Every Mother Is Scared the First Day

Today was a big day. With the housekeeper coming for the first time (yes, I know I'm not working and I should be the housekeeper - leave me alone), Moby and I needed to get out of the apartment for a while. And while it shouldn't take longer than an hour for an actual professional to clean our definitely-not-large apartment, the process of them doing the laundry offsite and bringing it back will probably add quite a bit more time. Tack onto that the unknown of exactly when they will show up, and you know what? Moby should just go to daycare.

Enter Biscuits and Bath. This daycare/dog walking service/grooming salon/vet/pet store/everything-a-dog-needs chain is a mega institution for the four-legged Manhattan set. With locations spanning from Tribeca to the Upper West Side, they are poised to collect mucho cash across the 212, 917 and 646. So as we continue to bleed money here, it only makes sense that we would add to this flow.

Having picked up a brochure last weekend, I decided to give them a call on Sunday. That's right, Sunday. Because see, they're open 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, 52 weeks/year, including all holidays. There's no rest for the weary dogs in the city that never sleeps. I spoke with a very polite woman who explained the set-up and encouraged me to create a profile online - how 21st century - this is good. The following day, unable to wait for their return call (which I knew was coming), I called them - and spoke with another lovely woman named Amy from their esteemed "Biscuits Customer Care" team. Amy asked me lots of detailed questions about Moby's social life and what makes him "tick"; and after she was satisfied, she invited Moby...er, me...to invest in a one-month doggy gym membership. This is the truth.

And then, late last night, it hit me like a tidal wave - overwhelming fear and anxiety about my baby's first day away from home in Manhattan. Sure, he's been going to daycare for 9 years. And yes, he has a dog walker. But this is a new place - new people - new dogs! How would he fit in? Would they understand his California cool? How would they receive his Barry White demeanor? Could they measure up to his impeccably high standards? My heart was racing as I considered what he might think when I left him behind.

As I walked him down Riverside and up 82nd to Columbus, I watched him pant happily, maneuver gently through crowds and pass other dogs with ease - his new Manhattan way. And just as we approached a mother and her young, uniformed daughter on the sidewalk, talking to a suited man, I heard the words that rang so true:

"Every mother is scared the first day."

And so I breathed a deep sigh of relief that I wasn't alone, picked up the pep in my step, and welcomed the new adventure. By the time I walked into Biscuits and Bath, I was a cool customer, praised for my "ease" and recognized as "old hat" at this.

And assuming they're not tracking interactions on their website, they'll never know how many times I clicked on "Fun Day Photos" to observe my baby.