New Addition!

Meet Locks (short for Sherlock and a play on his beautimus locks of hair)!! I know you were all scared I was pregnant again weren't you :) Locks is our new adopted baby, and we are EXCITED to say the least. Mrs. Linda (Jeremiah's mom) has become something of a dog superhero--her heart bursting at the seams for any dog that is hurt or neglected. So much so that she has become a caretaker/temporary home/mother for around twenty dogs. This puppy is one of her recent rescues.

Our dog Buckley disappeared a little over a year ago. Jeremiah has been itching for a new pup ever since, but I was not so sure. I felt like I had all I could handle with the two girls, and there's something about dog hair in the house that makes my skin crawl. So I've been refusing. THEN, the fact that both of my girls' first words were "dog" and the fact that they could barely contain their excitement every time they saw a little guy, started to scratch at my heart. THEN, Mrs. Linda rescued Locks from being killed, and she started slowly but surely "selling" him to us. It's not a hard sell considering he is so cute that you can't help but laugh every time you look at him. He has this crazy long, beautiful hair and little freckled nose. Dr. Maddox says he looks like a Disney cartoon character--just hard to believe he's even real. He's only 1 and a half, but he lets the girls waller all over him without making a peep of protest, and all around I couldn't help but love him (even though, if I'm honest, I tried not to). We've had Springer Spaniels in the past (Locks is a Cocker), but I was always feeling guilty about our tiny backyard and all the energy I felt like they needed to run off. We're hoping that with this slightly smaller version, running with us will be exercise enough.

So, there was Jeremiah and the girls and Mrs. Linda and the cuteness of this puppy putting the pressure on, but none of that put me over the edge. None of that made me willing to re-devote my life to cleaning up dog hair. I don't know if any of you have experienced this, but about the time my babies start walking, and life gets somewhat manageable, something inside me starts ticking for another helpless creature to "mother." Last time, I ended up with Mapple Dapple. This time (I wised up :) ) I decided to scratch the itch with a puppy instead. I have felt like a little kid about bringing this dog home. I could hardly fall asleep for two nights in a row with all the anticipation. It's been less than 24 hours, but so far he's the most eager to please, follow me around the house and plop down at my feet, makes my girls and my husband bubble with joy dog I could have imagined. Locks, we LOVE you!