Say Hello to Our New Family Member

For almost a year, now, Jon and I have been discussing getting a third dog. Mainly because our dogs are getting older, and we wanted them to still be young enough to have the energy to play with a young pup. We talked and talked and talked. We couldn’t really decide on a breed or whether we should rescue or buy from a breeder. Do we get another Golden Retriever? Do we get a Goldendoodle? Do we get a different “doodle” of some sort?

Just when we had decided to give things a break and stop looking for a bit, something unexpected happened. Josie was showing signs of a UTI, so I had to take her into the vet. When we got there, we walked in right behind a gorgeous Golden Retriever and his owner (Rebecca). As we sat waiting for our appointments, we made some small talk. I ended up asking her where she got her Golden Retriever from. I thought, for sure, I was going to hear about a breeder, and then realize they were way too expensive for us to consider.

Her response? “Well, actually, I’m about to have a litter of puppies any day, now!” Say whaaat? I think my heart literally jumped out of my chest. We exchanged information, and said we’d keep in touch. I was expecting to go home and share this story with Jon and be shut down, so I was trying not to get my hopes up.

Turns out, Rebecca wasn’t a big-time breeder. She simply allowed her sons to breed their own dogs once to teach them the value of responsibility. Just three days after meeting Rebecca, she messaged me to say that mama was having her babies! Nothing like a litter of 11 puppies to teach you the value of responsibility, right?

After a lot of discussion (and giving Jon my best puppy dog eyes), we agreed to get a puppy. In fact, we were able to snag pick of the litter! Three weeks later, we went to see the pups and take their very first pictures. Rebecca used to be a photographer, so she basically offered up her puppies to me to do with as I pleased. Needless to say, I was in heaven! I am an animal-lover through and through, and Golden Retrievers are definitely my jam. <3

We picked out our little girl when she was around 4 weeks old. We just knew she was the one for us. Her cinnamon-colored coat and her crimped ears could make any heart melt. We did one more photo shoot with the entire litter when they were 5 weeks old. You can see that session here. Before we knew it, we were taking our little love home for good!

We’ve had her for about three weeks, now (she’s almost 10 weeks old). Her name is Bodhi Blieu, and we couldn’t be more in love with her. For those wondering about her name – she was named after one of my favorite beers. Hahahaha! Georgetown Brewing Co has a beer called Bodhizafa. However, they named the beer after a character played by Patrick Swayze in a movie called Point Break. We just so happened to LOVE the movie, too! So, it’s a win-win. If you haven’t seen it, stop whatever it is you’re doing right now and enjoy. =). As for the name Blieu, well, there’s no special story for that part. Jon really wanted to name our dog Blieu for the sole reason that when people ask why we named her Blieu, we could say, “Because she’s red!” Haha! So we compromised and used it for her middle name.

So Bodhi Blieu, it is! And now that I’ve thoroughly talked your ear off about her, here are some of my favorite pictures of her since week three. =)