Let Love Groves: February 2017

Happiness.

We both have been wanting to get a pet for some time. After not being allowed at SNC and then moving halfway across the country, it was never the right time.

In December, while visiting our families for Christmas, we had the opportunity to adopt Dixie from Emily's brother. So we cancelled our flights and drove her down. Within a few days of getting her to Cville, though, Dixie got really sick. We ended up having to take her to the Doggy ER, where they discovered she had a completely compacted lung and couldn't really breathe on her own. She passed away early in the morning on New Years Eve (good riddance, 2016!).

Dixie hanging out on her blanket.

Finally it was our time to get a dog, and she dies in the first few days of having her. We were beginning to think that universe really didn't want us to have a pet. We would always be destined to be pet-sitters for all of our friends instead.

Since Dixie's passing, we made a few trips to the SPCA to meet some pups that we fell in love with online. Every single time, something came up and it would work out. We found one that someone else also found first. We found one that was too much of a puppy and needed a lot of attention. We found one that was too aggressive. All three of them we loved online and in person, but they just weren't quite right for us.

We looked at another SPCA in a neighboring county and found a super sweet neglect case that we thought might be perfect. When we arrived to meet her, she was on a walk with a volunteer. It seemed as though fate was stepping in again and keeping us from adopting. Well, fate was stepping in. But this time it was in our favor.

Meeting Lavender for the first time! She immediately attached herself to Emily.

While we were waiting for the dog to get back from a walk, we decided to play with another dog who had been left behind. We fell in love with her from the second we entered her room. She was a best-guess lab/hound mix with long floppy ears and big puppy eyes. She attached herself to us right away and wanted nothing but endless loving. She was a stray that was picked up from Animal Control, then brought to the shelter when she went unclaimed. She had clearly lived her life very hungry, as we could count every rib and hip bone in her body.

Lavender Brûlée Groves became part of our lives on February 8, 2017.

First Family Photo: Mommy, Lavender, and Mama!

We've now had Lavy (as we call her) for almost a month, and we fall in love with her more and more every day. She is the sweetest (and most stubborn!) dog I've ever met, and will do anything for just a few pets. She spends more time hanging out with people than with other dogs when we visit the dog park. She comes when she's called and she knows how to sit, though she does so very reluctantly (we think she was abused with this command). She loves being outside, sleeping on her bed, and giving plenty of kisses. She walks well on a leash, and only pauses to get really excited about other passing pooches. Even though she clearly had owners at one point in her life, she probably didn't live where she was well loved. She's learning how to be loved as much as the love she gives.

We're learning a lot about each other through Lavender in our lives. It's been such an interesting experience so far, and there's nothing I love more than having Emily as a partner on this journey together.