how it all began.

Let me start by saying: I did not grow up with pets. Maybe a fish or two here and there, but nothing that required more than two seconds of my attention each day. Interestingly enough, I used to be afraid of dogs. I was smaller than a lot of kids my age. Naturally, most dogs were bigger than I was, especially during the more impressionable years. To put it bluntly: I was chased. By many a dog. MANY. A. DOG. The first dog that I actually bonded with was my cousin's golden retriever, Emily. When people talked about a dog being man's best friend, Emily was always the one I thought of. Emily made me want a dog of my own.

Fast forward to June 2009. I moved to Nashville for my job and to get a second fresh start (my first fresh start happened in September 2007 when I moved to Denver. But that is another story for another time). I packed up everything I could in my little Honda Civic and drove to Nashville. And when I finished my first week of work, I decided that there was no better time than now. However... I am the type of person who likes to know everything there is to know about something before I make a big decision. Please keep that in mind as you read on.

I decided to go to the Humane Society and ask some questions about having a dog, about what kind of dog would fit my lifestyle, and about other helpful tips for first-time dog owners. After I spoke to some lovely volunteers, I took a walk around the shelter to read about some of the dogs there. I was doing really well, staying strong, just "gathering information." But then one of the volunteers pointed me in the direction of the puppy room.

Ohhhh the puppy room. The volunteer told me that they had gotten a litter of black-lab/border-collie mixes a couple weeks earlier. The family dropped off the eight puppies because they already had too many dogs. They were now eight weeks old and were so cute. They were black with little white paws and white chests; five boys and three girls. I first held a mellow little boy named BB. As I was holding him, I noticed his sister in the next kennel over. She was sitting there looking at me with her head tilted to the side. I put BB back in the kennel and picked her up. As soon as I picked her up and put her against my shoulder, she rested her head and gave me this big contented sigh. She made herself right at home, all snuggled up against me.

That did it for me and Claire. I put her back in the kennel to go fill out the adoption paperwork, and as I turned to walk away, she let out this one loud yelp. I turned around and looked at her, and she let out another yelp. I picked her up again and took her with me to fill out the application. She walked across the counter sniffing everything, chewing on pens, and giving the volunteers kisses while I gave them all of the information that they needed to know.

She is now sixteen months old. We have successfully navigated through a little more than a year together. She keeps me laughing, keeps me busy, and at the same time, keeps me sane during the ups and downs that life has to offer. My goal for this blog is to share the stories of the past year and to share the stories that are yet to come. Because, as you will soon see, I absolutely love my Claire and can't imagine life without her. I'm pretty sure you will feel the same as you continue reading. There is so much more to come!

8-week-old Claire :)