Meet Rylie

We welcomed a dog into our family last night! He is a 2 year old golden retriever named Rylie. We've been considering a dog for several months, but something kept holding us back, which made me think that it just wasn't the right time for us. The story of us getting Rylie was the perfect scenario, and the perfect dog for us!

Yesterday, out of nowhere, Tucker mentioned that he was sad that his Ginky (Brinkley, our dog that passed away several months ago) wasn't here on Earth with us. He pleaded, "Please, can Ginky come down from Heaven and live with us again. I miss Ginky." This didn't really come as a surprise, since he talks about her from time to time, and he mentions her as we say prayers at night. After we talked about it, Tucker decided that since he couldn't ever get Ginky back, he wanted a big, nice dog.

Well, a couple of hours later, my friend Julie posted on Facebook that they were looking for a good home for their new dog. Said friend has a 2 year old daughter who is still working on walking and balance due to severe orthopedic issues, and their big golden retriever just wasn't the right dog for their family at this time. Without even consulting with Richard first, I called her up and said we were interested! Richard and Tucker have really been wanting a dog ever since Brinkley passed away. I've been more hesitant because when adopting/rescuing a dog (we'd have it no other way), you really never know what the dog will be like once you get them home. And throw two toddlers into the mix, and who knows what kind of situation you may be faced with! In this case, I knew that Rylie was loved by his family, was wonderful with their two kids, and was already house trained...bonus! Of course Richard was on board. It just so happens that Julie lives in our neighborhood, so they were thrilled that Rylie would be so close, with people they knew and trusted.

I don't think this could have worked out more perfectly. In this case, the right dog literally fell into our hands. A golden retriever was one of the breeds we had talked about wanting, since they are so wonderful with children and known to be a great family dog.

Rylie is just perfect! He is seriously one of the sweetest dogs I've ever been around. Tucker is beyond thrilled to have a "brother." Last night as we showed Rylie around his new home, Tucker said, "Rylie, I'm gonna teach you lots of things." Then, he turned to me and asked, "Can Rylie get on the couch??????"

We LOVE our newest addition to the family!