I have never had a dog in my life…. until now! The decision to get a dog was a big one for me I thought about it long & hard and brought it up to Dillon, worked overtime to save my money and added our names to lots of wait lists at different breeders. We had originally planned to wait on a dog until after we purchased a home, but with the turmoil of the housing market that finish line keeps getting pushed back and I can’t keep waiting for “the perfect timing” I’ve always dreamed of. So we’re starting with Lucy and we’ll see what happens next and I have to say this is
THE BEST DECISION we’ve made in a while!!!
After lots of waiting & searching for just the right pup, I finally found a reputable breeder close to home! It was a major blessing, seeing as I almost drove to New Jersey a few times out of impatience?! We opted for a mini golden doodle due to their hypoallergenic nature (we are both allergic to dog dander), sweet disposition & their perfect size for our space (20-40lbs full grown). A new litter had just become available and I combed through the pages of the website to see who might be the right fit… this is where things are different thanks to COVID, usually you get to meet the whole litter on site, but now you can reserve a couple and go visit once prior… I had it narrowed down to a boy- Reddick & a girl- Luvu the entire litter was named after Carolina Panthers players 🙂
I put my deposit down & called the breeder to set up a time to meet, we had to wait a whole week before we could go down to see the puppies, but it helped having such cute pictures to obsess over 🙂 We kept a running list of names and I scrolled the internet to try to figure out what I was doing & what we needed to get… It was actually more overwhelming than I thought it would be to try and buy just the right things & make sure we would be ready?! Was it too much not enough?!
Once we met Lucy it was love at first sight. She was so little and sweet and shy! We played with her outside and she was so soft and sweet to hold, the stress and uncertainties switched to pure excitement!
Dillon & Lucy!! The sweetest pair!
Timing is never perfect, but I’m learning to go with it… the next 2 weekends we had major out of town plans, knowing we couldn’t leave a new puppy alone or take her with us, we opted for a 2 week training package, so Lucy had a perfect place to be while we 100% got ready for her! It was tough to leave without her but I think training camp was awesome for her- they worked on simple commands, potty training, crate training, she got to socialize with other dogs & we didn’t have to cancel a wedding or scramble to figure something weird out… Every time I got a text update from her trainer I swear my heart doubled in size! I knew I was excited but those updates definitely confirmed it 🙂
On pick up day luckily Dillon & I were both able to go and we got to leave with our puppy!! It was surreal! A whole puppy just for us?! I am pleased to report she did so great in the car and it was a smooth transition showing her the new place! It was fun to surprise our friends & family with the news when we got back, I didn’t bother including many people beforehand, I didn’t want to jinx us!
Everyone warns you about the first night, but they should really warn you about the 2nd 😉 We played so hard together the first day that the poor little girl was dragging herself to her crate & collapsing along the way! 😉 haha I realize now that is not good but at the time I was like wow she’s so cute! She slept 8hrs in her crate in another room and did so great! We were a nervous wreck worrying but it was completely fine!
Taking care of a new puppy is challenging but I absolutely love every part of it because she is so sweet and loving and she’s a total baby who just needs our help! We are learning more about each other every day and it is so fun to watch her figure all of this out. I can’t wait until we’re all experts at dog life! I’ve never even had a pet live in the house before, so this is all new for sure… but we are LOVING IT. Dillon working from home is also a perk, this is a 2 person job!
