So You're Getting a Puppy

So you're getting a puppy. Congratulations and deepest sympathies, your life and lifestyle will never be the same. But if you've made this big decision thoughtfully and deliberately your life will also have even more joy than you ever imagined.

When Josh married me, he also adopted Lando, my rescued Jack Russell Terrier/ Toy Fox Terrier mix too. While we absolutely condone adopting dogs from shelters, sometimes and through much experience, you may just find that you and your lifestyle really gel with a certain breed. We found that with Lando.

Jack Russell Terriers are equal parts intense, sprint energy dogs and lazy couch potatoes. (they have energy sure, but it's super easy to burn it off by getting them to sprint circles around the living room. In fact, when the whole family gets in on the living room interval training, they might even love it more than a long walk. They're VERY family centric). Jacks are sharp as a tacks, athletic, and hilarious big dogs in a little bodies. Unlike other dogs that have broken our hearts, we've found that Jacks want to be with us as much as we want to be with them. They always come when called and are basically little shadows. For example, when we go to dog parks where we can take him off his leash and let him run and play with other dogs, Lando just sits down and stares at us. When I take a shower, he waits outside by the door. He's also my number one, weekend sleep-in buddy, and my number two writing cheerleader (he snoozes on my lap while I write), and he is always super eager to learn whatever we want to teach him. In short, Lando the Jack Russell really stole our hearts.

So we're getting another one.

And in preparation for this blessed event, we've been training Lando so he doesn't teach the new puppy some of his bad habits-i.e. picking fights with the biggest 230lb dog on the block. I'm also cleaning and puppy streamlining the house, essentially, I'm in heavy "nesting mode." Do you doubt the heaviness of my nesting?? Let's just say it's so heavy, that we now have new sheets, weekender bags, and dinner plates that actually match. I mean, what would the puppy think if he saw that we didn't have matching dinner plates? 

The puppy doesn't care. 

Orrr....DOES he?

 (he doesn't).

Josh is totally rolling with my nesting insanity like a champ. But I don't think he fully remembers. 

PUPPIES. 


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I adopted Lando as an itty bitty puppy (in a different relationship) and I'm still a little shell-shocked from puppyhood 8 1/2 years later. Puppies are cute for a reason: so you don't murder them. They're destructive little shits that test every ounce of your patience. 
So. it. is. good. to. be. as. prepared. as. possible. 
Get all that stuff you've been meaning to do, done (match those plates, tile that backsplash, take that one last vacation, buy the puppy stuff before the puppy comes), 
because
game over man.  


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Your life is going to revolve around house training and obedience training for a LOOONG time. There will be poops. There will be pees. There will be damage to things that you love and cost a lot of money if you don't prepare.

So for the preparation, you're going to need stuff to protect your pup and your home.
You're going to make it rain cash money.  



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To help with that, I HIGHLY recommend spending $19.99 on the PetSmart Puppy Guide. 
(This is NOT a sponsored post by the way). This PetSmart puppy guide is full of savings and coupons for stuff you will need. up to $250 in savings on collars, food, food dishes, leashes, crates, treats, toys, gates, play pens, obedience classes, microchipping etc. But, it also entitles your puppy to that initial health and wellness vet exam for FREE (that's usually more than than double $19.99 right there). Your new puppy will also get a free bath. Look, I'm terrible, just terrible with coupons (I don't do 'em) but this coupon and savings book is absolutely worth it and I'm so glad I got it because here's what I needed to buy. 

My New Puppy Shopping List

• quick release collar (Hipster puppy gets a buffalo plaid fabric collar by Elmo's Closet)
• 6' leash
• foldable crate with plastic tray
• puppy play pen fence
• Snuggle Puppy to ease those first nights away from Mom and litter mates
• teething toys
• balls (Jacks love balls)
• 2 training clickers
• 51 Tricks Puppy Book by Kyra Sundance 
•  multiple fleece crate mats that can go in the washer
•  dog poo bags
• dog poo bag dispenser
• small, training treats
• dorky treat training bag with pocket holster
• water and food dishes
• puppy shampoo
• puppy training pads
• puppy gate
• stain & odor remover spray
• paper towels
• puppy nail clippers
• puppy toothbrush and toothpaste
• puppy quick wipes  
• NEW TOYS FOR LANDO  (don't forget your first dog!)    

So yeah. We're walking into this pet project with our eyes wide open and we're becoming a two dog family. It's going to be hairy for a bit, but it's also going to be really great. I can't wait to introduce you to our newest family member.

 
                                              Your Bosom Friend in Pittsburgh,

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Gray Matters

 

photo: Kathryn Stabile

I'm going to break ranks with my fashion blogger sistren and be the devil's advocate today. I'm not anxiously awaiting warmer weather or pushing spring fashion. The older I get, the more I find myself understanding the value of winter. I like that the colors of the earth fall drab and the physical evidence of life tucks itself away for a later date. Life goes inward. Literally, metaphorically, financially, spiritually, all those things. I'm okay with drab. I'm okay with dark. Once the Christmas tree is on the curb, that means there's nothing going on. Fine with me.

photo: Kathryn Stabile

Our brains are wired for stimuli. Mine perhaps more so. Here's a confession. I'm ADD. I'm not talking self-diagnosed. I'm talking straight up. By several doctors. Back in the day even, before it was ADHD and just plain old ADD. I did all the tests. Had electrodes taped to my skull. My brain is wired differently than your brain, but I haven't noticed it for the past twenty-two years because of all the Adderall and Ritalin. God, I love em both. Adderall more. I don't care who knows it. I've become a super productive member of society thanks to them. But when you get married and get to be a certain age and start entertaining the idea of children, 
the Doc says, Maybe you shouldn't be on the Adderall...it's safer to be on Ritalin in case you accidentally get pregnant.
Okay Doc, I says, I'll go back on the Ritalin.
so I went back on Ritalin. It's not as awesome as Adderall, but still way better than coffee. Or diet pills.
But then a couple years go by, you finally finish your first draft, and you really get to be a certain age where whether you're ready or not, it's time to knuckle down and start having the kind of S-E-X that 50% of country thinks God created it for.
The Doc says, Life begins at...well, let's just say practically immediately. You won't know it of course until you get a positive pregnancy test though.
Sooo, I says.
Don't take the Ritalin, he says, unless you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you aren't pregnant.
I scratch my head.
So I guess that only leaves when I'm menstruating, I says.
Yeah, he says, yeah it does.
This is going to be difficult, but anything worth doing is worth doing right, I tell myself and sneer like Billy Idol. If I can even have kids at all, I can't be having speed babies.

photo:  Kathryn Stabile

  
It's been a couple of months of you know. On one hand you feel sexy and on the other, you start regarding yourself like a science experiment. I noted that my breasts swelled up a lot, more than my usual PMS. Last week I had a brief and candid conversation with one of my friends, Do you think that means...? She squealed and said, Maybe!!

Yesterday, I texted my friend, False alarm.
Are you sad? she asked. 
No, but I miss the amphetamines, I texted back. 

Then I thought she probably needed to see a picture of James Bond in a terrycloth romper and so I texted her that.

Re-commence with the randomness I mostly left behind when I was 14.  

So I'm here and unmedicated for the most part. I'm an adult with rekindled ADD. ADD.2 
It's taking some getting used to. If you follow my instagram stories, you'll know that certain noises shut me down. I have olfactory triggers too. Don't get me started on visual stimuli. Just seeing college girls run in packs with their ponytails swinging in unison triggers some vestigial instinct within me. They look like gazelles with twitchy tails on the African prairie and part of me wants to give chase.  Like I said, my brain is wired differently than yours. 

photo: Kathryn Stabile

So after a weird, very personal, and impulsive detour, let me get back to the main point of this post. I look forward to the quiet winter months. I enjoy the gentle nuances of gray. I enjoy being swathed in it and the mental stasis that comes from it. It's nice to have that down time, to turn inward. I find when there are less distractions, it's easier to find that inner strength, not to hope and dream and hustle, but to catch your breath, blend in, and just be, if only for a moment.
 

photo: Kathryn Stabile

What I Wore: 

Jacket: old Anthropologie
Long sleeve: old Ann Taylor Loft
Striped tank: old J.Crew
Skirt: I made this myself in 2000, it's reversible. I got the fabric from the Herman Miller remnant store in Zeeland, Michigan. Possibly the last thing I designed and sewed myself.
Boots: Freebird Coal by Steven Here! (I wore them last year,HERE .)

Your Bosom Friend in Pittsburgh, 

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