Enjoy the Journey: Summer

With the possibility of a move this summer, I begged Mario to ask the landlord if we could get a puppy to help the boys with the transition. He reluctantly agreed. We have enjoyed the past couple years being pet free so we can come and go as we please. But I felt it was time for the boys to have another pet. Zach kept reminding us that we were squashing his dream of becoming a vet because we wouldn't allow him to have a dog.

I researched different breeds and decided on a mutt! That's what Mario calls her anyway. She is referred to as a "designer dog" but I feel that sounds snobby. I decided that I wanted a mini golden doodle. I was tired of big, shedding dogs and wanted something small and cuddly. The boys had no idea that I was researching dogs. I already had enough input from Mario who was wanting a big dog like a lab, golden retriever or husky. I didn't want even more input from the boys. Ha ha.

Again, Mario reluctantly agreed to the golden doodle. He thinks poodles are ugly and hated the thought of having a poodle mix. But he also knew that I am the one that is home all day with the dog and I do the majority of the cleaning.

After deciding on the kind of dog, I researched breeders. Holy cow! These dogs typically sell for between $2000-$3000. There was no way on earth I was willing to pay that amount. For two full days, I researched breeders. I finally found one in South Dakota that sold them under $1000. Even though that still was expensive, it sounded like a bargain compared to the other breeders. I sent in my $100 deposit and went to Florida for Christmas.

Christmas day, we surprised the boys with news that we were getting a puppy when we got back to Nebraska. As they described it, "It was the best Christmas ever!" Neither complained that I had picked out the dog. They were just happy to get one.

The plan was for me and a friend to go pick up the puppy on Wednesday when the boys went back to school. But on Monday evening at about 8:30, I suggested that we load up the van, drive several hours, get a hotel, and then get up the next morning to pick up the puppy and then drive back to Omaha. Now, Mario and Nate are not spontaneous people at all. I didn't think either would go for that plan. But surprisingly they both said yes. I called the breeder and asked if we could come early the next morning. She said that the weather was going to be bad and she wouldn't recommend it. But Mario said that he was fine going and we'd just be careful. So in 15 minutes, we packed the van with water, food, blankets, and lots of winter gear. We loaded up a crate that a friend gave to us and we took off. We drove until 1:15 in the morning and then stopped for a hotel. There was lots of blowing snow the last half hour so I was glad to stop.

The next morning, we left about 7:30 and arrived at her house about 8:30 am. Lorna brought out 3 puppies for us to play with so we could choose. Nathan wanted the male but Mario wanted the female because she was a little less curly (and poodle looking) and she wouldn't spray when she went potty. So we picked the small female and when I asked what I owed her, she told me that with the military discount, $400. I hadn't even asked for a discount since she was already so much cheaper than the rest. So now I call her my discount puppy, just like in the movie- Marley and Me.

To pick a name was even more complicated. Zach and I were agreeable to almost every name that was seriously considered but Mario and Nate couldn't agree on a single name. Nate liked Minnie, Winnie, and Mikki. Mario kept asking him to keep thinking of names. As he looked out the car window at all the snow in South Dakota, he said "How about Winter?" Mario said, "I don't really like the winter though." So Nate said, "How about Spring or Summer." Mario's favorite season is spring because of the resurrection but we all agreed that Summer sounded like a better puppy name than Spring. I wanted a name that reminded me of Florida and felt that Summer was perfect. So that's how Summer got her name. But a few days later, Mario felt guilty for not liking one of Nate's original names so he asked him if he wanted to change her name to Winnie. Nate didn't want to since she seemed be learning her name already. Plus he really liked the name Summer.

Well, we are all in love with Summer, including Mario. He said, "If I would have known a puppy could be this good, I would have agreed to one a long time ago." Eric reminds us that she isn't a typical puppy. She sleeps thru the night. We've only heard her bark a couple times. She whines for a couple minutes when you put her in the crate but then she is totally fine even if you are in the room eating dinner. Summer already fetches and she is working hard on potty training. We couldn't be more pleased with our "discount puppy."