The World's Worst Pet Parent

That would be me.

A few weeks ago, my mom, aunt, and cousin came to visit me & scope out my new apartment. They brought this little monster with them:

 
To be honest, I was a little worried about her coming here because she's had trouble adjusting to new places, things, and people (not that I was new, and neither was Sam, but still), and especially has had trouble adjusting to life sans other dogs. When Charlie died, it seemed like it was almost a full blown medical emergency, not going to lie.

My trepidation mostly lied with the fact that I when I work, I'm gone for around 14 hours (don't believe any nurse that says they are only gone for 12, it's a lie). Sam is here much more than me for now, but then school starts and then next year he'll hopefully be a lawyer somewhere, and that doesn't exactly scream "I have an 8-5 job!".

 Long story short, Miss Bella only hung out with us for about a week. It wasn't because she was stressed out, or because she was lonely and wouldn't eat, or walk, or generally live life. In fact, she was really good.

It was because I cried every night when I came home from work and she was so excited to see me she barked and spun in circles.

And how I couldn't leave her for more than 2 hours without wanting to rush home.

And the fact that our apartment (while plenty nice and big for the two of us at this juncture of our life) is about the half the size of my parents living room/kitchen area.

So I went home for a visit for a few days and had planned on taking her with me so she could see Albie. When we got to Smithville, she jumped out of the car and immediately started sprinting around the yard. You know she could smell home. And then she saw this munchkin: 

                                      

 And it was all over from there. He missed her, she missed him, and the way they were jumping all over each other I knew there was no way she was coming back to St. Louis in the near future.

Seriously. It makes me so sad and honestly I wish they could be with me all of the time. I would take them both in a heartbeat. If we had a house. And a yard. It's just not fair to Bella to be alone for so long when in Smithville, someone is home almost 22 hours each day. And Albert is there 24/7.

There you have it. World's Worst Pet Parent. Also, I'm pretty sure we're going to get a cat, which makes me feel like I'm cheating on my dog.

life lately.

Thank goodness for my iPhone. It's the only reason I have any photos of what's going on in my life lately!

So, through the lens of my iPhone...

I got this awesome new hat from j.crew on super clearance. it's so warm and fuzzy and wonderful.

I love pretty clouds and sunsets.

had a night out with some great friends (after a few hours of dancing).

woke up to this cutie staring at me and trying to hold my hand.

had breakfast in the lou with Sam...he was either intensely happy about this or trying to send me a signal about all the pictures I take...probably the former :).

hung out with these babes on a day off from school. they're besties.

I mean how does your heart not melt?

spent a LOT of time in the hospital.

sleepy bellsy

a ridiculous license plate I saw on my way to school.

he *looks* so sweet. he isn't really sweet when he's biting your head while you're trying to sleep.

Okay, yes, I take a lot of pictures of my dogs. I don't care. You know you think they're cute.

Albert

There's a new puppy in the house.

That's right. A new puppy. "Already", as I've heard 30239813 times.

I don't really feel like I need to 'justify' our decision to get a new dog so shortly after Charlie passed away, but I guess I'll try to explain a little bit.

Charlie was an amazing dog, as I've said about 45 times in the last month. He was the first dog I ever loved, and I miss him so much that I still get tears in my eyes if I try to talk about him. The other day I sat on our couch with black pants on and stood up and there was red hair all over me (our house isn't that dirty, but mannn dog hair clings to EVERYTHING). It's enough to set me off for at least 30 minutes.

So, as you're probably thinking, "If you can't even handle a little dog hair, are you really ready for a new dog?" Honestly, I don't know. Are you ever ready? We talked about it as a family and realized that while nothing could EVER replace Charlie, we had to think of someone else.

Yep, Bella. Home girl has been in a spirally into a deep depression. You might think that dogs can't get depressed--not true. Since the day Charlie passed away, she has been sleeping in his bed during the day. She won't come downstairs in the morning to eat (truly shocking because she used to steal all of Charlie's food, and his treats, and his bones...). She doesn't care about going for walks, which is ALSO shocking because she used to bark at me whenever I put my shoes in the morning because she thought she was going for a walk. The only time she's been happy is when another dog is around, which is rare.

Enter Albert.

 Home boy is SO CUTE. He's only 9 weeks old, and he's going to be Bella's new BFF.

 This is originally the coloring of Cavalier I wanted before Bella, even though I think she's super cute.

 Oh hey, I'm super cute.

 I look like a sad dog, but I'm actually not at all.

 What's up guys?

I love him already. So does Bella.

Also, I feel it's necessary to clarify he is not named Albert after Albert Pujols. He's named after King George VI (the king from The King's Speech). Obvi his nickname is Bertie.

happiness is...

I've been in bed for about 48 hours now thanks to a rogue Limeade from Topsy's. Sam told me he heard from his mom that there have been some recent E. coli breakouts, so I'm fairly certain that's the culprit, but regardless, I've been stuck in my bed all weekend, which sounds so great when you're out running around but is MISERABLE when 5 blankets (including one that is electric), some flannel PJ pants and your warmest socks still aren't making you feel better.


So what am I doing to make myself feel better? Showing you the things that DO make me happy.

 Puppy snuggles.

 Gourmet cupcakes, yum.

This picture.

Starbucks Peppermint Mocha (we're so close, so so close).

Down comforters.

My uggs. Don't judge.




What makes you happy? And hope you all had a better weekend than a bout with food poisoning! Wish me luck with the chicken my mom made for dinner...eek.