It's been a long time

Before our move J.J. cuddling with Spinner at bed time

It's been more than a year since I have posted anything about how J.J. and the kiddo are doing, and for that I'm sorry. Life happened and I got to be too busy to keep up here. So What's new? Everything! So much has changed for us and most of it in a good way.

J.J. relaxing on my bed when the kiddo isn't home

Our little family is know living on our own. We found a great apartment, and moved in February to our own place. It has been an adjustment for all of us. J.J. is settled in and very secure in our family now, he even goes up to my husband and asks for attention now without being scared. It's amazing how dogs can bounce back when the are put into a loving home!

When we moved he had some adjustments to make and despite being unsure about them he faced his fears head on. Our new place has stairs, and he was terrified of them to the point that I had to carry him up and down them. That was no easy task for me or my husband. On one occasion he actually peed on Drew when being carried down stairs to be taken our side! I thought it was really funny, Drew was not amused. J.J. has one fear now and it seems to be one that he just can't or won't face and that is the kitchen floor. He won't walk on it at all. That's okay though because it's nice being able to cook without tripping over him.

J.J. relaxing on the new furniture after a long day of unpacking

He has made a lot of new friends since we moved too! Most importantly he gained a little sister! I'll post about her in a new post though since this one will be pretty long just catching up on his and Rori's new adventures!

J.J. has been spending a lot of time with me lately because Rori has started school now. He misses her during the day and lets her know every afternoon when she gets home with enthusiastic kisses and tail wags. Rori misses him too while she's gone during the day and she loves that he gets so excited when she comes home.
They both have adjusted very well to living in an apartment. Rori has made friends with some of the kids here and even had her first slumber party which J.J. was pretty excited about too. He loves kids, and was thrilled about there being more than usual in the apartment. Rori and I take him to the play ground a lot an he watches while she plays. He usually draws a crow of kids to him. Everyone of neighbor kids wants to pet and hug him him and he loves all the attention.

After school snuggles

Life has been very good for him in the 2 years since he was abandoned by his first family. J.J. turned 4 this past February (as far as the vet can tell). He still has some emotional issues but that's just par for the course with an abandoned pup, but he's getting better. This fall is going to test him a bit though because Rori has started school, American Heritage Girls (which is a Christian girls ministry that is very similar to scouting), and cheer leading. So she isn't home as much as she used to be. Me and him usually cuddle during the day while she's at school at least as much as his new little sister will allow.

Cuddles while going to a friend's house

Rori will cuddle with him when she gets home and she takes him outside every night after dinner. Life has settled and so has he. It's coming up on the 3 year anniversary of when he came into our lives, scared, abused, and abandoned. I'm so glad that he doesn't have to feel that way anymore. To whoever it was that abandoned him, I will never forgive you for inflicting the pain you have on him but thank you for putting this amazingly sweet, loving boy in our lives he enriches it so much by being here.

We survived the Mayan Apocalypse and Christmas

Rolling out the kiffle dough with Mimi

So the Myan Apocalypse has come and gone and the world is still here just as most of us knew we would be. We had a baking spree for Christmas and Rori is had a lot of fun helping me and my mother in law prepare the kiffles. JJ was sitting in the kitchen waiting for something fall on the floor like most dogs do, at least until Drew and Rori started using a remote control truck to chase poor JJ around the house. They both got the threat of a cancelled Christmas if they kept it up. I swear being married with a child is like having two children sometimes. JJ did snap at Rori again last night we aren't really sure if it was provoked or not. I think it was by Rori and Drew chasing him.

Rori's goodies for Santa

Christmas here was fun. Rori left Santa a thank you card for her presents along with a cup of coffee, some cookies, and an apple and orange.

 

She went to be with no problem too while Mommy, Daddy, and Mimi were hard at work wrapping presents and putting together her scooter. JJ kept  us company as he has taken to sleeping with Drew and me for some reason.

JJ making himself comfy on my side of the bed.

 I had to wake up Rori to open her presents at 7:30 am and even then she really didn't want to get up until JJ jumped on her and started licking her face. JJ laid quietly while the presents were opened and didn't act disturbed with the loud squealing, rustling paper, and noisy toys.

JJ getting love while Rori opens her gifts.

We also got a bunch of snow on Christmas so JJ and Rori got to play in the snow. They both had a blast. Rori made a snow man with Daddy and JJ was having fun trying to catch snowballs.

Drew and Rori making a snowman

Rori getting ready to play in the snow

So that was our Holidays here. We were pretty busy after the holidays with my brother in law and his family here but that is for another post.

Preparing for the Holidays

I'm sorry I haven't updated this in a while, with Christmas and the start of my Radiology Tech program coming up I have been pretty busy.

JJ earned a submission to Dogshaming after eating Drew's favorite hat and peeing on the carpet 10 seconds after he came inside. Rori is learning that JJ is not as forgiving as Belle is and will react if hurt. She got snapped at a few days ago and although alarmed by it I wasn't mad at him and I don't think he is a threat to her. He was just telling Rori (in a very adamant way) that what she did hurt. Just so we don't look like terrible parents we did tell her to stop and what would happen if she didn't.

JJ refused to sit up for his Dogshaming photo and a second after the picture was snapped he tried to eat  one of Rori's toys.

He and the rest of our pack also decided to take themselves for a walk. JJ and Beau came back on their own, My mother in law had to hunt Belle down. Belle also ate six packages of chocolate gelt wrapper and all and a Chunky bar! She wasn't sick from it and hasn't died but boy does she smell like something crawled up her butt and died.

JJ is also warming up to Drew though he refuses to sleep on our bed if Drew is in it. The newness of JJ has worn off for Rori and she has even said she wants a puppy instead of dogs. I told her that's too bad we are a family. We didn't get rid of her when she got bigger and we aren't going to do that to our pack they are for life. 

We are getting ready for Christmas and this year my mother in law and I thought it would be nice to do family traditions we remember from when we were kids as well as the ones that my husband grew up with.
My mother in law is half Hungarian and she grew up with a lot of Eastern European foods and traditions. My mom is half German so we grew up with a lot of German traditions (even though my mom didn't celebrate holiday except Passover). So we are going to do a Christmas Eve breakfast with some of our favorite foods for those traditions. For me it's Latkes (potato pancakes) and Kugel (sweet noodle casserole with apples in it) that remind me of the holidays growing up. For my mother in law it is Beigli (traditional Hungarian nut or poppy seed roll), Kiffle (not sure exactly what this is but I'll find out soon enough), and Pashka (traditional Eastern Bread we aren't making until then I think). For me this will help Rori know more about her heritage as well as continue family traditions that have been practiced for years. We want to incorporate more than just traditional food but I need to do more research on the traditions of Hungary and pick which ones we want to use. 
On that note Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanza, and Happy Yule. Enjoy the season! 

Treatment has Begun!

JJ riding to the vet (sorry it's a little blurry)

Today JJ started his heart worm treatment, I had to sneak him out Rori's room this morning to get him to vet. Rori slept through it and when she woke up she was okay with him being gone because the other dogs were gone too (Belle and Beau had their annual check ups today). The back seat was a tangle of dog parts and the seat is now covered with fur.
When we got to the vet's office Beau our huge great dane mix was scared by a little Shih Zhu and hid until it was their turn to go into the exam room. JJ didn't want to be there but he did good waiting his turn. The vet had him all day long. Rori kept asking when we were going to go pick JJ up she was impatiently waiting for him to come home.

Rori comforting JJ after he got home 

When we finally went to get JJ we talked to vet again and asked him questions about what to expect from JJ while he was going through treatment. The vet said JJ's infection was was a stage one infection so it should be relatively easy on him but that he would be sore for a few days and that he could not exercise until a few months after all his treatment was finished. If he gets his heart going too much he could have a pulmonary embolism and die (basically a blood clot that gets caught in his lungs). JJ will be sleeping with Drew and me for a few days until his back isn't sore anymore. We don't want to risk Rori hurting him accidentally and getting nipped. During human dinner time tonight JJ went to Rori's room and went to sleep on the bed. I think everything that happened today took a toll on him. Even as I'm typing JJ is passed out at my feet.

He was awake long enough to eat and then love on Drew for a bit though. We will have to watch him for a while and he won't be cured for sure until late January, but he is on his way to recovery and soon will be as if he was never sick and that is exactly what we want for him.

Belle and JJ loving on Drew

Christmas time for JJ

Rori helping JJ to groom Beau. ICK!

JJ will go in on Monday to begin treatment for heart worms. YAY!! I'm pretty excited about that. Rori doesn't know that JJ is even sick so she won't understand why he is going to the vet again, but I'll just have to deal with her tantrum. I really don't want to tell her he has heart worms because she will be really worried about him. They haven't had many big adventures lately and are just taking things slow and calm. He has gotten the hang of their routine and is settling in really well to life with us. He has really bonded with Beau and they spend a lot of time playing together. The have also been licking each other on the living room floor. With Christmas coming up Rori wanted to get JJ a present so when we were at the store Thursday she got JJ a stocking, 2 dental chews, 2 Squeaky toys, and a new leash to match his collar and harness. She is excited to give it to him. She also wants for me to help her get him an engraved tag for his collar, we'll see if we do that before Christmas.

Bedtime for JJ and Rori

Christmas is going to be very busy for us and we aren't sure how JJ will react when there are 3 more people here and another dog. My brother and sister in law, their son, and Spinner will be coming for a visit before going to their duty station overseas. Spinner however will be staying with us for the rest of his days. We hope he does well with JJ because they have never met before unlike Spinner and the other dogs. I will post on JJ's treatment soon.

A New Collar for JJ

JJ wearing his new collar and rabies tag

When we took JJ to the vet we also stopped to look at new toys, collar, and harness for him. Our plan was to give more ownership to Rori by letting her choose things for JJ. Rori had no problem choosing toys for him. She chose a tug rope, a squeaky duck, and a squeaky penguin toy. Collars however she had some impracticality problems. She kept choosing collars that were spiked, or girly, or too small for JJ. In the end I chose for her based on her personal preferences. The one I chose had a matching lead and harness and was safe for the other dogs and Rori. JJ looks more comfortable in his new collar and harness. It's always nice to have things that fit. He looks pretty happy to me.

JJ looks happy with his new collar on

Burying the Hachet

Drew, JJ, and Beau breaking the rules of "no puppies on the sofa"

Drew has been trying everything to get JJ to be at ease with him. Drew has taken him for walks on his own, he has tried giving him his food at dinner time, he even went so far as to share two bacon cheeseburgers from Jack In The Box with him to try to bribe him to like him. Until recently it hasn't really worked and we aren't sure what finally did it but JJ has overcome his shyness with Drew and now goes up to him for attention and has even accepted food from him finally. We are so thrilled that JJ is overcoming what ever made him act that way. Drew is still slightly concerned about JJ's protectiveness of Rori. Right now he shows concern by getting between Rori and whoever is trying to discipline her or as was the case last night whoever is rough housing with her, and we're okay with that we just don't want it to escalate to growling or biting.

Getting belly rubs from Drew