Not So Potty Trained

I was told Mister was house trained. Well that just isn't the case. He has peeped more times in the house than probably he and Missy have both peeped outside. A week later, its time to own up to the fact he just isn't house broken and do something about it. At first I was hoping he was just getting settled, he was scared, or he was trying to get rid of the Missy smells. That was before he peeped on my coffee table, like on the TOP of it. Now all bets are off.

Missy had a GREAT Petsmart trainer who we've kept in touch with. I sent her a message last night asking for some potty training tips. She sent me great ones we started that same night. We have a long road ahead and I feel a bit blind sided by this whole thing, but its fully steam ahead on the potty training train.

Side note: Missy was house broken from day one so this is my first go round with potty training. It is the reason I wanted older dogs more than a year old so I never would have to worry about this. But I guess my time has come.

Mister, Clean

When I took Missy to the groomer on Monday, I was hoping to get Mister in there too. But the one shot required by Petsmart is a rabies shot, and the only one he's missing, you guessed it, is that one. So he'll go in with her in March instead. That seemed like a long way away and to me, Mister smelled like other dogs so I wanted to clean him up a bit. ((plus he's a boy dog and I had def seen him pee on himself)) So with a lot of help from Grams, into the kitchen sink he went.

He actually did a lot better than I thought he was going to. I pictured a wet, soapy dog on the loose in my apartment after jumping out of the sink. Luckily for us, as much as he prob didn't like it, he didn't show it. He let us wet him down, soap him up, and the rinse him off. I then held him like the little baby he is while I toweled dried him off. Grams took the blow dryer to him to finish him off. Now he smells as great as the Missaroo.

There was only one time when I  did scream. That's when he started to shake off the water while I had my hands on him in the sink. I should have seen that coming but I didn', so I screamed and then laughed. Duh dog mom! Of course he was going to do that at some point. It was like a scene out of Beethoven. Turns out Mister has a few Misadventures up his sleeve too! Welcome to the family little guy.



((ps the soap pictures is NOT what we used to clean him with, that's just where I keep my dish soap))

Waiting on Grams

My mom is set to land in Spokane in about three hours from now. Telling her about Mister was pretty darn hard. She thinks I needed another pet like I need a hole in my head. She's probably right. ((My mom oozes common sense)) But for me, Mister was more about a heart thing than a head thing. Anyway, she took the news better than I thought she would.

My mom use to give me a hard time about Missaroo too. She would say, just think how much more money I would have if I didn't have that darn dog. Once again she's right, but what's the point of having money if you just sit on it? I'm 25. I'm not saving up for retirement no matter how much money I have. That's what my 401K is for. But really, all it took was for her to see the Missaroo; that adorable face, that well behaved snuggler. Other than the barking, there really isn't anything not to like about the Missaroo. It wasn't long before the two had a special bond which involved a shared love of pretzels and Fritos. Mister will come to love grams for those same two reasons. I don't condone this of course, but grandmas will be grandmas.

So I'm excited grams is coming just in time to see her new grandpup and help this extremely stressed mom out. I love my mom more than anything, I just hope grams will love the puparoos too.

Happy Birthday Missaroo!

It was two years ago today that I found the love of my life, Missy Mae. She was a shy dog looking for someone to love her. I was a shy girl in need of someone to love. We were then and still are the perfect match. Today, on her birthday, I wanted to write about our special bond.

Missy has been so much more than my dog or even my best friend. She has been my emotional support, my therapist, counselor, and licker of my tears. And that, at the end of the day is what we have, an emotional bond. I have trouble sleeping when she isn't curled up next to me, I cried when I had to leave her for days, and my face lights up whenever any asks me about her. She is the center of my world, my happy place, my everything. The day she dies will truly be the worst day of my life. She is the biggest and best blessing the Lord has ever given to me. I thank him all the time for the Missaroo. I could not have made it through these last two years without her.

And by golly, what a couple of years its been! From Kennewick, to Spokane. From working overnight, to all hours of the night. From lonesome to in love, right back to lonesome again, Missy and I truly have been through the good, the bad, and the ugly. We've gone on plenty of adventures, and when there was nothing else to do we made our own. We did it all together, side by side, one step at a time.

So I just wanted to let the birthday dog know how much she is loved. And in case you were wondering what she got today. Well a nice groom, a pretty bow, and a dog bone. What more could this 3-year-old ask for?

Big Sis Miss

Missy is a GREAT big sister, and believe me I had my doubts. But if there's one thing I should have learned about the Missaroo by now it's she can pretty much handle anything. I can't believe how much her life has changed over the last two years. From abandoned dog, to foster pup, to the love of my life, and now a big sister! Throw in a couple of moves and a few schedule changes and I am just amazed at how well she does with everything thing. ((I might just jinx it but she hasn't thrown up at all this year!))

Missy does very well when it comes to playing with Mister. The two of them run around and play like best buds. I thought at first she might try to hurt him, or overpower him, but it's all loose limbs and handicapped played for the Miss. Mister weighs in at about 8 pounds to Missy's 28 pounds. ((Will get the official results at next month's vet check up)) She even lets Mister bite her a bit! They also use the same chew toys! They take turns, and while Missy chews Mister investigates the rest of the apartment. Then Mister chews while Missy watches from a distance or patrols the windows.

As far as Mister's adjustment goes, there is an adjustment. He's pooped more times inside my apartment than Miss has outside. I'm not really sure what that's all about, but I'm hoping it's a getting use to our life and schedule thing. I am considering taking him and Miss through obedience classes again. Missy can attend for free through Petsmart so I would only be paying for Mister's classes and she can just tag along. I think it would be great for all three of us, but the problem is going to be finding the time. I might have to wait a few months for my work and school schedules to sort themselves out. Other than that, Mister seems to be getting along well in his new forever home. And of course, big sis Miss is doing swell too!

Introducing Mister

Missy has a brother. We made the trek to the Tri-Cities to adopt Mister yesterday. He looks like her 8 pound mini-me. The resemblance is truly uncanny. And like everything else we do, it was truly an adventure. From the hours of barking on the way there to nearly running out of gas on the way home, Missy and I just don't like to do things the easy way.

I was unsure how this whole second dog thing was going to go down with her. If she threw a big fit there's no way we'd come home with him. Missaroo is, and always will be, the center of my world and if there's anything you should have learned from our little blog by now it's if Missy isn't happy, nobody in this home is happy.

Missy and Mister got along surprisingly well. She really didn't seem to mind him too much once she got a good sniff and she enjoyed having someone to run around with. I'm really happy she has a playmate. But there is an adjustment for both of us. Missy has to learn to share. She's doing pretty well with sharing her toys, but not as well about having to share her mommy. And truth be told, I worry about balancing the two dogs. How do I not favor the Missaroo? And at the same time how do I not favor Mister too much? It's been an emotional day to say the least, mostly because I've come to realize the bond I have with the Missaroo is so beyond a normal dog human bond. I have an emotional attachment to Missaroo that is hard to equal with anyone else, let alone another dog.

One thing you don't have to worry about though, this is still Missy's world we are all living in, and that includes this blog. It's still her's. The only difference is now she has a sidekick.

Pillows!?! Those Aren't Pillows!

Getting up very early in the morning is even more difficult when the Missaroo doesn't feel like getting up. If she has to go to the bathroom, well it's time to move it or face the consequences. But on the days when she just kinda looks at me like, "are you really moving mom?" when the alarm goes off make it impossible to get out of bed.....

"Why am I getting up at 7:15 am again?" I often ask myself, especially on nights when I didn't get home until midnight from work. But that's the life. What makes it even harder, is when Miss not only doesn't feel like getting up, but when she uses me for a pillow. She is a HUGE snuggler in general, but when she rests her little head on my back or bottom well then I really feel bad about moving. And let's face it, who really feels great about jumping out of bed in winter anyway? Like I need a guilt trip on top of it. My snuggly Missaroo makes me never want to leave the apartment, let alone bed. She can use me for a pillow anytime, it beats the heck out of getting hit in the head with chew toys!

Love you Shmooie!