Four Legged Friends

    After lots of persuasion from my husband, I finally broke down decided that we could get another dog. As most of you know, we had a black lab for a while when we first got married, and when Derek joined the Navy we had to move to IL for a year where we lived in a 2 bedroom apartment. We didn't want to take Jackson (our previous Lab) with us because we felt like he would have been miserable. He was still pretty young and needed a place where he could run, and get outside more than 3 months of the year.  So Jackson went to live with my sister in FL. He is very happy there with two boys to play with him and a yard to run in all year long; and we still get to visit him which is nice. Now, as much as I loved that dog, he drove me INSANE!!!! He was mixed with some sort of hunting dog and would take any chance he could to slip out the door (or window if it was open) and run wild around the neighborhood chasing squirrels, cats, birds..... you name, it, he chased it down. It was really nerve racking to worry about him getting out all the time. Also, he was only a year old when we got  him, so he chewed on my shoes sometimes, and if you know how much I love shoes, you know this did not go over well with me. Anyway, he was a great, loving dog, but now that we have two kids I don't want to deal with some of the things having a dog entails; so I made a list of "qualifications" our next dog would need to have:

1. The dog must not run away
2. Must be house broken
3. Be at least 3 years old (so they aren't so hyper)
4. Must be fixed
5. Friendly towards cats and children

That shouldn't be too hard right?? ;)  Well, it wasn't...

       Meet Stella, The newest member of our family:

     Yes, we are aware that she closely resembles Jackson (although she is a little smaller in build, but much fatter, lol) She is a 6 year old lab mix. Her owner adopted her and her brother (who went to live with another family) as puppies. She recently took a new job and had to move to a place where she couldn't take her dogs. We went to meet "Chanel" (that was her name until we changed it to Stella) and she came out in the front yard, not on a leash, and just hung out.... SHE DIDN'T RUN AWAY!!! So I was pretty much sold from the get-go. She also came right up to Sophia and just sat down next to her. She is the sweetest dog I've ever been around. It's taken her a little while to be comfortable in her new home (she spends a  lot of time hiding in her crate) but she's coming around. Her and Willie avoided each other for a few days, but they will now hang out in the same room. They aren't best friends or anything, but I have a feeling that day will come. She is the perfect addition to our little family.
    And while we're on the subject of pets, here is a picture of Willie. He's starting to look more like a lion than a house cat with all that fluff!