Last night for puppy socialization class we tried something new. Instead of bringing both pups, we separated them. I left Koda at home with PapaBear and I took Summer with me. We wanted to see how each did on their own, one in class and one at home. It felt strange at first, seeing Koda follow me to the garage door but then only taking his sister. I heard him begin to bark through the closed door, even though my husband was inside with him.

Summer was quiet in the traveling crate in the back of the car. I pulled her out and put her on leash. She seemed excited to be with me, and eagerly followed me into the dog training building. I told the instructor that I’d be bringing them one at a time, and she said that was a good idea (remember she is the one that gave me the eight pages advising against littermates). All the dog owners and puppies were greeting each other, with the pups exchanging butt sniffs and the adults reminding each other of their dog’s names. Summer seemed a little shy at first; she hesitantly smells the other dogs but doesn’t really like her own butt to be sniffed.

We took our place in the circle seated on a rubber mat. She did awesome in class. We practiced the settle hold, follow me, and sit. Then it was time for naked play. We removed the collars and leashes and off they all went. Oddly, Summer is less active in this play interaction with the other dogs, which is quite the opposite when she is around Koda at home in the yard. They run, wrestle, and chase. But in this class, Summer kind of hangs back, watching and looking like she may jump in but never quite does. That’s fine with me, the pit bull puppy nipped the beagle and he squealed in pain. I wouldn’t want one of my pups in on that.

We got home from class after being gone for almost two hours. The moment I stepped through the door Koda bounded toward us. My husband told me that Koda definitely felt our absence. He said that he barked and kept going to the baby gate and then the garage door. He had to give him the settle hold to calm him. My husband gave him a lot of attention. Then he was happy to see both me and Summer. Koda snuggled at my lap on the floor as I told everyone about the puppy class with just one dog.

Here is my take on separating the puppies: it is not such a bad thing. I enjoyed focussing only on Summer in class. She may even have enjoyed my undivided attention. It reminds me of realizing how important it was to spend individual time with each of my kids. While it was not easy to make that happen, the child usually felt very special when I did. Koda survived without Summer, and learned he was ok in the house without her and she eventually came back. While I am not saying that I am going to make efforts to constantly give them separate experiences, I am going to try to do so when possible. My husband commented last night that after watching just one puppy in the family room he was really glad we got two. The affectionate playful interaction between the two littermates is not only entertaining, it is a blessing; they are lucky to have one another in the same house. It’s more work for us, but definitely worth it!

“You got this! Come on Knights! Let’s go #86! I see you #77! Defense! Nice Kill!”
All words I have shouted from the stands cheering on my kids. I like to think of myself as their number one fan, along with PapaBear but he tends to watch with a little more composure than me. I’ve stood and shaken a cow bell loud and proud. I have fallen off of a chair next to the volleyball court cheering on my daughter. As she approached the net for a smashing kill I bucked in my seat and fell backward. I am GrizzlyBearMa fan of all fans when my kids are on the field, on the court, in a pool, on a stage, wherever they are playing their little hearts out doing what they love. I am there proudly cheering when they do well, and feeling their pain of their losses. Soccer, baseball, football, swim team, basketball, volleyball, unicycling, marching band, hip hop dance, track, rock-cliimbing, triathlon…my family is full of active athletes and I have been there to shuttle them to practice, to nourish them beforehand, to root for them loudly, and to shower them with non-bias mother love and praise afterwards.

Why do I write about this today? It is the start of pre-season football for my two younger sons. One in college and one in high school. Both have a grueling schedule of practices over the next few weeks in preparation for the start of their seasons. I cannot imagine what goes on in their minds in anticipation of this, as I did not play football myself. But I do know what is stirring inside of me, that GrizzlyBearMa fan energy. I look at the schedules, I read the write-ups on social media forecasting the game results. I survey my spirit clothing, picking up more black and gold outfits for the Demon Deacon games, and make sure I have my Knights gear washed and ready. I am excited. I love fall! Our weekends until Christmas will be busy but I am savoring it all because I know it is a short window.

The days of attending the games, matches, and events of our children will pass (Like a blink of an eye). It feels like yesterday that we were screaming with excitement in the frigid November air in Wilton, Connecticut, when our sixth grade team won the football championship against New Canaan with one breakaway fifty yard touchdown by my 12 year old son. Now he is a red shirt junior in college. Like other families, we have ribbons, trophies, team pictures, and videos from it all. As a parent we carry special memories close to our heart: car rides (where a certain song was played to psyche up the boys for the game on the way), road trips (volleyball tournaments in the middle of nowhere in Pennsylvania, alone time with my middle-school daughter), meals and snacks (sliced oranges, rice crispy treats, and big breakfasts on game days), and most special to me was simply seeing my child happy doing what they love. Our oldest son rode a giraffe unicycle playing the trombone in a college pep band at basketball games, how can that not make a parent proud?

By the time we are finished cheering on our four children, we may have someone else to root for. Perhaps it will be Koda and Summer representing the GrizzlyBear family. Maybe they will be ready for agility competitions. I can see us there in shirts sporting their numbers and names cheering as they leap over bars, circle around a course of cones, through a long tunnel, and fly into the air to catch a sailing frisbee. “Go Koda! You got this Summer!”

The decision to find puppies that were Aussiedoodles was influenced by our familiarity with the Aussie half. Our Australian Shepherd, Dot, gave us fourteen great years, and we wanted more of that in our new pups. Aussies are known to be smart, loyal and hard-working. Dot was all of those things. She only rested when her job was done. If we were all in the yard with the kids running around, Dot would bark and chase anyone that strayed from the herd. A favorite game of ours was to hold Dot in a sit and stay position and then send off everyone to far corners to hide. The moment they were out of site she became unsettled and had to be reminded to stay. As soon as she heard the release word,“Okay!”she bolted off to find them. Sometimes we would send a runner, just one fast child who would get a head start and sprint around the house. Dot would close the space between them as she chased in pursuit. When all four children were together in one place, her goal was attained and she’d lie down and rest a few feet away. Our family of six at the round dinner table always included Dot nearby lapping up water or resting at our feet. She was content to have her herd present and accounted for.

This is how I felt yesterday. My busy children came from their different corners of the “yard” to celebrate my birthday. My working adults took time out of their weekends off to be here. My son who is living in another state for college and summer football conditioning surprised me with the long drive just to be here for one night. My youngest spent all weekend here a the cabin with us playing every game mom likes to play (which does not include Fort Nite). My heart was full to have our whole family of six under the same roof.

I felt like Dot. The strange thing is that I noticed a change in Koda and Summer as well. Perhaps it was the half Australian Shepherd. When all of us were sitting around in the big family room playing a game of Fitzit (One of my many favorites!), laughing, and arguing our points I noticed that Koda and Summer were on the floor between us, under the coffee table, stretched out sleeping. Maybe it was the peaceful energy they sensed from me. I, like Dot, was totally content to have all my kids and my husband in the same place. I know too well that these times are rare so I savor the moments. Until the sad goodbyes that we make after our traditional family hug. It is something we do wherever we are, in the driveway, our living room, or the middle of an airport. Six tall people standing in a circle with arms interlocked around each others’ shoulders, faces inches apart. It’s our thing, but only with the six of us.

The Aussie herding instinct is not only part of Dot, Koda, and Summer’s make up, it is also part of who I am as a mother. That’s what made my birthday so special yesterday. I could rest and enjoy my day because I had my herd right here with me.

“It is my birthday today!” This phrase changes as we get older.As young children we wake up giddy on that special day. We tell everyone we see, “It’s my birthday today!” Being a July birthday I never got to wear a birthday crown in the classroom, or have my classmates sing to me. I envied those winter, spring and fall babies. The only bonus of a summer birthday was pool parties and cookouts. My birthday always fell at the end of swim team season when my involved family hosted a big party which included a cake for me.

This year I rung in my birthday at 12:30 am. While I’d like to say that I was up late from some kind of fun evening, that is not the case. Last night was enjoyable and mellow, dinner and a dvd, then I went to sleep at 10:30. I woke to crashing thunder and bright flashes of light. A very violent summer storm was moving through our area. It was one of those that dumps buckets of rain continuously as the darkness keeps lighting up. Whether it was the sound of the cracking thunder of the brightness of the lightning, the dogs were becoming unsettled and beginning to bark in their crates.

I did not want to imprint a negative association with storms onto these puppies. So I came down and let them out and sat with them calmly on the floor in the dark. If they had to potty, it was not going to be happening until the storm let up. So there I sat at 12:30 am, Koda on my right, Summer on my left. Both were calm and had fallen back asleep against the comfort of my legs, while outside the windows the storm continued to rage. “It’s my birthday,” the thought crossed my mind. I am 53 years old.

In many ways I feel these 53 years, in my joints, my lacking core strength, and my slow metabolism. 53 is not 35. It’s pilates and walking instead of high impact aerobics and triathlons for me these days. I do love playing tennis and want to keep that up as long as possible. I am inspired by my 78 year old mother who continues to do yoga.

Inside I feel my age, but in a strong way. I like the wisdom that comes with experience. I like the comfort I take in confidently choosing what what to do and who to surround myself with, and even just being alone and still with my thoughts. I enjoy sitting with my husband and just watching the pond, listening to the birds. Raising our four children was always, go, go, go. Constant tackling of one thing after another, preparing for the next thing, cleaning up after the last thing, rest and repeat. I loved all of those busy years, and reflecting on those crazy days. I remember going into a coffee shop with my four active kids in tow, desperate for a caffeine fix, and no drive thru Starbucks yet. There was an older woman (probably 53) sitting at a table with coffee, working on a 1000 piece puzzle. As my children yanked impatiently at my arm, and whined for treats, I stared over at the old puzzle lady and envied her peaceful morning. Some day, I thought. That seemed so long ago. I’m the old puzzle lady, well I was until a few weeks ago.

I have been re-energized, a bounce in my step, and a giddy happy feeling to start each day. How? Two puppies. Two energetic, happy, soft, sweet puppies. So at 12:30 am, then at 2:30 am, then this morning at their regular 6:15 wake up time, I was greeted by their eager wiggling bodies and wet kisses. Sure, I am tired right now. But the joy they bring to my heart fills my tank with youthful energy. And thankfully, puppies nap a lot. So this 53 year old is about to curl up under a blanket next to Koda and Summer for a morning nap on her birthday.

The sun is shining and the sky is blue, a much different day than yesterday. Before I had puppies I did not give as much thought to the weather. Raining? Bring an umbrella with me on my way out. Hot and humid? Throw my curly hair up into a twist. Cold? Grab a sweater. But it is quite different when you have puppies.

Six months ago when we were in the wintery days of January, with rain, sleet and snow, I remember seeing pictures on Facebook of my friend’s dog. Her beautiful yellow lab puppy was covered with mud, and I laughed at how cute he was. We had an exceptionally wet few weeks, I can imagine my friend’s desperate pleas with Mother Nature to just give her a break already!

To a lesser degree I felt a bit of that pain yesterday. It rained hard all afternoon. When the weather finally broke, I brought the pent up pups out to play. They raced around the wet yard, under the bushes, behind the trees, rolling on the grass, jumping into the flower beds and flower pots. Within minutes their brushed out soft fluffy fur was sopping wet in drippy ringlets. They continued to run around, their shiny black curly coats flashing past me as I stood on the soaked lawn. I glanced at my watch and realized I was going to be running late if I did not get them back in to eat dinner. I had plans for the evening, a get together with some friends. When we got to the backdoor I looked down at the drenched pups and realized they were very muddy. I was alone and needed a plan to get them clean, keep the house clean, and also get myself ready to go out.

So I placed dirty dripping Koda into his bare crate, scooped up Summer and headed directly to my bath tub. She was squeaky clean in no time. I switched them out and repeated the process. The dogs looked and smelled like sweet puppies again. My white bath tub was a mess, as was I. Now, I do not know what it is about clean puppies but their energy level went through the roof. After they’d been towel dried, they went nuts, running all around the family room and kitchen. It did remind me of my own children after bath time running around upstairs with wet hair in their clean pajamas, bouncing off the walls.

I’d planned to crate the pups so I could get ready, but that was not going to happen with how active they were at the moment. So I poured myself a glass of wine and watched while they tired themselves out. At one point they went to the door and barked as if to need to go outside to potty. Outside where the bushes were all wet, outside where the garden was muddy. No way. I will take my chances. A few minutes later I ended up cleaning two piddle puddles on the wood floor in the kitchen.

Finally they were spent and just passed out. I quickly got ready and left for my night out, wearing my new fragrance, “wet puppy.”

Rain, rain, go away, come again another day.
Like a long time from now when these puppies can go out into the yard by themselves, so that I do not have to hold an umbrella and wait while they do their business.
Rain, rain, go away, Koda and Summer want to play.
They want to run around the trees, and under the bushes. They want to go on walks with Mama one at a time.
No more dirty paws getting toweled off at the door. No more wet dog smell. No more pee pee accidents near the door because it’s too hard of a down pour to go out.
Rain, rain, go away!

I cannot imagine if they arrived six months ago with all of the snow…

I am not going to lie, it was a little exciting to get the notification yesterday that I hit the mark of FIFTY posts on my wordpress blog site. Maybe it’s how one feels when the fitbit wristwatch vibrates when the steps goal is reached, or that little tune that rings when a crossword puzzle is solved (remember my obsession with solving Sunday nights when the Monday puzzle comes out at 6:00?). Whatever the tune, or badge, or pat on the back is, I see it as an acknowledgement for an accomplishment.

My online posting journey started before we brought our two busy puppies home. Not even sure what direction I would take this blog, I just committed to myself to post something each day. Write if I felt like writing, post pictures if I could not find something to write about. A great piece of advice I received from my writing teacher last year was to start writing and “go where the writing takes you.” I have found that many times I begin with an idea that leads me down a different path altogether.

I’ll let you in on a little secret, half the time I have no idea what the next day’s blog will be about. It just comes to me that morning as I am drinking coffee watching the puppies romp around the rug. The other half of the time, I get my ideas at random moments. I’ll be driving and think of something, so I call out, “Siri, Remind me to write about the Big Tree.” Or “Siri, add Interview with Oprah to the list of blog ideas.” I’ve been doing that kind of “thought collecting” for years, yellow sticky notes used before Siri and Alexa came into my life.

So the blog continues. My plan is to keep adding something every day. On Fridays a video will always be posted (some more elaborate than others). Once a week, a book review. Here and there I will sprinkle a little fun with words (poetry, tongue twisters, or lists). But mostly, I will continue to write from my heart as a mother. Raising these two puppies brings up all kinds of thoughts about family psychology, parenting, siblings, etc. As I reflect on memeories of when my children were younger, or when I was a child, I hope you will come with me as I travel to the past. If it makes you think about your childhood or your children or your puppies, then enjoy your own ride down memory lane.  And go wherever my writing takes you…