Take the trash out and let the dog in...

Our appraisal has come and gone, thank goodness! Although I never did get the house completely in order, the lady said it looked great, took a few pictures, made some measurements and left. Strangely enough, the fifteen minutes she was here was a bit of a letdown given that I had prepared for it for a whole month. For something that took over my life for that length of time, she should have stayed and celebrated with me!! Oh well, several good things did come out of the cleaning spree. First, I actually put a major dent in the task that has hung over my head for years. Secondly, I am feeling much better about staying home now that I'm accomplishing something meaningful. I have vowed to stay on top of it each week so that it will never become so overwhelming again. And lastly, we can actually have people in to visit for a weekend or just come over for dinner. Or open the front door when the pizza is delivered instead of going out through the garage.

In the meantime, my other half has been in contact with a person who rescued a Golden Retriever from a shelter on the day it was to be put down. She had gone in to adopt another breed but couldn't leave this little guy to his fate. She took him home with the intention of immediately giving him away. My other half apparently saw her offer to adopt him at the same time she posted it. They began emailing about a week ago, and she has promised us first chance at adopting him. Somehow, this all managed to go right over my head since my head was buried in the stuff I was cleaning. I can't decide whether it is a good idea or not, but if the dog ever makes it to our home, he'll be here to stay! The five-month-old puppy is a white-blond, smallish male. He was dropped off at the shelter overnight with no information. According to his rescuer, he has obviously been abused and is frightened of almost everything. My heart is telling me to go for it, of course! Staying at home gives me the best opportunity to work with him to overcome his fears. But four dogs? Well, I guess if people can have four kids, we can have four dogs. Hubby drove over an hour to see the puppy last night, but didn't bring him home. I think that was just a waste of gas, if anyone asks me. We had several calls and messages asking if we got him, so it seems he has told everybody about getting this dog. However, when he went to pick him up, he said he wasn't quite sure about it. I think he just doesn't want to overwhelm the other three dogs we already have! He's worried about how they will react. I don't think it's going to be a problem, since each time we bring one in, the rest just smell him/her and then go back to what they were doing. They are so accepting of another pack member. So, hubs is going back tonight to get the dog. Waste of gas. And of course, we've already named him. What does that say? My hubby worked for a short time for the NY Yankees and has always been a huge fan, so that is how we got started on the current names. We've had Yogi and Berra (brothers), Maris, Guidry and now....drumroll....Munson! He was the catcher when Guidry pitched for the Yankees, so it seemed like the name to choose. I'm sure I'll be posting about Munson soon.

As I said, I'm really feeling good about things right now. I had felt guilty for so long about staying home. But my employer has decided to let me do the bookkeeping at home, and I got a call last week from someone who wants me to work in her boutique a few days per week. And I'll probably soon have another baby to love and train.

Bookkeeping, boutiques and babies. Sounds pretty good to me!

(Image used is entitled "Coming Home" and is by everydayeros at Etsy.)