Looking to add a family member to this crazy life!

Well, the title pretty much sums it up! Let's back up a bit. Steve and I both had dogs growing up. Family dogs. When we got together, he already had Shelby, his first Rottweiler. She was 2. When we bought our house, it happened to be around the time someone I knew found Hudson. He was tied up behind a house and left with no food, shelter, water, etc. It was terrible. We adopted him, and for 7 years, had two large dogs who were our LIFE. We took them everywhere. We always took them to the canal to run and swim. We took them on vacation. I spent way too much money on ridiculous sweaters for an 85lb dog. It's just who we were.

Fast forward to the summer of 2014. We went on a family vacation to Florida. I was 10 weeks pregnant with Ava. We had my friends from work house-sit and watch the dogs for us. Everything was fine. We got home from vacation and a week later, we woke one morning and Hudson had passed. It was so sudden and I was so devastated. He was my heart dog. He was only 7.

Shelby was 11 at that point. She made it to the following year and then started to go downhill. She stopped eating. She stopped being able to walk. It was so sad. So we made the decision to euthanize her. So, within 1 year, we lost both of our dogs. It was hard.

We went 6 months without any pets. My house was CLEAN! But my heart was empty. Even with two little kids (at that point, an infant and 2 year old), the house was somehow too quiet.

So, October 2015, we welcomed Legacy's Mister Mister to our home. His dad, Midas competed in Westminster! (and will compete again this year as a veteran). We wanted to make sure he was well established in our home before adding another dog.

I believe this was taken last summer (2018) so he was just about 3

About 6-8 months ago, I felt like we were ready. We also dog-sat for a friend while they were away on vacation for 8 days. We had watched her for a few days back in April, but this was going to be a full-on week. The dogs got along PERFECTLY! Willow is a teeny, tiny Weiner/terrier mix (9lbs) and the dogs got along just fine. I was a bit worried MR wouldn't know his own strength, but alas, he proved me wrong. He was SO happy to have a friend! I swear he was sad when we brought Willow home.

Having two dogs is a lot of work, I realize. But I also am used to having a dog who could cuddle with me. Hudson was SUCH a lover and a baby - always had to be touching one of us. MR. is not a super cuddly dog, and even if he was, he's 105lbs and is just way too big (for me). Now that he'll be 4 this year, he really has matured a lot and I feel like we're at a good place to welcome a new furry family member. We don't have any trips planned for this year, and that's pretty much the only time we worry about having multiple animals.

What's been hard, is that we're looking to rescue. It's apparently MUCH harder to rescue than it is to qualify for a show-worthy dog ($$$$). I was denied a rescue dog because we allow MR to be off leash when on our property. WHAT? What does that have to do with a new dog? We had to keep Hudson on leash at all times...and he was 85lbs. The dog I was asking about is 15lbs. Anyway. I was not happy with this rescue - who judged me before asking questions. If you're wondering who they are, they are "Pixie Mamas Rescue" out of Buffalo. They are idiots.

So, I filled out applications for maybe 3-5 other dogs. All had meet and greets that went well. So last night, I found her:

Her name is Java (they think she's between 2-3) and her foster mom says 

she's a "sweet soul", very gentle and gets along with dogs and kids. 

We will have a meet and greet with her on Wednesday! I can't wait! Fingers crossed she fits into our family. Wish us luck! She's a mountain cur mix, which would work out well for our family. Here's the definition from Wikipedia: "The Mountain Cur is a type of working dog that is bred specifically for treeing and trailing small game, like squirrel and raccoons. They are also used for hunting and baying big game like bear and wild boar as well as being an all-purpose farm dog."

So, if in fast she's truly a mountain cur mix, it appears that she'd fit into our lifestyle quite well!