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| This picture was taken shortly after we got Snowy. |
We got Snowy at the end of August the year we were married. We knew that we wanted to get a dog, but weren’t planning on getting one so soon. My husband saw an email that someone from his work sent out saying that her son was a breeder of Pomskies (a mix of a Pomeranian and a Husky) and had two for sale. He came home from work and told me about it, and so we went to go meet the puppies, not really planning on actually getting one. When we got there we saw these two small, white fur balls running around everywhere, jumping up on us, checking us out. We talked with the breeder for a little bit, and said that we would think about it, and went home. My husband had drill that weekend so we each thought about it and when he came home one of the first things he said was that he wanted to get one! I, excitedly agreed, and we met up with the breeder again to spend some time with each puppy individually and decided that we wanted to get Snowy (my husband came up with that name, and looking at a picture of her, you can probably guess how!). As soon as we got back to the house, we had a message from the breeder saying that we had chosen the right puppy- as soon as we had left his house, she jumped up by the window, and watched us drive away. After a few more visits to settle details and warm Snowy up to us, the night finally arrived where we got to bring her home.
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| Our baby announcement for Gabriel |
In a way, Snowy was our first child. We got her soon after I found out I was pregnant with our first, so we had almost eight months together before we had kids. Puppies are hard work, and need a lot of attention. She had so much energy, and loved to play. We took her on runs, walks, played with her, and let her sleep in our bed. Sometimes, she would get so excited and run around our apartment, and do a little twirl off my stomach, which was growing by the day! Snowy was also a very scared little puppy. The weekend after we got her, my husband’s family came to visit. Combined with being in a new house, and having visitors, she was really scared. It wasn’t long before we realized that we couldn’t find her. We looked around and eventually found her squeezed in between the wall and our T.V.! Other times we had guests over, she would hide underneath our bed and not come out. She was scared of a lot of things, and for awhile, my husband’s swivel desk chair really made her nervous! As most little kids grow out of their fears, so did Snowy. As she has gotten older, she has become less scared, and more vocal. My husband likes to call her a watchdog, because she will bark to let us know that someone is there, but will not actually do anything.
A few months after we got her, we moved to Georgia for my husband’s military course. At this point, I was already halfway through pregnancy with our son, Gabriel.We were in a one bedroom, tiny apartment. My husband’s course required him to be in the field a lot, so most of the time, it was just Snowy and I together. We were each other’s companions. I would take Snowy on a lot of walks at a park right by our apartment complex.
I will always remember the day that we brought Gabriel home from the hospital. Snowy was a proud big fur sister! She was so excited to see Gabriel, and we have a video of her jumping up trying to see Gabriel while my husband is holding her. She cared about Gabriel so much and would make sure I knew that he was awake from his nap, and would occasionally join him when he was crying by howling along!
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| Snowy’s guilty face! |
Snowy also can be very mischievous. Gabriel would spit up a lot as a baby, and she would sneak out of our room in the middle of the night and find his outfits, and chew them up! She’s also been known to get into the trash, and broke her metal kennel because she wanted to get out! Despite all of these behaviors, she really is such a great dog and is a member of our family!
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| Gabriel and Snowy |
With each child that has come along, Snowy has gotten less attention and time, but she is so good with the kids! When Gabriel was born I was still able to take her for walks. I would push Gabriel in the stroller, and take Snowy with us and walk the two miles to my husband’s work (we were very fortunate to live that close to his job). I always looked forward to these walks as it gave me time out of the house, and I knew it made Snowy happy too.
When it came time for my husband to go to Ranger School, Gabriel, Snowy, and I all moved to my parent’s house. Snowy missed my husband, but really enjoyed her time with my family. My parent’s have a nice fenced in backyard where she could run around and play any time she wanted. My mom would also take her on walks a lot. My sisters gave Snowy a lot of attention and everyone enjoyed playing with her. The only one who was not too happy about Snowy’s presence was my parents’ dog, Candy. Candy was an old lady and did not care for Snowy’s rambunctious personality. Snowy could also be a bit of a bully trying to get Candy to play with her, and then if Candy was really annoyed, she’d put Snowy in her place and snap at her (no worries, neither dog was hurt). However, each one liked the other’s food and would try to sneak off to the food bowl of the other. They were also known to share water bowls.
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| This is Candy |
Snowy was still very mischievous at my parents’ house and would get into some trouble. If no one closed the door to the downstairs bathroom, then she would get into the trash. She also decided that my parents’ big backyard wasn’t big enough for her, and was able to dog a hole under the fence and get out. I realized one day that Snowy had been outside for a long time, and when I went to look out the window to check on her, I didn’t see her. So I got on my shoes, and went to the very back of the yard to the door in the fence. There is a cul-de-sac behind my parents house, and when I opened the gate, I found Snowy down there wandering around. I called her name, and she just looked up at me, like “What, Mom?! I’m exploring!” I’m pretty sure I had to bribe her with a treat to get her to come back to the yard and into the house. She also would go to the very back of the yard and bark at one of the neighbors if they were outside. Again, she wouldn’t listen when we called her to come inside, so we had to physically go get her to bring her inside. Snowy really did enjoy her time in Virginia ( it’s also where she found her love for peanut butter!) and my family was sad to see her leave when we moved back home to Iowa.
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| Snowy and Rebecca |
I was really far along in my second pregnancy when we moved back, and Snowy would always lay down next to me on the couch or bed. One night I woke up from a dream I was having that I couldn’t breathe and realized it was because Snowy was laying on top of my huge stomach!
It wasn’t long before Rebecca was born. Another baby meant less attention for Snowy, but she was so excited to meet her! We still were able to take Snowy on runs and on some walks, but they were less frequent. When Rebecca was 5 months old I started working, and Snowy was locked up in her kennel for part of the day while I was gone. She has a track record for rebelling her kennel in the past ( she would spill her water and her food ) but she went a little far this time. One day when I came home from work, I saw Snowy sitting on the couch. I looked at her, she looked at me, and then I went to go check her kennel to see what happened. She had broken one of the metal bars on her kennel and escaped! I think she was trying to tell us that she missed us and was not happy that I was working and not at home anymore. As it turns out, she ended up getting her wish when I found out I was pregnant with our third and had to leave my job at the end of the school year.
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| Snowy and Theresa |
Now with three babies, and the cold winters here, Snowy does not get out as much as she should. She loves all the kids (and would howl when Theresa cried as a newborn too) but she also tries to get our attention by trying to get us to play, or rubbing herself up against us to get us to pet her.
Our pets really are a part of our family and can have such an impact on our lives! Snowy has made every move with us and has had to adapt to every change that comes our way. It’s just as hard on her as it is for us.
This blog post is for Snowy, the one that made our family of two become a family of three. The girl who was there for me when I was lonely. The dog who has a conscience and wants us to know when she does something bad, the dog who hates car rides but wants to go because it means she’ll be with us. The puppy who welcomed three babies into the house and is so patient with them! The energetic workout partner who runs to the door if you say you want to go for a run or walk, and the sweet dog who will come up to us squeaking her toy reminding us that she wants our attention too.
Snowy is such a good dog, and is family! We are so grateful for her!
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| Snowy is family <3 |
(Did I mention that she has also been blessed on the feast day of St. Francis?)
