So the past couple of days have been good. I have enjoyed having Jera, and I look forward to the day when she is housetrained so I no longer have to block off the kitchen. Jera has already bonded to us immensely, and whines pitifully whenever we leave the room. This morning she cried/howled for an hour after Paul left… I was mentally writing apology letters to all the neighbors as I listened. My heart breaks to hear her crying, but she has to learn that we can’t be with her 24/7 – especially since we’re both gone all day 4 days of the week. Today will be her first day completely by herself. We’ll see how she is when we get home!

She is quite a cuddly dog. Her favorite thing is to crawl into your lap and curl up, sleeping. She also really likes her pillow. (I’m so glad! I debated about whether to get one or not, since I know that some dogs don’t like pillows, but she took to it immediately.) She’s sooo cute. One of these days I’m going to have my camera on me so I can take pictures of her without having to get up. She’s super aware of where Paul and I are, so the minute we leave the kitchen she comes to the gate and starts crying. Paul is better at ignoring her than I am. I know it’s just a matter of time, and when she’s housebroken we’ll be able to let her into the carpeted rooms with us. (SOOO looking forward to that!!)

Housebreaking is proving to be more difficult than I anticipated. We have read and been told that you have to establish a routine, and when you take the puppy out you’re supposed to make her stay on the grass until she goes. Well they must have more patience than me. :-) I have spent half an hour telling her to go, with her completely ignoring my pleas. I tried walking her and that has proven unfruitful. In the mornings before work, I don’t have TIME to stand outside until she goes. So yeah. We’ll get it eventually. I think the secret will be when we take her out of her kennel at night/after work, and we quickly get her outside before she goes. Surely she eventually will get the idea…

Sorry if I sound like I’m complaining! Her cries wake me up and keep me from sleeping, so I am really tired right now. I told Paul this is good training for whenever we have children. :-) (No I’m NOT pregnant, sheesh give a girl at least a year of marriage! ;-)) I am looking forward to when I’ve figured out what I’m supposed to be doing in regards to training – obedience school is definitely a must for me. When can we start?!

Oh and the cats seem to be getting used to Jera. Lewis will sit at the gate and cry, and when I pick him up and bring him inside the kitchen he doesn’t protest. Again, I think things will be better when we can remove the gates and so there’s not a barrier between the cats and puppy.

*trying hard to enjoy this stage of her life*