picked me up and carried me back to bed. She sat next to me telling me a story about how much she wanted to be a nurse, how she went to college, and how she met my dad. She gave me some more medicine and she carried me to the couch to watch TV. I was very sad to have a fever today because I saw Beath playing outside. She looked very happy. Ash licked my face for me to cheer up. "Emily, are you feeling better?" Barry asked. "No but thanks for asking." I heard my dad picking cherries from the cherry tree. "I am going to make some baked potatos." Said Grandma. Dad came inside and put all the cherries in a basket and Grandma baked all of her peeled potatos. My mom made cherry pie.  Then, we heard a knock at the door. My mom answered and my Aunt Lilly came in. "Sorry I am late. I just had to see my family." "Lilly!" Barry yelled in excitement. They hugged. She could not go on the same plane ride as Barry. Lilly gave me a present and I opened it. It was my favorite picture frame. It had paw prints on it and a picture of Lilly and me in it. I hugged her and we walked into the kitchen. We saw my family still setting up for her aririval.

We celebrated with her for hours soon enough, it was time for me to go to bed. I woke up seeing my mom taking my temperature. Her hands were cold as ice but I was still warmed by my blanket. She said I didn't have a fever but, I should stay in bed for now. One hour later, I got up and dressed for church.  

 In Church, the choir was singing and some parents were trying to stop their kids from running around. Other than that, most people were praying. One little girl with blond hair and a pink dress ran up to me and pulled on my shirt. I looked down at her and smiled. She said "I can't find my mommy." I picked her up and said," let's go find her. " A few minutes later,  she found her mom. I walked back to my mom and dad. They looked very sad and grabbed my hand. Then, they walked outside with me and I asked why they were so sad. They answered, "We were never ready to tell you this but... you had a little brother." I was sort of ok with that because I never met him anyways. My parents still rabble on about him. " He was only five." I asked kind of quietly, "How did he die?" They hugged and kissed me. " He was swimming in the ocean and a big wave crashed over him... his head hit the ground hard before we could get to him. He was knocked out  and another wave pulled him deeper into the water. When we got to him, he was already dead. We called the hospital and that's when we knew, he was never going to take one more breath one Earth." We all started to cry and went went home. At home, we decided to go to sleep for a while. I had a dream that I saw my little brother in person. He was crawling and I was walking. My dad came home and yelled, " Where is my little three and five