Find Me Sadie – Power of Puppy Love Part II
When I first wrote about the newest addition to our family, I hadn’t bargained for all that came with it, and at times still wrestle with dog ownership. To read, please click here http://lspostyn.wordpress.com/2012/10/23/finding-sadie-the-power-of-puppy-love/ Sadie was a real challenge to get used to and my level of frustration was near its boiling point, yet through all of it, this little white haired (not fur) dog just looked at me with loving eyes and a wagging tail. This past week marks a year since we got her, or as I like to say, the day I became a puppy parent.
Sadie has brought more to this family than just a few urine stains on the carpet, chewed baseboard moldings, or a decapitated stuffed toy she just mutilated. She has brought with her a little recipe of joy, energy and playfulness. As many of you know, moving from New York to North Carolina was not easy for me. In fact, there are still plenty of times I still mourn the loss of my former self and think I’ll never get that NY Swag back. In the most difficult of days since we moved, (might I remind you that I am a little dramatic) I lacked the motivation and fortitude to embrace my new life. Once all of our bags and boxes were removed, the majority of our house was in order and my son settled in school, I was lost, really lost. I had 6 or 7 hours in a day to kill. Scouring the internet and being addicted to Facebook was not enough. From the moment we brought Sadie into our lives, her daily needs forced me to get out of bed each day to feed and walk her around the block. I felt more alive after I did my mile walk than I did just 20 minutes before. Walking Sadie around the block several times a day, afforded me the opportunity to meet some neighbors. In my journey, I discovered that there are at least 3 other dogs named Sadie within a 3 block radius, but none as life saving as my little lady. Our walks are a bit treacherous for her as she looks like a drowned water rat after our trek. She likes to roll and lick wet grass as we go, not to mention her joy in eating the dried worms along the way. When we arrive home, she tracks in to the house grass and dirt, and when the vacuum comes out of hiding, it is Sadie who wrestles with it because she thinks of it as an intruder. In my book, the vacuum is the real intruder, as it’s blaring sound breaks our newly relaxed state of mind!
My daily walks with Sadie are calming to the core and lift my spirits on a regular basis. Sure, Sadie is pain at times, an added living, breathing member that I now must attend to but she is part of this family. She isn’t well trained, ignores me when I command her to do something, and tilts her head sideways when I speak to her -just like my “teenage” son does. He, by the way, is on the verge of developing mood swings, sullen moments and a voracious appetite. At least with Sadie, I am not on the receiving end of rolling eyes, back talk, and moods a mile high. I’ll take the occasional poop on the floor when Sadie needs attention over a teenager’s verbal assault on his parent.
Of course there are times when it is frustrating and expensive to have a dog. Sadie, like her puppy parent, requires a day of beauty at the salon. Her hair and nails are done almost as regularly and just as expensive. But, Sadie looks cuter than I do when it’s time to be picked up.
When I call out “Find Me Sadie” my little dog springs into action and comes running from wherever she is -one of the few tricks we taught her that actually stuck. From upstairs I hear the patter of paws, running to where she looks down into our den. I peek upstairs to find her little head poking out through the spindles of the railing, looking for me. When she sees me, she comes running into waiting loving arms. Sadie found me!
Sadie after a long walk. She loves to sleep on our shoes
I think she is smiling after her walk
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