jasper.

If you read the title of this post, you've just read the name of our new dog! Jasper is a big old bumbling mess of legs and slobber, but it's amazing how much we already love him.

Back in August, David contacted a Weimaraner rescue society to inquire about any dogs that were in need of adoption. At the time, there weren't any, so we kind of put the idea out of our minds. Well, I did at least. (I'm learning that the secret inner life of my husband is actually quite active, and when his wheels get turning, there's no stopping him!) A few weeks ago, to our surprise, the woman from the rescue society emailed to tell us there was a four-year old male in need of a new home, as his owner was recently diagnosed with lupus and was unable to take care of him anymore. She said that because of the urgent nature of the situation, if we wanted him, we'd have to take him the next day. I panicked -- we weren't ready for a dog! We hadn't even asked our landlord for permission. Plus, I just couldn't commit to a dog being dropped off at our doorstep in twelve hours. Reluctantly, we said we couldn't take him that soon, so the woman told us she was sending him to a kennel a couple of hours away until the breeder was back from her holiday. (Apparently it's protocol to return your dog back to its breeder if you're unable to care for it.) It would be our responsibility to chat with the breeder later and discuss whether or not this was going to work for all of us.

About two weeks passed and we still hadn't heard from the breeder. To be honest, I sort of figured it wouldn't work out, maybe partly because of my apprehension (or pessimism) toward getting a dog. Then last week, I arrived home after class to a very happy husband who told me that the dog was ours and all we needed to do was drive out to the breeder to pick him up! As much as I hesitated on the inside, the excitement on David's face was just too adorable for me to fight this... After all, I did tell him months ago that I'd let him get a dog if we ended up moving to Winnipeg. ;) So, off to the country we went.

And now we have member number three of the McKay family, Jasper the Weimaraner. It's been both fun and frustrating getting used to this new transition in our life. He's a great dog -- so sweet and friendly and honestly just wants your lovin' ALL the time. He's trained already, which is a serious bonus when you're a new dog-owner, and apart from this weird thing he does when he's excited where he "smiles" (aka. shows his teeth and chomps at the air), he's actually the perfect dog. He definitely challenges my need for space, though, because when I get home and all he wants to do is play and be rubbed, I have to really step outside myself to give him that nurturing. Crazy that a dog can teach you a lesson about selflessness, huh? But he does. And I foresee him continuing to teach me that lesson over and over again during the next few years he's with us.

The neatest part of this whole story is that Jasper has been David's dream dog for a long time, but one we always knew we wouldn't be able to afford or be willing to fork out the money for, for that matter (these dogs cost at least $800!). And here we are, freely given this amazingly sweet, purebred Weimaraner. God is gracious, even in the small things.