Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful Mom, two grandmas, mother-in-love, and sister-in-love.  I know I'm not a mom to a human baby, but I do have my fur baby who has made me a "mom."  Through Piper, I have gotten a little glimpse into what a mom is like. Waking up at 6 when she's awake and crying.  Feeling exhausted from a long work day, but staying up until 11 pm because she doesn't want to sleep.  Asking God over and over for patience when she doesn't listen to me.  Because of Piper, I have so much more gratitude for the women listed above.

Thank you Mom for being my best friend.  Thank you for covering me with prayer from the moment you learned I was coming.  The Lord knows how many situations He kept me from because of the prayers of my mom.  Thank you for your constant texts of encouragement and for always pointing me to Truth when my emotions are telling me something else.  "Lu."  Thank you Mimi and Oba for showing me love.  You are two of the most selfless women I know.  I am blessed to have both of you in my life at 26.

Gail, you are also one of the most selfless human beings ever!  I don't know how you worked full time, had dinner on the table every night, and raised three very rambunctious boys.  You are my model when I think about what it takes to be a good coach's wife.  Thank you for all the hard work you put into raising Brett and for loving him so.  And lastly, Happy Mother's Day to Laura, my sis-in-love.  I have loved getting to watch you go from a wife to a wife and mother. Watching you with Laney is something I always look forward to when I come visit.

I love y'all!

 

Piper: Weeks 12-14

Well Piper will be 15 weeks tomorrow.  It's hard to believe we've almost had her 2 months, although my tiredness does indicate we've had her that long.  She is growing like a weed.  At the vet a week ago, she weighed 16.8 pounds.  I'd say she's close to 19 now.  I can't hold her as long at night because she's getting heavier. 

She is still such a love bug.  My favorite times of the day are when she comes out of her crate and crawls in my lap.  She just loves being around people.  Her new game is to put the ball somewhere in your vacinity and then walk into the kitchen, hide under the table, and wait until you throw it.  She would stand there 5 minutes if that's what it took for you to recognize the ball.  And she's completely silent.  It's pretty funny.

Piper now knows sit, lay down, shake (about half the time), no bite, and off.  She also knows, "Go get the ball."  Whenever she gets too bitey, I'll tell her to get the ball.  She immediately stops what she's doing and searches for the ball.

My parents, Oba, and Sierra came the Friday before Easter.  It was Oba and Sierra's first time meeting Piper.  Sierra did NOT like Piper at first, but by the time they left the next morning, they were starting to get along.  Piper seems to sense that Oba takes a little more gentleness than a normal person.  Oba gave her a kiss on the snout, and Piper proceeded to give her kisses right back.  Piper seems to be fairly sensitive to people and surroundings.

Since Brett's been recruiting, Piper and I went to my parents' house for a couple of days.  It was her first long trip (3 hours).  On the way there, she whined for quite a bit.  On the way back through, she slept for 2 out of the 3 hours.  I think it being dark outside helped her sleep.  Plus, Sierra wore her out before we left.

Piper also traveled to the main office of my job and to the GWU football office.  She will definitely be visiting GWU in the future.  I can't wait until she's old enough for us to walk around campus.

That's a pretty rough update of the past three weeks, but I'll leave you with a bunch of pictures of the cuteness that is our baby girl Piper.

Bath #2

Three week difference.  Look at how much her legs have grown!

Getting Piper to not try to bite Sierra's face took effort.

Family picture.

Meeting Kenny Ray for the first time.

Smiley puppy

Vet appointment.  She loves the vet.

They both think they're going to get the ball.

Sierra teaching Piper how to beg. (Piper's tail is wagging)

Tired puppy

On the way back home.  She did such a great job!

Visiting Daddy's office.

She LOVES her daddy and his belly rubs.

Happy Birthday Sam!

Today is my wonderful brother-in-love's birthday.  You'd be hard-pressed to find another man as mindful and caring as Sam.  He loves his God, bride, and family.  Without a doubt, he would go the extra mile to help out a friend.  Not to mention, you will not find ANYONE funnier than Sam.  I find myself getting a great ab workout from being around him.

I am so, so blessed to call him my brother.  Wish I could be there to celebrate tonight with the family, but I'm sending my love from afar.  Happy birthday, Sam! Love you!

Piper: Weeks 10 and 11

Well our baby girl is 12 weeks old today.  It's amazing how fast she's grown.  When people ask me how she is, I say she's a mess.  She is stubborn (barks at us when we say no), she loves to do things we tell her not to do (we'll tell her not to get under the couch and she immediately goes under the couch), she barks at us when we're not looking at her, and she normally wakes up at 6 AM (very tough for this girl who is not a morning person).

But, she is a sweetheart.  She LOVES to lay in my lap.  She loves it when her daddy holds her like a baby and rubs her belly.  She goes to the gate most of the time when she needs to go to the bathroom. She loves to meet other people and does well with kids.  She really is a good little girl. 

Anyway, here are some highlights from weeks 10 and 11:

• Piper now knows touch, sit, lay down, and drop.  She does shake about half of the time.  We are working on off and stay.  I think she knows what off means, but she refuses to do it.  That stubborn nature of hers.
• She got her first bath!  While she wasn't a fan of the water at first, she did a great job of standing there while I was washing and rinsing her.  By far her favorite part was us drying her off.  I love that freshly-bathed puppy smell.
• We went to the vet when Piper turned 11 weeks. The first time we went to the vet, I held her the whole time.  This time, we walked in on a leash. Although she was a little hesitant, she did really well.  She weighed in at 10.4 pounds. She gained 6.4 pounds in 3 weeks! The vet said she is very healthy, and has a very friendly temperament.  All of the ladies at the vet just love her.
• I started to give her some puppy bones to clean her teeth.  Even if the packaging says longer lasting, it takes Piper about 10 minutes to obliterate the bone.  Girl's got an appetite.
• She jumped on the couch for the first time Friday.  I was sitting on the couch, and the next thing I know, she's running at me from across the room and jumps right in my lap. We're going to have to work on her not doing that unless we tell her to get up.

Baby girl loves to wag her tail. 

This is what happens when I try to work with Piper in the office.

"Helping" Momma with laundry

She is so pretty. Brett tells her that a lot.

Lovin' Daddy's tummy rubs.

Her favorite thing to do: Play fetch!

Piper after the rain

First bath!

All fluffy after her first bath.

Second trip to the vet.

She is getting so long

Sitting outside chewing a bone.

My sweet girl

So much fluff!

She doesn't mind Daddy after he runs

They both look so content

And of course, she has to have her hand on yours when you're holding something.