It's been a long time coming

After 6 years of marriage I finally got Eric to agree to the one thing he swore he would never agree to. No - we didn't hire David Aebischer as my personal masseuse; and, NO - he didn't let me drive to Chicago and attempt to propose marriage to John Cusack. However, I am still working on those.

Instead?WE GOT A PUPPY

I grew up with dogs. We had a Hugo and then Fritter (hey, don't blame me I didn't name him) and then Gator. When I moved out of my parent's house I got Bodie and Scout. All the childhood dogs are long deceased. Bodie now lives happily with my ex-husband and Scout lives with my Dad. I have been dogless for a long time and about 2 years ago I started The Great Dog Campaign.

Eric has always said that he is "just not a dog person." I get the concept. I am not a bird person. Or a snake person. Or a spider person. My argument was that I AM a dog person so shouldn't we at least talk about it? Last summer Eric finally said, "OK. We'll talk about it.

Someday.

Some day that isn't today.

Or tomorrow."

I figured that was as good as an invitation to pick the dog of my dreams. So, I began searching for just the right puppy. When Eric caught on (the nightly recitation of puppy ads off Craigslist might have been a little hint) and told me to stop it because we? Are not getting a puppy. AND - I might as well just drop it because if I don't then I will have the opportunity to go live with someone else's puppy. At their house.

So, after two years of near constant harrassment I finally gave up. The Great Puppy Campaign had come to a disappointing end.

And then...

Last weekend we are at the hockey rink because Eric is in a hockey tournament. My friend and co-worker Issa comes to the rink with her brand new puppy. I am unaffected. I am bitter from the long years of battle and no longer care if I ever get a puppy. I am resigned to my puppyless existence.

I pet the puppy a little. I hold the puppy a little. I am happy Issa got a puppy because I can hold and pet the puppy and not have to return to the fields of war to do it. Then Eric walks over and looks at the puppy and then looks at me and says:

"Do you think it is a cute puppy?"

(with caution)"Of course I do."

"Do you want a puppy like this one?"

(with extreme caution)"Ummm...if we were ever going to get a dog then this would be the kind of dog I would want."

"You should find out where they got it."

This is where I lost control of my bladder. And fainted.

SO...on Sunday we got our puppy. We adopted her from a no-kill shelter. She is one of a litter of 9 and she is the sister of Issa's puppy.



Her name is Mazie and she is black lab with just a little bit of border collie. She is also the cutest thing EVER!!! Except at 2:00 in the morning when I am sitting outside in 19 degree weather while it is snowing and she flat refuses to go to the bathroom. Then she's not so cute. At that point she is more like the devil incarnate and I can hear that little voice in her head that is saying something along the lines of:

"Alpha dog my ass, lady. You only THINK you are the alpha dog. Let those toes of yours get just a little more frostbitten and I'll SHOW you who the alpha dog is."

Anyway, I am now in the midst of potty training and crate training and don't bite me training and don't jump up on my leg training. I am sleep deprived. I am frustrated.

I am starting to think Eric was spot on with that whole "not a dog person thing."