Longest 3 Weeks of My Life!!

Last post found us adopting a tiny little maltipoo into our family. As I go back and re-read it, the post seems very fact-driven. My utter thrill and unparalleled delight at this new addition did not really come through at all, and that greatly surprises me. So let me try again - of the past 504 hours (since we adopted her), probably 462 of those have been spent obsessing about nothing else. I am pretty sure I have read the *entire* internet for dog tips, tools, tricks, supplies, methods, do's and don't's, etc. I don't think I have studied this hard or religiously since, I don't know, ever?? Throughout the day, I have been emailing Anthony with 5 or 6 attachments, all "required reading." When we get home at night, I recap everything he should know by this point, and express my hopes and fears for how I think Gizmo will take to our attempts at training.

When I'm not reading articles, I'm scouring Amazon and PetSmart and Home Goods for the best dog supplies, and picking out placemats and dental chews and shampoos and special dog towels. Before buying anything, I'm compulsively reading every single user review to make sure someone else has tried this before me, and has had any amount of success. I find myself arguing the merits of a certain pooperscooper or a certain type of leash with my poor husband.

There is something petrifying to me about the thought of a tiny creature relying on me for life necessities. How do you know if she is getting enough to eat? And enough to drink? How do you make sure her collar and leash aren't hurting her? If you leave her at doggie daycare, how do you make sure she's not terrified of the other dogs and completely miserable? What if she has to potty in the middle of the night and is forced to go in her crate, where she's sleeping? How many times is too many times to take her to the vet for checkups, just to make sure we're not doing her any harm?? All these are examples of what is running through my head and what I'm spending my hours googling.

To be clear, there are definitely fears and concerns in my head, but they are so greatly outnumbered by my excitement and hope!! I know it's going to be fine, I know everyone else in the free world can do this, so I know I can. I am certain we will be tuned to her needs, and learn as we go how best to take care of her. I know there will be no shortage of love and attention thrown at her. But I am obsessed with every tiny little detail: brushing their teeth once a day, bathing them once a month, trimming their nails often enough that you should never hear them click on the floor, cleaning their ears regularly and checking for infections, etc. I cannot wait to start this new chapter of our lives with a little "kid" in our midst, someone else to round out our family and share things with. I can't believe we waited so long to finally get a dog, but I am certain she was meant to be ours so I feel the timing ended up being just right.

I cannot put into words how long these past 3 weeks have felt, and how much excitement has been building. It is almost exhausting having this much excitement bubbling up in me for an extended period of time. When I think about meeting her and hugging her for the first time, I almost tear up. I want my little girl so bad I feel like I might not make it the next 24 hours. We pick her up at 10 am tomorrow, and my plan for all of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday is to pretty much snuggle her and/or stare at her. I refuse to make any plans or accomplish any chores. I was warned she'll probably be exhausted from her 27 hour truck ride, and will sleep a lot when she first gets home. I will not be surprised if I just sit on the couch and watch her until she wakes up. The depths of my obsession seemingly know no bounds :)

Last week while my husband was in Korea, I stayed up late every night doing massive spring cleaning and a bunch of miscellaneous projects so I would have endless amounts of free time when she first arrives. I have ordered everything she will need for at least the first month, and it is all set up and ready to go. She has a little booster seat and harness for the drive home, we have our doggie daycare forms filled out, her first vet appointment is made, we have our dogwalker interviewed and lined up, the fence is going up... My one remaining task for tonight is to double-check that our house is puppy-proofed. That entails lying on the floor around the house and seeing the house from her perspective to make sure we didn't miss any dangerous items or household cleaners or food or trash within her reach. Yup, I'm just that crazy.

Ok, there? How'd I do? Have I sickened you with my enthusiasm yet? :) In short, I have spent the last three weeks obsessing about my little girl, and I am down to the last 24 hours!! I might just explode before then, but I'm doing my best. I think my husband is getting just as anxious as I am, if for no other reason than so I shut up about it already!! I do fear I am going to be one of those people who spoils my dog, and treats them like they're my actual baby. I wish that weren't the case, but apparently it is what it is. I do, however, vow to never be the girl that goes "Oh, your baby is smart and just learned how to read? Well, my dog just learned how to bark the National Anthem!" or "I know how you feel getting up every couple hours to feed your newborn, my little Gizzie was like that and I had to stay up rocking her for hours." And I really really really hope I'm not the girl who has my "baby" dressed in all different outfits for all different outings and holidays. But I apologize in advance for my crazy. :)