The Dog Days Are{n't} Over

We had been dog-less for almost a year and a half when we decided we might be ready to take the leap into dog ownership again. It was a big decision. To say we still missed Bailey would be an understatement; almost two years later I still think about her several times a day and miss her intensely. Losing her left a little empty space in my heart that I think will always be there. But we are dog people and our house just wasn't the same without a golden to complete our family. I filled out an application with the group I volunteer for and we waited. We were picky about what we wanted: a male, middle-aged, proven to be good with kids. So it took awhile, but in late November we found him, or he found us, or however you want to phrase the acquisition of a rescue dog. He came from a family with a very young daughter who had to give him up for legitimate reasons, yet he came to us skinny, unvaccinated, and covered in fleas. His name is Wyatt.

He is different from Bailey in every way. Bailey was blonde, shy, an alpha dog, totally lazy and unathletic, and didn't like strangers, kids, or other dogs. Wyatt is red, loves everyone and everything, and is one of the fastest and most agile dogs I think I have ever seen.

Brian bonded with him way before I did, but I actually think Wyatt bonded with the kids before he bonded with Brian or me. I guess it's because he came from a home with little ones, or maybe it's just his personality, but he is completely comfortable with them. If you give him a bone, he'll actually choose to go lie down where the kids are playing and chew it, rather than try to get away from all the commotion of two almost-three-year-olds. It totally blows my mind.

This is not to say that he's perfect: He is excitable, he jumps up on you, he's not good on a leash and almost pulls me down when I try to walk him, and he's got the longest tongue ever and loves to lick you with it. Yuck. But, like I said, he loves our kids. And everyone else he meets. It is a very strange thing for us, to have the doorbell ring and a dog who runs to the door, not barking, just happy and excited to see who's waiting on the other side.

The kids love him, although they like to act like they don't. They'll tell him to get out of their room, etc., but the minute he's gone they ask where he is. Jensen loves to feed him and give him treats.

And lie on top of him.

And roll around in the grass with him.

To put it simply, he's just a really good boy. I trust him completely with the kids, and I can't even explain what a big deal that is. Plus, this is now my view on walks:

Our family is complete.

Catch-Up

Every time I try to get caught up, I realize how very far behind I am...and I also realize that I am probably never going to go back and do full posts about everything I've missed. So in an effort to get caught up and back to blogging about things that have happened in the (fairly) recent past, here's a rundown of the past couple months:

New Year's Eve ski trip with the Wrens and Samuels. Fun, beautiful, COLD!

Nine-year wedding anniversary. It was the day after we got home from Breckenridge, so we didn't do much...I spent the evening watching Brian have drinks with another girl:

Trains. We are obsessed.

Charlotte riding Thomas at the train show. (She's the first one in the second car.)

The return of Singleton Day. Having one child is fun, but not nearly as entertaining.

Birthday parties. Brian gives two thumbs-up to Saturday mornings at the bounce house place!

Lazy mornings with my little Cuddle Bug...

...whose favorite person in the world is still her Grandma.

Family pics. I finally got some printed onto canvas and hung in the living room.

Naps (or the continued lack thereof). I have started letting him read in bed. He usually ends up naked...

...but he's sure cute.

Girls' trip to Miami with my friends from high school. Laughed so much that my abs hurt, which can be seen as a reflection on both how much fun we had and also my lack of physical fitness.

Also I spent lots of time taking pictures like these to send to the kids.

And a final parting shot of Mr. Dude being Mr. Dude. 

So that's a very brief summary of our recent happenings. I was reading old blog posts (from way back when I was a good blogger), and was having so much fun remembering the silly little day-to-day stuff that the kids did and said that would have been forgotten forever if I hadn't blogged it. So that's what I'm going to try to get back to doing...capturing the memories as they happen, and before they've disappeared into the abyss of my doesn't-really-work-that-well-anymore mommy brain forever!