Where art thou.....

We are getting a new dog!! His name is Romeo and he was a perfect fit for our family. He was a good size and had a good disposition. The first thing I noticed about him was that when he was coming up to our house on a leash, he wasn't pulling. He was just staying with the person at the other end of the leash by choice. Coco fought walking on a leash and was always looking for a way out. Out of the house, the car, the backyard and off the leash. I like that this dog really enjoys the kids and I rather than always hunting for another place to be. He was a medium sized dog which is good because we have a small house but we don't want a tiny dog that the children might injure!! Just the right size.

One of the coolest things about this dog was the way Drew reacted to him. When we have met dogs in the past, Drew is his characteristically cautious self. Drew hasn't ever really warmed up to a dog very easily. However, he took to Romeo right away. His whole face lit right up and loved feeding him treats.

We are very excited to have a dog in our family again. We are happy to be working with the same program that we got Coco through. They have taken time with us and worked hard to find a dog that would fit in our family perfectly. They've done it again. I am really looking forward to taking Romeo for runs and out to the lake this spring and summer!

Oh My! Oh My!

What have we gotten ourselves into?

Yesterday Coco came for another visit, to play outside and to get to know us better. They asked if we would like to have her stay for a couple of hours just on our own. I thought that would be a good idea since we needed to see how it would be with just me, the dog, and the kids. I was a little nervous about it but if we were going to go through with the adoption, I needed to know that I could handle all of them at once. So, the lady left me with the children and the dog and told me she would be back around 6:30 to pick her up.

The visit went really well, she ran around the backyard with Lily and then came in the house and hung out while I made dinner. She didn't seem to mind my crazy kids and really warmed up to me as the evening went on. By the time the lady returned to get her, she was already our dog. However, Tom and I wanted at least one more night to get ready. We hadn't purchased a dog crate yet, and we just wanted just a bit more time. This lady was not on the same page. She indicated quite strongly that if we really wanted the dog that we could just keep her from now on. (I think she didn't really want to go back to the prison). So, we agreed to the adoption and Coco hasn't left our house until this morning.

This morning after we dropped Lily off at school, I decided to take Drew, Julianna and Coco for a short walk around the neighborhood. Ha. We were doing pretty well until Coco managed to slip out of her collar. She was gone after that! First she pooped in someone's yard, then she was off on the trail of a bunny or a bird...and I didn't see her after that. I called Tom and he raced home from work to help me with the search. After a short time we spotted her, running after any wildlife she saw...and I managed to get her to follow a command and sit down until I got to her. I held on for dear life after that!!

I don't think Coco and I will be taking a walk with the children again anytime soon. I think I'm going to practice having her on the leash in the backyard for awhile, and then take her out in the neighborhood again without children. It was a traumatic morning!!

Other than the first walk being a disaster, things have really been going well otherwise. She is calm and did great last night. As I mentioned, we didn't have a crate, so she just slept on a blanket on the floor by our bed. She really did well all night...until Lily came in at 5 AM and woke us all up...but that's another story entirely.

Dog Days Part 3

I'm sure you are all on the edge of your seat wondering what is going on at the Stivers' house regarding the dog. Well, a lot has changed since my last post. However, I'd like to explain myself before I tell you what's gone down. I am passionate, sometimes to a fault. I become consumed with exciting things happening in my life and I fall in love easily. I'm a romantic, and an idealist. I can make anything sound like it's the best idea I've ever had when thinking to myself about something. That's what happened with Macy. Tom and I agreed that we were going to get a dog...and then he left for a three day hunting trip. We talked a few times here and there about the dog search. However, everytime we talked he told me to slow down and wait until the weekend was over. I never heard a word of it. All I heard was that he agreed we should get a dog and I never heard his many words of caution about taking things slowly.

Since last Friday I have fallen in love with a puppy, filled out an application for that puppy, visited her twice, had a serious sit down with the husband about the puppy, called the shelter to let them know that we could not take Macy, and had to tell my children that we couldn't get that sweet dog we had named Macy. It was emotional...crazy, I know. But, I had become passionate about getting a dog for our family...and in turn, made a poor choice of dog.

The good news is, we're still getting a dog. But, this time with the help of my level-headed husband. During our long sit down over the weekend, we decided together that we should look into getting a dog from the Lucky Dog Program. It's a wonderful rescue program that trains the dogs before you have them move into your house. We love the idea of not adding another baby to our already young family. Knowing that the dog was trained and housebroken was a huge draw for us. Also, they interview our family and work with us to find a dog that will fit in well.

We met one of the dogs from the program last night. Coco, who is a 4 year old German Shorthair Pointer. She is calm, shy and very sweet. She also likes to take long walks and has plenty of energy for the kids. I think she's a good mix of energy and calm for our family. We are all excited about Coco and are planning on having her over to play again soon. I will keep you updated about how it goes from here on out.

Dog Days Part 2

If you read my last post, then you know that the kids and I were up early. We were excited to go out to the lake and check to see if the abandoned puppy had come to eat the food we had left for him. We were out the door before 9 AM. We got out there to inspect the dog bowl...not a piece was gone. :( We were so sad. I was just sure that the puppy would have returned to find the food. No luck. So, we had our hearts set on a puppy...we were going to get a puppy!

Last night while dreaming about rescuing the dog at the lake I searched the website of the local animal shelter to see if there was a dog there that would work for us. I chose a Chocolate Labrador mix puppy who they had named Sable. So, when I called Tom this morning to tell him that the puppy at the lake had not returned, I informed him that we would be making a stop at the animal shelter. He was not totally on board. He wanted me to be patient (which, I can't say I'm very good at). I told him that we just were so sure that we were getting a dog that I (and the children) would be so sad if we couldn't. He told me to wait until Monday and we ended the call. HOWEVER, my husband called me back about 30 minutes later and told me to check my email. That he had chosen a couple of dogs from the shelter website that he liked. Guess what?!? Sable was his number one choice!! Crazy, I know!

This afternoon the kids and I went to the shelter. We walked all through the shelter and looked at every single dog. Lily kept saying, "I don't want that dog. I don't like that dog."...Then we came upon a Chocolate Lab puppy. She pointed right at the puppy and said that that was the dog she liked. You guessed it. It was the dog Tom and I had picked out completely independently of each other. That has got to be a sign! All three of us picked the same puppy!! I was just sure that she was the dog for us after that.

At the shelter the have what they call "Adoption Rooms" for people to spend time with a dog that they might want to take home. So, we requested Sable to come in a room with us. I was a bit nervous. I was alone with all three children and who knows how this puppy was going to be. Well, I had no reason to worry. She was so sweet and friendly! She just sniffed everyone and licked the kids hands. Then she crawled on my lap with Julianna and just sat there wagging her tail. Could this be our dog? I think so!! Sadly, we didn't get to bring her home with us today. At the shelter the do background checks before they will send the dog home with you...so we have to wait until at least Monday.

Oh, and I forgot to tell you!! Lily and I have already re-named the puppy. Her name, from now on, is going to be Macy Rebecca Stivers. (Lily added the middle name.) We are all so excited to get Macy home and make her a member of our family.

Dog Days

We might be getting a dog. For those of you who know me well, you know that getting a dog at this house is mostly because I think it would be good for the kids. I am not really a dog person. There are very few dogs that I really enjoy spending any time with. I'm a stickler for doggie manners and doggie owner manners as well.

Tom and I have talked and talked about getting a dog for the kids. We always ended up coming up with a reason not to. The house is too small. The kids are too young. It's too much work on top of three small children. They poop...a lot. These are all very good reason to think very hard about going thru with getting a pet. However, there was a friendly puppy abandoned out by the lake. Tom saw him out there on Tuesday, and the Bill saw him out there twice after that. Tom said that he was friendly and just followed him around. That's the kind of dog we're looking for. Not too wild and crazy, but friendly so that he can play with the kids.

I didn't hear about the dog until yesterday. Tom called me out of the blue from work and said, "You know how we've talked about getting a dog for the kids?" Yes...."Do you want one? Because there's one at the lake we can bring home if we want to." So, that is how it all began. I got so excited that I loaded all the kids up in the van and we went directly to PetSmart to get some supplies. Not only did I get some puppy food to feed the dog, but I also purchased doggie treats, a leash and a collar.

We were all very excited by the time we got out there to meet the puppy. However, we couldn't find him anywhere. I searched for over an hour. I was so sad because I had expected him to be there waiting for me to rescue him. I decided to leave a bowl of food for him and I'm hoping that he will be there waiting for me this morning. It's not even 9 o'clock on a Saturday morning and the kids and I are dressed and ready to head out the door to find our dog. I don't know what we're going to do if we can't find him....we might have to make a stop at our local animal shelter.