The one you've been waiting for

{source: toothpastefordinner.com}

So, this was supposed to be a post about the meal I made on Friday and the amazingly colorful and delicious fruit salad I made last night and how I met dogs this weekend that I sent in applications for and how I chose one of them and how I had to wait to bring it home. This was going to be yet another random post and you were going to read it and yawn and it was going to make you want to take a nap. But guess what. Sometimes things just don't turn out the way you planned.

Nope, sometimes they turn out better!

As with all great stories, there is some background, so bare with me.

On Friday, I received an email from an adoption organization that my application had been approved to begin the process of adopting Roxy. I called her foster mom and arranged to meet her at the vet office where she works (45 minutes away) on Saturday afternoon.

And then, as I was entering the house from the gym Friday afternoon, my phone rang and it was Kristie's foster mom, wondering when I wanted to come meet her (she made it clear that she needed to hear from my references first, but that we could set up a time, assuming they'd call her back). We decided to go to her house Sunday afternoon.

To say I couldn't sleep at all on Friday night is an understatement.

So we met Roxy on Saturday. I was amazed at how similar she and Rocco were (in looks and personality). We left there sure that I'd end up with Roxy, and I was sure, too, but Amanda reminded me that I should leave my options open and still arrange to meet Kristie.

Sunday afternoon we pulled up to the gated community where Kristie's foster mom lives. The gate phone thing wasn't working and I had already called her a couple times on our way there, so I didn't want to have to call her again. We tried it and tried it, using her exact instructions and it just wasn't working. I kept asking Jeremy and Amanda if it's a sign that Roxy is the dog for me. They ignored me. We were getting in that damn fence come hell or high water! We noticed a lady with two dogs walking toward the gate, so we were going to ask her if she could let us in. It ended up being Kristie's foster mom (Nadean). *Ta da* She punched in her code and let us in. (I don't get gated communities. I feel like if someone really wanted to get in that bad, they would just hop the curb, no? Stupid gate.)

 

Nadean had two dogs on leashes for me to meet. One was Kristie and one was a cute white dog with black spots named Erykah. It was clear from the beginning that Kristie was just a little too nonchalant to have a place in a home with Rocco. She was adorable, but just a little too low-energy. Erykah was so sweet and Nadean said she'd had her since January and no one had inquired about her. I found that to be odd. She then brought out two other dogs (apparently she had an endless supply of dogs for adoption: young, old, black, white, brown, big, small. Adopt a dog! DO IT!) One was Erykah's brother, Jake, who was all black and the other was the same size as Jake but female and also black.

After discussing it, Jeremy and Amanda helped me narrow it down to Erykah and the other female. We took them across the yard just to see their personalities and how they interacted with each other, and it was clear Erykah was the one. She is definitely a people lover and has the cutest ears on the face of the planet. I want to eat them.

I told Nadean my choice and right away she started getting paperwork ready. I wanted to ask her, "you mean I get to take her home TODAY?" I did!

Of course, I couldn't keep the name Erykah. It's a little too human for me. What did I rename her? Pippi. She does look like a Pippi, doesn't she?

We took her to PetSmart to get all the essentials, and on the way there we quickly learned that she has that puppy tummy that doesn't tolerate riding in cars well. I've already had my first mommy clean-up.

"Sorry, Mom, but I feel so much better now."

seconds later...

I let her sleep in my bed with me last night. This would have been fine, but she had to be RIGHT NEXT TO ME. I'd wake up with her licking my face and pawing at me. I'd try to move her over and she'd scurry right back. I'm thinking tonight we need to try a different technique.

This morning I tried to take a picture of her but whenever I got close, she'd put her ears down and it looked like she was scared. I decided a video would be a better representation.

It's funny how things work out. I now have a furry child and already I couldn't love her more :)


Revised to add: Pippi's adoption announcement (created by yours truly to send to family and friends)