Here We Grow Again

My brother once said (at about age 6-7), "But, Moooom, every little boy needs a puppy." I think Ben and I would have to agree with that. Before the excuses were that we were living in town or we didn't have a yard or I'm too pregnant/busy with a newborn to deal with a puppy. So, this year seemed like the perfect time to grow our family. Nicholas is 3.5 and is the right age to learn about pets.

This winter Ben's parents knew that they would be losing their wonderful dog, Boris. So, they thought the time was right for them to start looking into a puppy, too. Debbie did a lot of research on breeds and searching for the right breeder. She found a lady down in Utah that crosses English Mastiff with Great Pyrenees. The seem to look a lot like their old dog, Boris. They had 2 females left of the litter that was born on January 18th, 2011. So, she got the process started for us and we all began to get excited about the arrivals coming.

On March 17th the puppies were flown up from Utah. Debbie and Lou picked them up at the airport and we met them at a park in Airway Heights so we could meet the puppies before going on to a dinner with my family.

Here are the two beauties with Eli. The puppies had their 8 week check-up on the 14th. One weighed 19# 8oz and the other 20# 6 oz. I think Lizzie is the lighter one. Eli is weighing about 21.5 pounds, so they are all about the same size.
It turns out we eneded up with the puppy on the right and we named her Lizzie. Lou and Debbie kept the puppies together at the farm for their first night. This next picture is the two puppies crammed in the old dog house at the farm, shortly before we had to seperate them.

I submitted the photo to Country Magazine...we'll see if they like it as much as I do and put it in a publication.

Here is Lizzie loaded in the crate with the boys, ready to go home!

And Lizzie once we were home, resting in her bed.

Lizzie seems to like Eli. When Eli was out playing she came running up on the step and sat right next to him. I couldn't help but snap this picture.

Lizzie is still pretty scared of Nicholas. He moves too fast for her and is a little loud most of the time. I think that will all change as she continues to get more comfortable. Nicholas can't wait until she wants to run around the yard with him. Anyway, we are excited to have Lizzie here and think she will make a great pet.