Suka

As everyone knows, we lost our old furry friend Leeloo this past spring, and since then nothing has felt quite right without a canine companion in the family. We finally resolved to start looking for a puppy after the holidays, and I started casually looking through puppy ads on Tuesday night, not really thinking I'd find anything but wanting to see what was out there.

So, naturally, I found a puppy right away.

Meet Suka, our sweet 12-week-old Saarloos wolfhound. We got her from a rescue group who had gotten her three weeks prior from a family that had her in a service dog program but couldn't keep her due to a personal tragedy. Her father was a pure-bred, champion-bloodline-with-papers-AKC-registered German shepherd, and her mama was a UKC-registered Saarloos wolfhound (1/2-German shepherd, 1/2-European wolf). She's super smart, super sweet, and those eyes are what sealed the deal for us.

We don't even mind the fact that she's pooped inside three times so far (but no accidents in the last 24 hours so yay!). She's getting the hang of it, this filling our canine void... we all are!

Christmas 2017

It is within the darkness and the silence

That the magic of Christmas starts;

Somewhere between the glimmer of lights

And the first breathless moment

When children come

Stumbling like newborn angels

Into morning light.
-John Matthews, 'Between Darkness and Light'

Happy holidays to all, and to all a good rest. Merry Christmas. 

Happy Holidays

May the following few days find you and yours well fed, well loved, and well celebrated. Happy holidays.

A Week of Elving, Day 5

Oh my goodness, it's getting hard to share what we busy elves are making over here without spoiling the surprises! However, since my kiddos don't visit this space, I can share what they're making for each other!

I just adore the things they come up with when they get their one-on-one with Mama to brainstorm for their sib. It's one of my favorite things about the holidays. They've painted each other pictures, they've made beaded necklaces and paper mache dinosaurs, and they each did a custom hoodie for the other last year.

This year, they've been very thoughtful about what they're making for each other; Audrey observed that Henry doesn't have a cap that fits him anymore (more or less), so she's been designing a new baseball cap for him:

Hen has observed that Sissy's taped-up art needs a better means of being displayed in her room, so he's designing some cork tiles for her walls:

They are both bursting with their secrets, and can't wait until it's gift-giving time. Quite frankly, it's contagious. I can't wait, either!

Merry and Bright.

Happy Solstice, all. May your winter be merry and bright.