Introducing Toby, our new puppy

I had a dog for six months when I was a kid. I don't know much about them at all. My requirements before endeavoring the new adventure? Zach must be at least three and potty-trained.

Zach is not three. Zach is not potty-trained. We just got a puppy. How did this happen anyway? Brookelle has been pining for a pet for years. Her preference was a kitten. . . umm that was a "no." She was going to even settle for a little frog if it came to that. She wants to be a vet when she grows up, or actually, a wild animal rescuer. She went to a camp this summer at the humane society and learned a lot about pet care. Her sweet persistence doubled thereafter.

As we considered features for our future (I was thinking the somewhat distant future) dog, Heath and I decided it need to be "non-shedding," sweet, and kid-friendly. Heath almost won a bid for a miniature labradoodle puppy at a fundraiser auction. Luckily that didn't happen. It was too much for us.

I did some searching for dog breeds along with Heath and Brookelle and thought the Bichon Frise looked like a nice, happy, dog. We saw a few in the paper and at the humane society, but they were always gone almost as soon as they were posted. Saved again. I was plenty happy to wait. I figured it was best that way.

Saturday morning, I overheard Heath on the phone asking about a puppy. Next minute, he was asking my permission to schedule an appointment to check it out. It was an hour away. RED FLAG: You don't drive with three kids for an hour to see a puppy and then not come home with it.

To be fair, I knew that if the dog wasn't the right fit for our family, Heath would not have brought it home.

BUT, we all fell in love instantaneously with the little teddy bear. He is a mix between a Bichon Frise and miniature poodle. We were awed by how cuddly, sweet, and calm he was. Now that two days of calm and sweetness have passed, we wonder if he's sick. :) Next step: vet check.

After exhaustive internet searches, brainstorming, list-making and complex negotiations (including arguments, trial runs, and compromises), a night of yelping, a first bath, lots of playing, relaxing and potty outings, nearly twenty four hours after we picked him up we finally agreed on the name Toby. A few other considerations were Basil, Biscuit, Twister, Cracker, Tito, and Turbo. Caden wasn't too keen on Toby but he graciously submitted after the rest of us, including Zach, started calling the puppy Toby. What a good sport!