Hey, we just met you,And our house is crazy,But we have lots of love,So be our baby <3And so George became ours.I don't really know how to begin our story of how we came to welcome George into our family, so maybe I'll start with what we know about his story and by the end of this our stories will come together in a beautiful dovetail with neat ends just oozing with love.George was born in a small town in Texas. No one knows when. It could have been in the winter (does Texas get winter?) or the hot middle of the day. Maybe it was during a severe storm and he and his brothers and sisters huddled their mother as the lightning flashed around them as they lay bunkered under a porch of an old abandoned house, listening to the bang of the half-hinged screen door slam against the weather beaten siding. Or worse, that he was born into a warm house and then abandoned by the owner, not wanting to care for the new lives they carelessly brought into the world by not spaying their pet. (Enter rage rant.) But however he came into this world and what he did during the first few months of his life are only known to him as he was found as a stray at about six months old, walking the streets of that small town.He lived in a shelter for another six months until he was about a year old, when he was adopted by a girl who had just moved out on her own and started college. He was her baby. She may not have had much clue as to how to care for a dog such as him (there's no judgment, these are just things you learn) but he was deeply loved.Then, a year and a half later, a kill ban for Pitbull breed dogs was established in her town. Even though no one knows for certain what breed he is, it has been accepted that he's part Labrador Retriever and part Pitbull, with his looks putting him at risk of being euthanized just for being a certain breed.The girl smuggled George to her mother's home in Houston and they made the hard decision that as more and more ban lists crept up throughout the States, their best bet was to see if they could get him adopted in Canada. An adoption society in BC agreed to take him on if they could find an adopter quickly. They found a family for George within a week.In October of 2018, George made his way from Texas to Vernon, BC. He came to live with a family with three children and an older German Shepard with a leg injury. While George is a medium-sized guy, he's pretty solid and likely needs a lot of exercise, more than that family was able to give him. They also felt that George never really settled with them-- he was always on high alert, never really involving himself in their activities, and never seeming to be comfortable. So after five months, they decided they should do what they felt best for him and find him a new home.And there we were.We had started looking for a new dog casually in the late fall. I know, as crazy as our lives are with a five-year-old, an already established dog, a parent that works out of town for weeks on end, and myself still trying to finish my course before (finally!) another little person was to join us, we felt that another dog may actually help us. Since our Beanie started Kindergarten, we've noticed Charles become sadder and sadder. No matter how many walks I take him on, how long we go, how much I'm home, how late I stay up playing with him, he wasn't happy. We finally pieced together that he was missing his best friend and favourite playmate: our daughter. They had grown up together and suddenly she was gone for almost 7 hours a day, only to come home, maybe visit with a friend, have some quiet time, eat dinner, and go to bed. There wasn't all the play time that he had been used to for years and years before. And apparently, I just wasn't making the cut as a suitable replacement.I guess it's because I can't tap into that childlike mindset that Charles needs from, well, a child. It's for that same reason that, confession, I don't play with my daughter. We read, we cook, we colour, we sing, we play board games, etc. but I've never been one to pick up a stuffy and play act with her. That's her own magical world that I am so disconnected from that I only end up stifling her creativity. It almost feels that way with Charles. Tiny person and he have wonderful games of hide and seek crossed with tag crossed with a tea party that also involves fairies and magic and while Charles may not understand exactly what he's doing, he follows her and happily complies with her requests. When I throw a toy, he stares at me, waiting for me to do something else, like twirl after it while singing at the top of my lungs. I'm sure Charles loves me and we do have great fun hiking and snuggling, but he needed someone to play with the way he wants to play.So we were on the hunt for another dog.We have inquired about a few over the last few months. The most serious was a guy named Cosmo and he was perfect in every way except one: he hated men. Which I don't blame him one bit as he was beaten within an inch of his life by a "man" and is in turn very aggressive with strange men he doesn't know. The rescue agency felt that if a man was properly and slowly introduced, it could be overcome, but with John working out of town for weeks at a time, they didn't think it would be a good idea as Cosmo would get used to a house full of girls and may act out when John was home. And for some reason John wasn't on board with never coming home just so we could have this sweet boy.And on the search continued.Then we seen the courtesy post for George through an organization that I was following on Facebook.And we loved his silly face.I emailed the owner and after three weeks of back and forth emails, piecing together his story, his personality, his needs, I took Charles to meet him and there was instant love between us all.As I crouched down to pet him, he stuck his little face into mine and stared at me, nose to nose. Then I heard a strangled gasping noise from above and looked to see that his owner was very affected by how trusting George was of me, saying that he never responds to anyone like that, not even in their family. I kept calling him over and scratching him and he leaned into my hand and continued to stare at my face. All the lady could keep repeating was "I can't believe how relaxed he is, he's never this relaxed."And so, another week went by until John and Little Foot could meet him. Then yesterday arrived. We met, they loved, it was settled. We left the house with one dog and came home with two.And it has been going scarily well. We keep waiting for something awful to happen, but everything is going really smoothly. There's no possession or aggression from either pup, they play and play and play and then rest near each other until they get a second wind and play and play and play some more. They're currently bashing into my chair as they roll around on the ground beside me because they want to keep playing but are too tired to stand.These boys of ours <3While they may be different sizes, Charles being half a foot taller and half a foot longer, George holds his own by being a hefty little guy. They're pretty evenly matched. The poor little guy does need to lose some weight though, but once he's out on hikes with us, I'm sure he'll be in tiptop shape soon. He also has no undercoat or fur on his feet, SO HE NEEDS BOOTIES AND SWEATERS! I'm so excited! (John has put his foot down about Charles needing these things and has put an end to my dressing him up, buuut George NEEDS them, so he can't argue.)I can't lie though, I was a mess yesterday thinking about it not just being Charles and I anymore. I lay on the floor, spooning Charles, sobbing (or ugly crying, according to John), wondering if this was the right thing for our family. I was excited to have George, I knew it would be good, but I was so sad at how everything was changing. I was reacting the same as I already do when I clutch my daughter tight, thinking about it not just being me and my sweet beanie anymore in a few short months. I was excited for the future, but so sad to let go of the present.But George is here now and we are all happy. He has fit right into our lives and we can't help but feel so lucky to have found him. We've made it through the first night of the rest their sweet doggy lives in blissful peace and I think we're all going to live well together. Our family just keeps growing, adding exponentially more love with each new addition.And we are so happy to have you join us, our sweet George. Welcome to our family.

The Day George Came Home, For Hopefully the Last Time.