What is in Store

Here is the gallery.

What’s in Store? Puppy Departures, Birthday Celebrations, and a Little Chaos!

The countdown has officially begun, and I am not sure I am emotionally prepared!

Tomorrow we have one family coming for their 9-week puppy visit, and on Sunday we have three more families arriving. The puppies, of course, will be delighted. More people to snuggle, more attention, and more opportunities to convince everyone that they are the most adorable puppy on the planet. They have this routine down to a science!

Then comes the part I always dread — the departures!

On Thursday the 5th, Benny, our handsome black tri boy, will be the first to fly the nest. On Saturday, Cooper, our beautiful sable boy, heads off to his forever home. Then on Sunday, Vuki, our dapper chocolate boy, and Murphy Brown, our perfect markings chocolate-and-white girl, will be leaving us.

I suspect I will need a large box of tissues, a few extra hugs, and possibly some chocolate. Okay, definitely chocolate!

In the meantime, I am busy getting all the puppy paperwork organized and their going-home bags ready. We picked up our order at Global today, so at least I can cross that off my never-ending list. I swear, every time I cross something off, three more things magically appear. I think the puppies are adding things when I am not looking!

Grooming has kept me incredibly busy today, so the photo gallery is a little lighter than usual, although I did manage to get some videos. I promise to try to do better. At 5 p.m., I am finally sitting down to eat my first meal of the day while updating the blog. Multitasking at its finest! If there are crumbs on the keyboard, we shall blame the puppies.

I am really going to miss this bunch.

Every litter is special, but these puppies have been, without question, the easiest litter we have ever had. They have been absolutely amazing!

Of course, there have been the occasional accidents, and we did have that brief episode of The Great Pee Pad Massacre. However, after one very loud "NO!" from me, they apparently held a puppy committee meeting and unanimously decided that destroying pads was no longer a worthwhile career choice. We haven't had a repeat performance!

Other than that, they have been little angels. Well, angels with sharp teeth, endless curiosity, and a talent for looking innocent when necessary!

People often ask me, "Do you miss them when they leave?"

YES! Absolutely YES!

How could I not?

You cannot have these little souls in your life for ten weeks and not become attached. They make you laugh when you are exhausted, snuggle into you when you need a little comfort, and deliver those unexpected puppy kisses that make your heart melt.

There is something incredibly healing about puppies. They don't care if your hair is a mess, if you haven't eaten all day, or if your to-do list is longer than your arm. They just want to love you. And perhaps chew on your shoelaces while doing it.

Ms. Rain has given us some truly remarkable puppies. They are so much like their momma — calm, even-tempered, affectionate, and always ready for a good snuggle. Rain is one of those dogs who makes you wonder what you did right in life to deserve her. Whatever it was, I am eternally grateful.

And speaking of our wonderful Rain — today is her 3rd birthday!

Happy Birthday to Rain and her siblings, Malla, Hope, Mocha, and Petey!

Once the puppies have gone to their forever homes, Rain will be getting a special shopping trip's worth of treats and a few new toys. She absolutely LOVES her treats, and I suspect she believes she should receive them simply for being beautiful. To be fair, she has a pretty convincing argument!

I know Rain will miss her puppies, just as I will. However, I am fairly certain she won't miss the work. No more cleaning up after them, supervising their antics, or being followed around by a small army of hungry mouths.

She may even enjoy being able to lie down without someone trying to climb over her head!

As much as I will miss these puppies, there is something wonderful about knowing the homes they are going to. I truly believe we have some amazing puppy families waiting to welcome them.

These little ones have given us ten weeks of laughter, love, snuggles, and memories. Now it is their turn to bring all that happiness into your homes.

So, to all our wonderful puppy families, thank you! Thank you for loving these little ones already, for being excited about their arrival, and for giving them the kind of homes every puppy deserves.

And to our beautiful Rain, thank you for being such an incredible momma and giving us this extraordinary bunch.

Now, if someone could figure out how to make the puppies leave without taking a little piece of my heart with them, I would greatly appreciate it!

Here are the videos. Be sure to check out the short videos and the longer ones. There are 2 links but that is how YouTube sets it up.