Merelle

So Ted's wanted a dog his whole life. Actually, I think he'd take any kind of animal. He's often said he wants a donkey. A dog. Hmm... maybe not such a big deal. We have a house now.. and a yard. Let's get Ted (and Eliot) a dog. It seemed like a good idea.

We went to the rescue down the street from us twice. Neither time did we find a dog that clicked with our family (maybe I should have taken that as a sign). Ted searched through online listings of fostered dogs that needed adoption. That's when I saw a photo of sugar plum:

Oh, that face! She is half german shepard and half shar pei. BUT she's a puppy. I agreed to a DOG, NOT a puppy. I said no. A day later, after we didn't get a different dog we inquired about (whose best friend happened to be a cat), I changed my mind and told Ted I liked Sugar Plum and he could inquire as to how to go about adopting her. After a lengthy adoption form and interview (and a hefty adoption fee), she was ours... we just had to wait two weeks until the truck would bring her to a New Hampshire rest stop.

Alas, it was March 3rd. Adoption Day. We drove up and waited close to an hour for our pup to arrive. Then we saw the truck. We scurried over to see all the dogs getting delivered to their new owners and homes. It was truly heart warming. Then I saw her; OUR dog-- still in her crate, just waiting to be given to her new family. I called her name and I think she heard me. Then it was our turn and they turned over Sugar Plum to us. I had been in a funk that day-- having just lost my Papa-- and the dog literally turned my frown upside down. I felt so happy and thought we definitely made the right choice.


We decided to change her name to Merelle in honor of my late Papa (Merrill). After all, a dog is a part of the family. She's already responding to her new name. However, fast forward 3 days and I am finding being a dog owner quite stressful. The trouble she can get in in such a short amount of time-- oh, and did I mention she's not house trained? Cleaning up poop and pee isn't my idea of fun. It's like having a newborn. She requires much more attention than my 4 year old cat, that's for sure.

Ted, however, is in love. He actually told her he loved her the day we got her (even faster than he told me he loved me!). As I type this, she is whining and barking upstairs wanting attention. Milo is not a fan. Eliot likes the dog pretty much, but admits she is stressful. I asked if he wanted to keep the dog or give her back, and he told me he wanted to keep her. So stay tuned for more in the adventures of Merelle.