Baby + Dog = ?????

Livvie 

Addison was our first sweet cocker spaniel. We adopted Addison at the end of August 2003 and I found out that I was pregnant with Layne about five months later. I loved my little rescue pup (my first "baby") but I was nervous about how she would react to having a baby in the house. When we adopted her, all that we were told is she had been put outside to live when the couple she was with had a baby. She had never been around children, so her file was marked "No small children". It turned out, she was awesome. She would lay beside his crib or just outside of his door and come and wake me up if he started whimpering. Who needs a baby monitor with this keen pup on the job? The same was true when I had Blair, but this time Addison positioned herself on the stairs so she could be between the two children's rooms and alert me if something wasn't as peaceful as she thought it should be. She cleaned up their food messes without being asked, she let them love on her and play with her. What a dream.

Sadly, Addison left us to go to the Rainbow Bridge in January 2011, a loss that still tugs at my heart today. On Mother's Day weekend 2011 my husband surprised me with another rescue pup. A one year old cocker spaniel named Livvie. Let me first say that this was about five months after saying goodbye to Addison, I was just getting used to not having a dog in the house and the quiet of that life change, and I was about six months pregnant with Kennedy. If I needed my puppy fix, I would simply head over to my parents' house to play with their pups or take them to my house for a visit. I had it in my head that I would have the baby, head back to work and get settled back into that routine, and get the family adjusted to having a baby in the house. I do not care who you are, introducing another member into the family creates a little chaos initially and then you just become immune to the craziness of the new life (or sleep deprivation just takes over and you are simply just going through the motions of what you think to be a "normal" day). My mind was made up that we could start looking for a new rescue pup after Christmas, knowing that it would take a while (hopefully until the summer) to locate the perfect one. However, Dean thought that the children needed a dog, that I needed a dog to fill the void, and that the addition of a newborn would not create that much chaos in our already crazy lives. Ha! Livvie enters our lives and the fun begins! 

Livvie waiting on breakfast

Addison was a mellow dog and much older than Livvie. Livvie is a high energy, needs to be outside and running most of the day, puppy. She figured out immediately how to hop into the kitchen table chairs and make herself at home when it was dinner time (higher chairs eliminated this problem). And, lest I forget to mention how she loves to bark (at anything that comes within 10 feet of our house). Livvie is also a great escape artist. There were many a morning that I was headed to work and she would decide to bolt out the front door as one of the children was walking outside. The chase would ensue, me "trotting/waddling" down the street in my flip flops, chasing after this dog (running like a rabbit on speed), and cursing my husband the entire time. When I finally caught her, I was usually greeted with a wagging tail and those big brown eyes (she knew she was in trouble and it wasn't her fault that a squirrel/rabbit/chipmunk/cat just happened to cross our yard at the exact moment the door was opening). I can't help but to love Livvie. She is a very sweet dog but the timing of her entry into our family was not ideal. However, we have learned to work together.

Livvie insists on sleeping in my bed every night, actually she insists on sleeping on top of me every night which makes for long night. Though I love to hear her (loud) snoring and the incredible warmth that she generates (there's nothing better than sweating in your sleep), I have worked out an agreement with her. I allow her to sleep in Layne's room every night that he is home and in my room on the nights that he is away. It seemed like a great idea to me but I think she is taking it more like a punishment. Layne is thrilled to have the company at night and gets upset when she doesn't immediately come into his room when he is tucked in (I hate to tell him that I have to lug her in there). Blair and Livvie have a hot/cold relationship. Blair wants Livvie's attention when she is snuggled up with someone else, but ignores her when she is snuggled up with her.

So, back to having a baby and a dog. This is where it got a little fun. When we brought Kennedy home from the hospital, Livvie had no clue there was anything in the carrier. We walked in, placed the carrier on the table (Kennedy was asleep), and proceeded to love on Livvie. At the first squawk from Kennedy, Livvie jumped backwards, tucked her tail, and ran out of the room. She slowly crept back into the room and began sniffing the carrier. It took the remainder of the day and night for Livvie to warm up to the baby, but eventually they could finally be in the same room together without Livvie acting like Kennedy was going to attack her with her fierce squawking. We have gone through the "I need to steal the baby's toys" phase and survived. Now that Kennedy is eating, Livvie strategically places herself under the high chair waiting for those tiny hands to come over the side of the chair and release the goodies. My dog loves cheerios, green beans, saltines, and nilla wafers and can scarf then down in record time. Kennedy laughs every time she feeds the pup- it's a game. One fistful of food for Livvie and one fistful for her. Livvie, being the smart one, will now wait to eat breakfast or dinner until after Kennedy has been fed- why fill up on dog food when you can have yummy people food (my vet is going to love me). Livvie also acts like a siren when Kennedy gets fussy. At the sound of the first whimper/cry, Livvie positions herself beside Kennedy, lowers her head, and begins to howl pitifully. She will continue this howling until I (or Dean) walk over and pick Kennedy up. The louder the cry, the louder the howl- no matter what time of day or night. 

To say that things are lively in our house is the understatement of the century. In a place where silence is a rarity, I look forward to the early mornings when all I hear is snoring coming from the bedrooms and coffee brewing in the kitchen (it's the closest thing to quiet I can get), it's the time that I can look back and laugh at the circus that I live in.