Christmas Eve Again

The Christmas Eve when I was eleven, I desperately wanted the Barbie motorhome...the long yellow one with the shower and eating nook and super cool 70s decals. I stayed awake in bed, wishing and hoping to see it waiting for me when I came downstairs on Christmas morning, unable to sleep for the excitement.

I'm there again, at 4 AM, all these years later, because tomorrow our new family member, Teddy, is coming home. We were planning on waiting until June, until after our New York vacation, to look for a puppy. But after just three days of a dogless house, none of us could stand it. All the happy was missing; we all were expecting that wonderful doggy greeting when we walked in the door, the sound of those scratchy toenails on the floor, the kisses. As Chloe says, "A Home is Where The Dog Is."

Forget practicality, the heart wins out.

This guy. This beautiful boy with his soft fur and his smart as a whip personality won us over. I searched all the shelter and rescue websites and narrowed our choices down to a few lovely dogs, but ultimately, he was the one. The three of us spent yesterday visiting the gorgeous new county shelter, an adoption fair at Petsmart, and finally, going to see Teddy at his foster home where he's been living with a wonderful trainer and her own dogs and other foster. After seeing his pictures and video online, I felt like I already knew him and thoroughly melted inside when he tumbled out of the house to greet us.

The good folks who do rescue work are very careful when screening for placement and we had paperwork to fill out and a there's still a home visit to pass tomorrow morning. Then we get to drive back to Roseville and pick him up and bring him home.

It will be an adjustment, and a challenge, as puppies always are. He's already very good at sits, walking on the leash, downs, and stays, and he's crate trained. That will be new to us and we had to make a shopping trip last night to pick out a big ol' crate, a new collar and leash, and to get a fresh shiny tag engraved with his name and our info.

Chloe felt a little emotional at the first meeting...I think just overwhelmed with the day and then finally meeting the in-the-flesh Teddy. It's a ton to take in, especially so soon after losing Kayla. But as the afternoon and evening wore on, and we got a little distance, she got more and more excited about him. Never having had a puppy, it's such a new experience for her. Puppies are exuberant and a little rough: sometimes they nip with those sharp puppy teeth. They aren't stuffed animals and don't always do exactly what you ask. But this is a wonderful boy and he's off to such a good start thanks to his foster mom. She told us she couldn't believe he hadn't been adopted yet and of course I told her, without hesitation, that was because he was waiting for us.

A big thank you to the wonderful Boxer, Jessie, for his brief stay with us, opening my heart to the possibility of a male dog. A big thank you to Kayla and Gracie, and KD before them, for teaching us how to love these canine family members so completely.

And a big, big welcome to Teddy. It truly is Christmas Eve all over again. (And, yes, Santa brought the motorhome:)