its been a week...

...since this huge creature has entered my life. I love him. And he doesn't feel huge any more.
The boys love him, daddy loves him, but he is mine!

I found out he catches a ball, a Frisbee, plays tug of war and can poop more than just a handful at a time (important when you are in a pooper scooper world)!

He cries when I leave him behind with the hubby, and during the day will howl when I go to the post office. But when I walk in, he makes me feel as if I'm the only person in the world.

The boys love him, pull on him, lay on him, wrestle. He takes it. My groom thought it would be his dog, and is a bit surprised that the dog has bonded to me. But hey, he lived with a 79 year old woman, I feed him and I give him most of his shots and most of his walks, so he's not stupid.

The Big Boy has been getting up an hour early every day to walk him with me. I love this time with the Big Boy. We get to talk about the flowers, what we see down by the river (the Hudson) and the other dogs and dog owner's we meet. This week we have been tracking a family of geese on the river. One mommy and seven babies. I'm guessing they are a month old. Old enough to be fuzzy and swim, but not really having feathers.

I love waking up in the middle of the night and hearing the dog breathing. The hubby has only stepped on him once in the middle of the night: what can I say he, the hubby, pees more than me and the dog is mostly black.

This huge dog will roll on his back if you scratch his belly, to which, my Big Boy gives a huge smile. The Little Man will never have a dirty face again; he is constantly letting the dog lick it. He is also not the easiest with the dog, but this will teach him where the limits are, as the dog walks away from him.

I'm a pro at injections. And today the Big Boy wanted to try and give him the shot. I was amazed by the compassion of my Big Boy, amazed that the dog allowed it to occur.

He fetches, sits, lays, and stays on command. I've put a line in the kitchen floor with tape and he knows he's not supposed to pass it. He's only jumped up on our bed once, and we immediately told him down. He follows me from room to room, but now lets us step over him rather than sitting up every time some one comes near.

The trust he has put in us is amazing. Blinding. The love he has opened up in me is refreshing. Life with toddlers is not easy, he is giving me a second perspective.

He is know in the neighborhood. Sometimes people will ask, "is that Bruno?" and I say yes, but then have to inform them of our neighbor's passing. From what I've learned about her, it sounds like she was on a seriously bad slope of dementia and the heart attack may have allowed her freedom from a scary path. I know Bruno loved her. I know she was still out and about, even if not totally "with it". I know that people are shocked to hear of her passing. I know that people think we are lucky to gain such a great dog, and tell me that he is lucky to find a home that could handle his "needs".

I needed to rediscover love. I think he is opening the door.

A week later, I'm happier than I was a week ago. And this all started by the bad habit of leaving my front door ajar during the day. And a bleeding heart that couldn't ignore a stray that walked in uninvited. What I ask for is one thing, what happens in life is another amazing event.

photo update

Dog Update

So this dog walks into our apartment and asks for a home.

I work from home, and I leave our door unlocked during the day. My neighbors are friendly. the door man down stairs keeps the "bad guys" out. However that fateful day the neighbors and the doorman did not stop the dog from walking into our apartment.

The dog has diabetes. The dog's owner passed away and the dog was unregulated on his insulin for a week. So the dog is currently with the vet. However, he has stabilized and is now gaining weight back, he's back up to over 100lbs. The dog weighs more than both the Little Man and the Big Boy combined! And the dog is pure muscle, a muscular herding bread, a Rottweiler. He is not fat. His name is Bruno.

The boys went to the vet to meet with the dog yesterday. They LOVE him. We took him for a walk. The Little Man laid on the floor in front of the dog, as the dog laid on the floor, and stroked its eyebrows. The dog licked his whole face. He LOVED it. The Big Boy wants to hold the leash. the dog is just loving.

The vet wants us to think about it over night because, "it is a 'special needs' adoption". De ja vu.
At least this one is potty trained and can walk on its own. But he's still in a bit of shock and will need to time to adjust to our household - he'd been living with a single older lady with slight dementia.

Big Boy couldn't quite talking about the dog all night. Little Man walked into my bedroom this morning, crawled in to cuddle and then asked if we could bring Bruno to our home.

Updates later, on when he can join us. I need to learn to say no... next time.