It's been a super busy 3 months to say the least. Having a 3 year old, baby, and a puppy can be really exhausting, but so far, it's been really fun too!
When we lost Macy, we were absolutely devastated. That creature left a gaping hole in our hearts that we felt on a daily basis. I don't think we have felt as bad as we did that day since the day we lost our first baby. It was one of the hardest things we've experienced together. We always said another dog would come after Macy and another after that. We are just dog people. Neither of us can really imagine a life we want without one in the picture. But having to watch Macy go like that, and with the impending moves, we knew we needed a break from it for awhile.
I was honestly thinking that we would be at least a year until we talked about another dog. My husband had other plans. After much begging, discussing, and talking we decided to go for it on Christmas Day. Josh even had a brand new pup picked out....imagine that! We told the girls and began counting down the days until we brought our newest addition home.
We probably seem like crazy people to get a new puppy with our kids so young still. A puppy is an AWFUL lot like having another kid and we were still exhausted from adding Lena to our lives. I definitely had some serious anxiety about it since I knew it was MY daily routine that would be changing drastically. And it was certainly an adjustment....still is. But we just didn't feel like our family was complete without a four legged fur child in it. We thought it would be best to get her in February, and get her acclimated and trained before we travel this summer. We have always wanted a dog we could take with us anywhere. That's our goal now.
Why Goldendoodle? Well, as I've written before, we used to have a GIANT german shepherd. She shed an obscene amount of hair. Poodles don't shed and Della is 75% poodle. The other 25% is Golden Retriever. She definitely has that golden color and can play fetch like nobody's business all day long. It also didn't hurt that the three top breeds for family dogs are Labs, Goldens, and standard sized Poodles and Della is a mix of two of those! So far, excluding the usual annoying puppy stuff, she has been the best dog. Her and Ellie have some practicing to do in regards to how they play together, but she is SO good to my baby Lena and she is very smart. We've never really had a dog that actually listened when I said "No!" We have also never had a dog that loved to cuddle like this one does. We always half joked that Macy might have been autistic. I have no idea if dogs can be autistic, but if she had her same characteristics in a human body she definitely would've fallen on the spectrum somewhere. One of those characteristics was physical contact. She wasn't a fan. Ever. She enjoyed getting pets, but she was specific about where and how you did it. Even as a pup.
It's been a challenge trying to teach Della everything she needs to know to be a good dog, but it sure does feel right to have her here now. The girls love her and we are looking forward to years of watching them play and grow up together. We hear nothing but great things from people who have "doodles" and how they are so wonderful with children. I never would've thought I could convince my husband to take a chance on any dog with "doodle" in the breed name, but I am glad I did! He definitely loves having her and not having to worry about the hair (or the size/weight/breed restrictions and limitations)
Welcome to our little family, Della Doo....we love you!
She's a doll!!
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