Frenchie Countdown!

The countdown has finally begun!

And I should be hearing from Mary shortly, telling me that she delivered Mia to Ellen (puppy nanny) for her flight to Cali.

Ellen is taking a flight into San Francisco and then taking a shuttle to San Jose where I'll meet her at the airport to pick up the goods. Feels like a covert operation or something.

And while, I was feeling anxious yesterday, right now (if I don't really think about it) I'm doing groovy.

Steve and I have found a plan that should work for all parties involved, in the introduction of Vito to Mia.

After I pick Mia up, I'm taking her to our local Petsmart where Steve and Vito will meet us. I believe this will fulfill all requirements of the new dog meeting the old dog policy. Plus, I still have to pick up a few things for Mia that I forgot.

Would you look at that? I'm a bad mommy already!

Yippy!

I'm so excited, I could just spit!

I believe Mia is ACTUALLY going to be on a flight tomorrow to good old California!

As of now, she, accompanied by the puppy nanny, will arrive at 7pm.

That zen and calm feeling I had earlier in the week has officially gone bye-bye.

I'm getting panicky again.

Coccidia

What the H is this nasty sounding word?

Mary (breeder) informed me Tuesday that Mia was having loose stool, went to the vet and was diagnosed with this odd word. She has to take antibiotics for 14 days.

Thankfully it's administered with a syringe. We have a hell of a time giving Vito his antibiotics when he's sick, and we're running low on peanut butter.

Thursday

So, officially, the puppy nanny (Ellen) will be bringing Mia on Thursday. That's if God doesn't try to torture me any longer.

Pisser

Ain't that a bitch.

So, I found out today, that the 'puppy nanny' can't bring Mia tomorrow and he told our breeder that the next time he'd be in our neck in the woods wouldn't be until Feb. 5th!

Surprisingly, I kept calm when learning this bit of news. The breeder was very apologetic and I didn't want to make her feel worse.

It seems as though another puppy nanny may be available to bring Mia to us either this coming Wednesday or Thursday.

But wanna know what else is a pisser?

I start up school again ON Wednesday night. That means if Mia were to come in on Wednesday, not only would I not be able to pick her up from the airport; I wouldn't be able to spend time with her on her first night home. :(

So I'm kinda hoping that the puppy nanny will hook us up and bring her on Thursday rather than Wednesday.

Well, that's my gripe for now. I just can't believe how serene and zen I'm being about all this.

Will wonders never cease?

Damn you storm! Damn you!!!

After saying how I liked this crappy weather and you have to go and screw me!

It appears as though Mia will NOT be arriving tomorrow. I just learned from Mary (the breeder) that the puppy nanny will not be able to fly Mia in because the flights have been cancelled!!

I'm blue now.

Poor me.

Introducing...

Mia Sofia...

Concerned...

There is a wicked storm brewing here in Cali and I am wondering if this will affect the airlines and whether or not Mia will arrive safely.

Normally, I'm quite fond of 'gloomy' weather which to me is a breath of fresh air, but at this time, I have to wonder.

Hm

Okay, so now, I'm FINALLY getting excited about Mia's arrival.

Just a short while ago, I got this information from the breeder... and it made me smile:

Everything looks great, I'm getting her bag packed and she's excited. She loves to talk, last night she was at the edge of the pool and I was talking to her saying "I love you" and the more I said it the more it seemed like she was trying to say it back. I know that sounds crazy, but I have about 3 Frenchies that sound just like they are saying something. She is the cutest thing and I know you are going to just love her.

Wouldn't you smile too??

Now, I really feel like an expectant mommy. :)

This past weekend, I was good and didn't go into a shopping rage, but managed to keep restraint when it came to pulling out my diminishing wallet.

Steve got Vito's baby crate out of storage, which is what Mia will use until she gets too big. A disturbing thought, though... when I was at Target (aka Xanadu), I saw pugs listed as 'toy' dogs and french bulldogs as 'small'. This could pose a problemo. Vito's a little hefty for his breed, but being dominated by a 'bigger' sister could be a blow to his ego. Oh well, I'll burn that bridge when I get to it.

So, yea, since we already have the crate, we are using a blanket we already have for her and have already set them up in the living room so Vito can get used to the idea. I only had to buy spray for cleaning messes up and her name tag. Ahhh... Mia Sofia... so exotic, no?

We STILL have potty pads from Vito's baby days, so that'll come in handy, and we also have oodles of toys he's turned his nose up at. The breeder is sending over some food with her along with some handy dandy coupons to assist in what will surely be a large grocery bill for puppy food.

Yike.

I'm not awake yet.

So, it's like, what 8am, and I have no intention of waking up.

I prefer to stay sleepy so I don't spazz over stupid stuff, which is exactly what I did yesterday.

That poor breeder... I've put her through the ringer, that's for sure, but she still, surprisingly, has patience with me.

I finally told her yesterday that she should just ignore me because I tend to flip out over things... the little hamster wheel in my brain goes into overdrive when I'm stressed and that's exactly how I've been feeling.

This morning I woke up thinking, 'Oh my God, now we can't go anywhere!'

I remember how traumatic it was for me when we got Vito... Steve just kept telling me 'he's a puppy' and I was like, shut it, but he was right. And I swore upside down and sideways that I'd never get a puppy again, and here I am! WTF?!

Vito's finally at the point in his life where he can chill by himself for a while without supervision. In fact, he's probably better behaved alone than I am... but nonetheless. Now we'll be back at square one and I shall go loony again.

I can recall a little ditty I used to say ALOT shortly after we'd acquired Vito: 'I WANT A REFUND!'

Steve's definitely better equipped to handle these things... always trying to assure me that everything will work out and that we're a team and la la la.

He says all the right things in his hopes to stop my madness, and it works for about 2 minutes, and then I go coo-koo again.

So... the 26th our little girl will arrive via a puppy nanny. He's supposed to call me when he lands in SJ and we'll meet up.

And now that that's all squared away... what do I start worrying about next? How am I going to introduce Vito and Mia, his new sister? Then after that, I start thinking about the introduction to the cats, and then, oh no, what about the crate/potty training, and now you can see how a girl can drive herself bonkers.

I guess I'll try to work a little today. Even though I really don't want to.

Oh what the hell... might as well give it a go.

Coo Koo!

I think I'm giving myself an ulcer.

Breathe...

My poor, poor husband.

I had a mini-meltdown earlier and Steve gave me that slap in the face I was hoping for. Not literally... don't call the police. For real... don't.

Now, I've been whining all day about being stressed out (as I mentioned in my previous post) to anyone that would listen, and although they were helpful, I didn't really calm down until I talked to Steve.

I was trying to be a good wife and not burden him with BS before an important meeting he has at work this afternoon, but, perhaps I'm not THAT good of a wife.

Here's my email to him:

On another note, and TRUST ME when I say that I’m not trying to stress you out… but, what the F were we thinking getting a puppy????

I’m soooo close to telling the breeder to take her deposit and run and just forgetting the whole thing, but I need your opinion… can we do this? You and I are an amazing team, and set aside the cost, we’ve raised a puppy and I know we can do it again, but back to the money… what were we thinking?!?!

Now, he's a mature (sometimes) human being and rather than play the email game, he just called me back and essentially, told me to get a grip. This isn't verbatim, but he basically said that there would never be a 'right' time to extend our family, and that we would make things work out with the money and that we'd just tighten our belts for a while, and that we've been wanting to get another baby for years now and that this was the time. Plus, he said we weren't going to lose our damn deposit.

Bear with me, when I express my frustrations, for they are not those of a sane, well-adjusted human being, but from a nutty chick with a brain that goes on overdrive for everything but work.

That reminds me... I should get back to work.

Holy Moses!

I've officially lost it!

I woke up this morning with such extreme anxiety over this whole puppy thing.

I thought, holy frijoles, here I have just sent a deposit for a dog I've never seen in person to a person I've never met!

What the hell did you do?!

And then I'm all freaking out over the fact that we already have the joy of our lives (Vito) and how's he gonna feel having this strange lookin creature come invade his space??

There are five factors that are contributing to my insanity:

1. The cost - puppies are NOT cheap, especially if purchased from a reputable/responsible breeder. The reason being that French Bulldogs, like Pugs, have to be born via cesarean because of their big ole heads;
2. Purchasing the puppy from a breeder who may not be local (as in our case, the breeder is in Texas) and not being able to see said puppy before it's arrival;
3. The puppy is being shipped with a puppy nanny (who knew?) and may or may not arrive. What if we're being duped and paying all this money and the puppy nanny doesn't show? Then we're SOL!
4. Provided that #3 doesn't occur, bringing a puppy into our structured household is gonna throw everything into upheaval! Vito has his/our routine down pat and gets 95% of our attention/love/energy (the other 5% goes to our two cats who could give a rats ass about us).
5. Getting a puppy is like a full time job in that you have to establish law and order, and oh God, the potty training! I believe this is where I shall have to admit myself to the loony bin because I hated the process when we got Vito and I swore I'd never get a puppy again.

What was I thinking? So, anyone who knows me knows that Steve and I got married in October and that was an experience in itself. I had a blog where I wrote/vented about everything I went through and that wasn't pretty.

Can you imagine the lengthy blogs that I'll be posting on this?

This morning, I thought, screw it, lose your flippin deposit and move on. But what would happen in a couple of months when I would wish that I had that puppy?

I sent the breeder an email this morning which went as follows:

Mary,

I woke up completely stressed out this morning, thinking about the puppy. It occurred to me that after days of constant emailing, soon after I made the deposit, the communication stopped. I understand that you're probably busy, but, I hope you understand from my point of view how this can be a bit stressful. After all, I just sent $500 dollars to someone I don't know for a puppy I haven't seen in person.

I need more information on the puppy nanny and delivery so I can plan accordingly for time off of work, if necessary, and when to schedule her first vet visit.

Cecilia

To which she responded:

Hi Cecilia,I completely understand how you feel, I'm just waiting for George to call me back with his schedule, I called and left a message on his cell phone last night. He is suppose to be trying to see if he can get her on a flight before the 24th, I know how hard it is to wait. Mia is doing fine and we are in the process of the worming, she's still a little chatty Kathy, wanting all the attention. So please don't stress out, just as soon as George calls me I will email you. I can't make her Vet appointment either until I know when she is set to fly.Mary

God needs to send me a serious sign... a bolt of lightening; a nice slap in the face; anything!

On the other hand, if we DO get this puppy, we pretty much have everything we need from when Vito was a puppy, including the crate.

Calgon... oh, you know how it goes.

Sold!

As I write this, my stomach is in knots, churning like butter. I feel like I'm going to vomit and it's all because of a dog.

After I hit 'send' I immediately had buyer's remorse. I mean, what kind of idiot buys a dog online? And, a dog they've never seen in person!

All signs point to me... I'm the idiot.

But I've been here before.

Almost 5 years ago, I purchased a pug puppy online from a breeder in Oklahoma. Because it was so long ago, I couldn't tell you exactly what made me do it, but I believe I just had a wild hair you know where.

My husband (boyfriend at the time) and I had been contemplating an addition to our boring family, and I made our decision to go ahead. I did all the research on various breeds, but when I came to the 'pug', I was hooked.

This is very similar to how it went down with getting a new dog. I was adamant about getting another pug since we're so in love with Vito, but when I came across this new, odd-looking breed, I was smitten.

The French Bulldog - the reason why I liked the looks of this breed is it looked like a pug (smashed face and all) except it has these funky ears, similar to a bat's. What's not to love?

During my research on this breed, I found that they're very similar to pugs, in more ways than looks. They sneeze, snore, and fart, which are Vito's favorite pastimes. Another similarity is that they can't tolerate extreme weather conditions and this fits in perfectly with my own likes/dislikes, since I hibernate during the summer.

Steve... well, forget about it. As soon as he saw the frenchie, that's all he could talk about. We'd be relaxing at home on the couches, and he'd be all, 'Tweetie!' I look at him, and he has his hands like ears on top of his head.

So, after our wedding last year, we knew that our next progression as a family would be to add a legitimate child to our family tree.

I've been researching various breeders throughout the country, knowing what to look for and what to avoid. I came across and have been corresponding with a nice lady in Texas and when she showed me pics of her newest litter, I saw 'Minnie Me's Girl' and I was sprung!

We've been emailing day and night for the past week, and just yesterday, I put a deposit down for the 6 and a 1/2 week old pup. She'll be done cooking in about a week, at which time she can join our happy, yet dysfunctional, family.

She shall be delivered via a puppy nanny. Who knew such people existed? But good thing, since our pup won't be relegated to cargo which can be a scary experience for a pup who's just left her mom and siblings.

I shant be including any information about the cost or breeder of our puppy because should anyone read this and want to get a pup, you should really find a breeder that suits your needs/budget. We just happened to locate a person I feel good about. And God-willing, everything will work out, or there will be some serious shit hitting the fan.

Our primary concern, of course, is Vito. He's almost 5 and I have to wonder how he'll take to having a new sister. I think I'm overreacting more than necessary, but that's how I roll. Last thing I want is for him to feel like he's second fiddle to this new creature, but Steve and I know that we have enough love to accommodate both dogs and more.

Besides, if Vito's uncle (Hunter) is ever over, he never gets possessive. If anything he's like, 'Thank God there's someone else here to get these people off my back!'

The name - I first wanted to name her Sofia. After all, she'll be a Latina. But then I thought, well Francesca's a really cute name, so then it was Francesca and even the breeder said she'd start calling her that name. All emails following that decision referred to the pup as Francesca. But Steve wasn't too enthused with the name. Then yesterday, after we paid our deposit, the name 'Mia' came to mind.

Mia was my in-laws deceased cat's name who was a doll, and I thought that it'd be nice to honor her. Then 'Mia Sofia' came to mind. So dag nabbit, that's the kid's name come hell or high water. The breeder probably thinks I have multiple personalities since I change the name every other day.

So, that's that. Puppy hell, here we come!