Our New “Toddler”

It’s been a long time since we’ve cared for an infant of any kind, and we’re getting a ginormous dose of it this month… raising our new puppy.

Honestly, I think our kids were easier than this!

Saturday we drove and picked up our brand new Golden Doodle named Pippin (yes, from Lord of the Rings… and Jaws, if you’re a serious film nerd). His mom’s a Golden Retriever and his dad is a Poodle. He’s 7 weeks old, clumsy, adorable… and “so fluffy I’m gonna die!”

He’s inside with us all the time and he’s a peeing machine! We have to watch him at every given moment. He will be playing one second, then he turns, looks at us for a nanosecond, and “This looks like a good spot for a puddle.” He’ll squat before we even have a chance to swoop him up!

We’ve been trying to get him used to going potty outside, which means literally taking him out every hour, praising him and then watching him like a hawk. Our only breaks are his naps, which can last over an hour.

Then night time is only two hour stretches right now in his crate, then take him outside to pee.

Everything we read says that this only is for a couple of weeks, then at 10 weeks old he can make it with only one potty break at night, and 12 weeks he might make it through the night. So right now we’re doing a lot of tag team. When Ashley gets home from high school she takes a shift.

Let’s just say we’re all looking forward to Alyssa getting home from college in 8 days!!!

All this work reminds me of taking care of our kids when they were toddlers. Not babies… that was easier than this! They could wear a diaper, and they slept longer! But when they were toddlers, crawling everywhere, touching everything, tasting everything.

Puppies are great training for babies! (and we’re all through having those)

Pippin is a lot of work… but a bundle of joy. I’d tell you more, but, I… Zzzzzzzzzzzz…