Fur Ball of Joy

For the last 6 months or so, we've been looking for a dog. For the 6 months before that, we were discussing a dog. We've had dog on the brain for a long time now. And since we've been picky, looking for just the right type of dog for us, we've been willing to wait for the perfect opportunity. You see, not only did the dog have to be right but the circumstances needed to be right too.

Our stipulations:

• female


• smallish to medium small


• preferably a breed that doesn't have health issues or annoyance issues


• young - preferred not to be a puppy


• free to cheap (we were NOT going to spend $500 to get a dog. I mean, all the supplies and vet costs will cost well over that. The dog itself should be inexpensive. That's what we thought anyway...)


• the right time in Abby's life (she needed to be old enough and we were looking for a good time, like Christmas, to get such an awesome surprise.)

So we looked all over, including shelters and rescue places. Just before Christmas last year, we saw a lot of potentials. After Christmas the options sharply declined and we stopped for a while. We started looking again and we found a couple dogs. But the circumstances never seemed to be right.

And then about a month ago, Lee's friend, Jack, discovered a litter of pups about to
hit the card board box. Apparently two "pure bred" breeds hooked up without their owners' consent and got busy. The result was a litter neither really wanted to deal with. Enter the potential for a free puppy! AND the puppy would be weened around the time Abby finishes Kindergarten. What a great time for a surprise! Finally, all the circumstances were right.

Yesterday, the surprise for Abby arrived:



This dog has turned out to be doubly beneficial for our family. You see this past weekend, Lee's brother passed away unexpectedly. It was very surprising and shocking and threw us into a tail spin. We're struggling to keep it from Abby for now, until she's done with school at least. But that means a lot of secret conversations and hurried tear wipes or sudden trips to the bathroom to compose ourselves. Needless to say, Lee is torn up inside. The arrival of this cutie pie has shifted the focus in our house to life and cuteness and watching Abby giggle with joy.

A poor shot, but you can see Abby's laughter well enough!



She's been a joy to have in the house.







Who wants to come over for a visit??