Dear Elizabeth,

I hope you are having a great time in Las Vegas.

Have you met the goal your sister set for you? You know, the one about swimming in the military base pool everyday? Please don't forget to bring me the military souvenir I requested. Remember, his rank doesn't matter as long as he is taller than me and is sporting a regulation buzz cut.

Everything is fine here. I am having a great time babysitting your neurotic, bat-eared rat-dog...I mean, your precious angel Chloe.

I had a great time taking care of her while you were in Poland last summer. I sure learned a lot about myself that month, and it was fun watching Chloe make new friends . It was a great lesson in responsibility, and wonderful material for summer blog posts.

I really enjoy Chloe-sitting, but to be honest with you, I was a little surprised that you were willing to trust me with your hairy little treasure after that unfortunate incident last November. That was the most exciting Thanksgiving since the year my mother discovered cooking sherry.

And now that Chloe is back in AA meetings and will soon have her "barking under the influence" charge removed from her permanent record, I think you will finally start to see the humor in the situation. Really.
Plus, I think that whole experience (along with the intervention we had for her at Christmas) has brought Chloe and I even closer together. We are even coordinating our wardrobe choices. See how my t-shirt matches her bows? We're practically sisters!

Chloe misses you, but is making the best of the situation. She loves having the bedroom all to herself. In fact, she is enjoying your bed so much that she is considering moving all of your personal items into the guest room.

Of course, Chloe doesn't spend all of her time in bed. She spends most afternoons sitting in your chair getting caught up on her reading. The Twilight series seems to be her favorite. She won't admit it, but I know she has a thing for Jacob. She always goes for the shaggy guys with a ton of emotional baggage. Oh well. I guess the heart wants what the heart wants, right?

I can tell that she misses you, though, because she is doing an awful lot of comfort-eating. I guess Egyptian cotton sheets and werewolf love stories can't fill the Elizabeth-shaped void in her life.

But don't worry about her too much. Chloe will be happy to see you when you get home, but will be just fine until then. She's decided to take up yoga and has gotten pretty darn good at it. She is a natural at "downward facing dog". So enjoy the rest of your trip. Have fun with your nieces and nephews as you savor the last few days of your summer vacation. Oh, and speaking of savoring, Chloe thinks your yoga mat is delicious, so you might want to pick up a new one on your way home. You could stop and pick one up in Utah...it would give my souvenir a chance to stretch his legs.

See you soon!

-Mindy