Bye, Bear

Well, I am ready to talk about it. Bear had to have a new home. It made me really sad, but it was for the best. He is a really great dog, and it wasn't him...it was us. I was allergic to his beautiful yet plentiful brown coat. I also made the mistake of getting a puppy. I had read how Newfoundlands are one of the best dogs with children--and they ARE! He came from a home with two small boys and the mother in the home said he never hurt the kids and was really great with them. I am not sure how entirely true that is. He was certainly tolerant of their behavior, but being a puppy he still wanted to play and it was a little too rough for a 3 and 1 year old. His gigantic puppy playfulness scared them. I had to be on constant guard to make sure he wouldn't really hurt them. Or destroy something. In all his puppy glory he loved to chew on the kids' toys and grab food off the table. These adorable puppy behaviors combined with trying to keep up with Noah's turned wild behaviors was a little, shall we say, exhausting and stressful?? So, I had a dog that I spent a very large amount of money on (the actual total costs still make me a bit ill) was allergic to and scared the children. Great. I put an add on oodle to see what would happen. I started getting contacted by lots of people but I just didn't think they sounded like a good match for Bear. I wanted him to have the perfect family. So I started praying, and praying that God would send just the right family for him. The family he is meant to have forever. 15 minutes later I checked my email. While I was praying someone emailed me, and described her family. 4 kids (all much older than mine), they loved water sports, they have a big dog already and know whats involved in training big dogs. Stay-at-home mom so he wouldn't be by himself all day...I couldn't have designed a better match. I met them and kind of fell in love. I think Bear did, too. They took him home on Monday and I have seen his pictures on facebook (the mom in the family is so sweet, she is letting me keep in touch by facebook) and you can tell he just loves the kids in the family. I feel sad it didn't work out, but my heart is very glad that a family was made so happy by such a great dog. Maybe in another 10 years we can try again.

The newest addition to the Key Family

I haven't blogged since January?! What am I doing with my time? Geez. Ok, I confess, if I have free time I read and play on the internet.

Anyway, we have a new addition to the Key household.

It's Another BOY!!!!!!



There are many good things about him. As you see here, he values nap time, just as I do.

He also hasn't reacted when Noah pulled his tail and poked his face. He is a saint. I know it.

He is a NewFoundland. He is 7 months old. He is a gentle giant. He came with the name Jameson. I am going to try and rename him Smoky Bear. Or Smokey the Bear. Such a big decision. Dare I add the "the" to his name?

What can I say? My desires to nurture run strong and deep. I haven't had a baby for 20 months! Definitely time for a dog.

Wrong!

A while ago I wrote a blog trying to work out if people married with children were happier than their single peers. According to this article:
http://nymag.com/news/features/67024/

I am WRONG. People with children are not happier. It is a very well written article, and if you have time you should read it if you are interested. After thinking about it for a few days I put into my own words what I think is true about the article on why people with children are not as happy as their single with no children friends. They are as follows:

Cultural Change. Previous generations did not have a choice in whether or not they would get married and have children. That is just what they did. In the 21st century our country changed from people were farmers and raised their children to be their helpers (children were assets) to people raising their children to be little scholars which requires riding their backs to do their homework, to be elite in the classroom and on sports teams. We require far more focus as parents on our children. We let them be children. We treat them as if they owe us nothing and we do every thing we can to help them get ahead. Generations before us were less focused on their children. They taught them to work, to help, and gave minimal attention to schooling. Each succeeding generation has been raised to be more and more selfish because their parents have made them more of the center of the universe. People are waiting to get married and have children so they can go to school. They have choice over if they marry, when, and who. They have choice over if they have children, when, how many. When they make the shift from single to married with children they go from being the most self-centered generation yet to being required to be the most child-focused parent generation yet. It is a mind-blowing change. When they are asked about their happiness they probably DO feel more depressed. They are more tired and less self-focused than ever before, and it is exhausting. They have forgotten the loneliness and insecurities they felt as a single person and romanticize their former happiness. I do hypothesize though, that parents may feel more moment to moment happiness and than their perceived overall happiness. Example: Many parents have many moments of delight with their children throughout their day. Their little baby smiling. Their toddler saying something adorable. Their older child playing a trick. It is forgotten when they think of sleepless nights, power plays and disobedience.

What do YOU think?