Newest member of the family

So, yesterday I posted that we (me, Matt, and Elijah) were on our way to a socially distant adventure...here is the rest of the story...

Well, it may surprise you, especially if you have known us a while, to announce that we have added a puppy to our household.

For real.

The reactions I have gotten most are: "Are you sure?" "Do you think it will stick this time?" "Maybe you will keep this one." "Dogs want forever homes."

I am not offended. This is our third attempt to have a dog in the last eight years. We have learned from our mistakes (6 week old puppy when your husband is leaving for Iraq = bad idea); (big dog that your kid is afraid of = bad idea); (a dog that has more hair and sheds more than you do = bad idea); (dog with no fence = bad idea); (puppy with no training = bad idea).

So, before we got this dog we had a lot of conversations. We started having them last summer, so while this may seem sudden, it has been thought about, talked about, prayed about, and talked about some more. I did a lot of research (and read books) and Elijah and I have watched (and are still watching) a LOT of training videos. We really, really enjoy watching Zac George on YouTube. He seems to be very knowledgeable and has given us hope that we can do this right and make this dog a permanent part of

our family. He has a lot of great tips, and he makes it enjoyable to watch.

The actual "yes we will" to taking possession happened in less than a week (yes, that was sudden). Once we found the puppy they literally wanted us to take it the next day (Saturday), but we couldn't because we would be traveling to Ohio and back on Monday and Tuesday (yeah, we did not make that mistake!!).  While our plans changed, we started to Ohio on Monday and had to turn around and come back, we did not change our pick up date (Wednesday). As I type this we have had the puppy for about 31 1/2 hours.

So, the details....

Name: Junior

Age: 9 weeks today

Breed: Miniature Schnauzer

Gender: Male

Weight: about 3 pounds!

His name was Junior, Elijah liked it, so we kept it. We need to train him to recognize his name, we have mostly been bonding, learning more about him, and letting him get used to us. I will say that even with me and Matt sick, this has been the easiest transition that we have had with a dog before (seriously!). I think because of the research, adjusting our expectations, expecting it to be hard, all four of us are here, so it has been easier because we can all do things. (Not that Kayla is, or plans too, she had been planning to be gone, and had made it clear she didn't mind getting one as long as she didn't have to do

anything 😂) 

Yesterday Junior (and Elijah who doesn't like changes) were both anxious and nervous. Honestly, I was a little nervous too, it's a big step and a big change. Today, they have both settled down, Junior has eaten better (yesterday he would not eat out of a food bowl, today he is!), and we have seen the playful side of him that we knew would be there. We have introduced him to a lot of different sounds (Elijah said he was scared of the birds chirping outside today 😂, we are noisy when he sleeps, we are getting him used to our routine, while adjusting for his. He is super smart and even Elijah said he thinks he will enjoy him. Elijah has been outside more today than he has been for quite some time (with the exception of our hike last week). We are supposed to be socializing him as "much as possible" too, to help make him a social dog, and get lots of interactions, but obviously with the pandemic AND us being in quarantine, he is only getting to socialize with us.

Now, for the part you really care about...pictures! Enjoy, and if you think of us, pray for us as we adjust to this major change, and as we get better, pray that the kiddos do not get sick.

Um, not sure what to do with this 😂