We Got a Dog!

Exciting news- we got a dog! I think I’ve officially gone insane but we are now a party of 7- baby Hailey, 3 cats, the dog, John and me! I was blissfully content without a dog right now, but somehow the timing felt right and Lexie became a part of our family! 

Some backstory on me and dogs: allllll my life I wanted a dog. I would ask my parents non-stop and I even wrote it on the grocery list a few times. Even though I begged for one any chance I got, I didn’t get my first dog until I was in college! I still lived at home but I dropped out for a semester and was feeling incredibly lonely. So, I decided to browse around and found a really cute dog on Craigslist named Cody. My parents were extremely hesitant, but they fell in love with Cody and I finally had my dog. When I moved out, I had a tough break. My parents didn’t want me to take the dog with me, and my husband (boyfriend back then) didn’t want him to come with us. Cody shed a lot and barked a lot, plus was only wee wee pad trained. We were getting a small apartment which didn’t have room for that plus a litter box. I decided it was in Cody’s best interest to stay with my parents, and eventually we went from having just one cat to three cats. 

Let’s fast forward. We bought our house and I didn’t want a dog yet because we were at work all day long and I felt bad. Cats are ok alone all day and since we have 3, they have each other. I knew a dog would want attention that I couldn’t give it, so I didn’t get one. I still wished for one though, and last Christmas (2017) John almost got me a dog as my gift. I got really excited but in the end he didn’t get one. I still remember crying on Christmas Eve because it felt like the Cody fiasco all over again. I was always this-close to having a dog but couldn’t quite make it happen. 

In January of 2018 I got pregnant, so all dreams of having a dog were put on hold. I didn’t care much for anything new besides my baby, and even the blog fell to the wayside! I knew I’d get to the point where I couldn’t bend down to pick up poop, and the nausea was in full gear that first trimester and I didn’t want to tempt it. Plus, I was imagining how needy a baby would be and how big of an adjustment that would be, so I didn’t want to add to the stress.  

Now Hailey is a little bigger and actually a really good baby, sleeping through the night, happy.. all around wonderful beyond my wildest dreams. I didn’t think we needed a dog right about now since everything was so perfect, but my husband was really big on Hailey having a dog so that they could “grow up together”. John’s mom got a dog a few months before he was born and they literally grew up together. I’m also home all day erryday so it did seem like a good time to be training a puppy. Much to my surprise, I gave in and started to get excited about getting a dog. 

We went to North Shore Animal League and found little Lexie! She originally went by Tess, although I didn’t realize that until we took her collar off and saw it scribbled inside. She was the only dog that wasn’t going wild, or barking and licking people as they came by. Instead, she was quiet and sleeping at the back of her cage. Even when we took her out to play with her, she seemed shy and overwhelmed with all the hubbub. They told us that she’s a terrier mix, came from South Carolina and was only 2 months old. Poor little thing traveled a great distance and lived in a cage, so it’s no wonder she was so frightened! I fell in love with how sweet she was so we put in an adoption application and hoped for the best. The adoption process at NSAL is pretty long- you’re there for hours waiting to hear any news. We headed to a Starbucks and relaxed while we waited, and I began to think about a name. I thought about naming her Charlotte (our second choice for Hailey’s name!) but then I thought to look at names of cities in South Carolina for a cool name. I saw Lexington, which is also a popular street in Manhattan and it seemed like fate. It’s a name that shows her adventure from South Carolina to the suburbs of the Big Apple. We call her Lex or Lexie for short. 

It’s been just over a week since we got Lexie and I’m happy to say that she’s starting to find her place at home. She was really scared at first and wouldn’t move past her wee wee pad, then only up to the couch, and finally around the kitchen and dining room. She’s 50% wee wee pad trained and we plan to train her outside once it warms up and she gets her shots. She sort of knows her name, kinda responds to “no!” and is pretty good at playing fetch! But she’s also a professional toe biter, cat food thief, and scavenger hunter who finds the most random pieces of garbage on our floor that we didn’t know existed. I find myself wondering why I decided I wanted a dog in the first place sometimes, but seeing her run around with a ball in her mouth playing fetch or napping next to me as I blog at night makes it all worth it. 

I’m going to do a separate post about navigating life with a puppy along with a 4.5 month old baby (and 3 cats!), because it’s been pretty crazy! Just know that when people tell you it’s like having 2 babies, they aren’t kidding! Although it’s more like a baby and a rambunctious toddler you’re trying to potty train ;) Keep an eye out for that post and be sure to follow along on Instagram to see when it drops, plus get behind the scenes footage of Lexie via my Instagram stories! 

I’m super excited to make Lexie an official member of our family and create DIY’s for other dog mommas out there! Stay tuned for even more fun on the blog as the Cardona Circus evolves and grows.  For now, you can find the DIY pom pom collar here.