A big, exciting change occurred in our lives this past weekend. A few days ago, I filled out an application after finding an adorable pup via petfinder.com. Lo and behold (we’ve done this several times before to no avail), we were called back by the lady who runs the shelter, who referred us to the foster mom for the dog we’d seen. Fast forward two nights, many questions about our family, lifestyle, home setup etc. and a drive down to Westfield, MA later and we were allowed to bring our new puppy Ali home.

Ali is a joyous addition to our family and we are all completely smitten. Well, the cats are still surveying the scene from a distance, but all humans who’ve come into contact with Ali in our little town are hooked.

Ali has been a great puppy so far. They think she’s some kind of newfoundland dog mix, and that she’ll grow up to be quite a big dog. She was rescued from a house raid in Mississippi, brought to a shelter and taken in by a foster family, all in the last 3 weeks. She’s only about 10 weeks old, so she’s had a rough start to her life. With each hour, though, she’s gaining confidence and her personality definitely sparkles through when she romps in the snow, sees other dogs or meets toddlers. She’s a sweetheart, easy as can be to take care of right now, and already firmly planted in the center of our family.

Here she is at her foster family’s home when we went to pick her up.

About to head for her new home

In the car on the way home…

Loving the snow piled up on our property

Slowly getting acquainted with the cats

Stealing Joe’s heart completely

Hanging out at the office

We’re so excited for our future with you, Ali!