Thor

Thor will be 11 weeks old on Wednesday! Sometimes it seems like we've had him for weeks and weeks, and then I look at the calendar and realize it hasn't even been two full weeks yet. It puts things in perspective for me. I desperately want him to be perfectly obedient and do exactly what I want. You won't be shocked by this, but he doesn't.

He's got his own little personality. He doesn't like the sun, can't really blame him. He's got so much fur, it must be unbearably hot. He loves to eat mulch and dig in the gardens around our condo. He is a creature of habit. When we walk or go "out" he strongly prefers to walk the same paths, we can even predict exactly where he will hop up from the street to the sidewalk. What an amazing memory he must have to remember these things.

Today, I came back to work after the weekend, and realized how much I was whining about how hard having a puppy is. While it's true that it is more work than I anticipated, it's still an amazing experience. It reminds me of listening to Mum talk about having three small children. She could have called it the terrible two's or she could reframe it and call it the terrific twos (which she did). I can think of this time as terrible, and hard, and exhausting, and think of Thor as stubborn, and misbehaving. Or I can embrace the fact that everyday is something new for him. There's a new smell he HAS to check out. Or a new game that he gets so excited about he goes nuts. I can love him and support him, or I can resent this stage of growth.

So I am going to try and write a little bit regularly about doggie life and what I'm learning. Focus on the amazing journey and his incredible growth and development.