Puppy Love

A while back I posted about an expected new addition to our family. About a month ago Hazel finally joined us, and she has turned our lives completely upside-down. All the carpets have been temporarily rolled up, doggie barriers have been erected in strategic locations throughout the apartment, my nightly Law & Order fix has been replaced with The Dog Whisperer, and I've been getting up before 7 a.m.

In short, things are all topsy-turvy.

She is half golden retriever, half poodle. They call them golden-doodles. I wish I were kidding.

She is a clumsy, shoe-chewing, tail-wagging fuzzball.

But she turns those sweet brown eyes your way, and her puppy exuberance is so infectious, that playing fetch and getting drooled on suddenly seems like a perfectly thrilling way to pass an evening.

We named her Hazel after the lead character in Richard Adams' classic novel Watership Down, which Ash and I both read in the spring and loved.

(We initially thought of naming her "Fiver" for another character in the book, but that was rapidly shot down by a number of critics. I think the words "worst dog name in history" may have been mentioned. Suffice it to say we won't be sharing the names of our future children.)

But Hazel suits her, don't you think?

Welcome to the family, Hazel.