Our Puppy: Away Play!

Okay, peeps.

I’ve had a massive Life With Puppy post in draft form for ages.

But, well, life with puppy is the reason that post is only in draft form.

Honestly, I could type a million words—positive, negative, and everything in between—about our evolving dog life,  but for the purposes of this specific post, I’ll narrow the topic of conversation a bit.

Long and short: I knew a puppy would be a heckuva lot of work. That’s why I held off for years. But I didn’t know just how much a puppy would impact me psychologically. 

First off, it’s worth admitting that I don’t really mother in half measures. That’s just not how I’m built—for my children, and apparently, my canine child.

I’m just not wired to be that person who can co-exist but go about my business with a puppy. I’m a sucker for pouring love and attention into my “kids” and giving it my all. Which means our Coda puppy has impacted my life in a major way.

Additionally, it’s worth admitting that a dog was never something I longed for. It wasn’t a bucket list item or something I felt I needed deep in my soul. This was for my kiddos—and that’s a very different starting point for a responsibility like this. Taking it on for others versus taking it on for yourself are two very different things.

I’ve been a fulfilled, hands on, in-the-weeds Mama for nearly a dozen years, but I’m not gonna lie: I’ve enjoyed the tiny bit of independence I’ve gained over the past couple of years as my human children have aged up, and this puppy addition set me back, BIG TIME.

Now.

All that said, my Coda girl has wormed her way so fully into my heart that there’s no turning back! 

Anybody who’s witnessed me with her knows I’m a goner—and so is she. She’s a total Mama’s girl, that one. The love is mutual. And, honestly, I’m so grateful I’m experiencing the joys and challenges of having an animal, but… 

There still needs to be a balance. For my sanity!

Enter: doggie day camp.

This is my girl last week on her first visit to her puppy play place—and eventual boarding site. :)

Again, because I don’t do anything in half measures, I made site visits to the potential facilities I was considering, and this one won by a landslide.

The vibe is so open and peaceful and posh and happy—plus, the signature color is the mint green of all my kitchen appliances, ha. (Versus the other place, which utilized a signature red; my least favorite color, ha).

It’s located in the heart of my errand and life zone, the staff is amazing and loving (hence the above pic!) there are grooming and vet services on site, the app for booking is seamless and I couldn’t be happier with our first impressions.

Plus…doggy splash pads/pools! (In the shape of dog bones, no less.)

Even better…there are cameras in every zone so I can peek in on my girl whenever she’s there, which is a stinking riot. 





Coda went for her inaugural visit last week, and came back adorably energized, manic, and shell-shocked—just like every preschooler ever, ha. The staff even sent me home with this adorable report that just slayed me:

Honestly, the impetus behind finding this outlet was to prepare for our eventual need to board Coda—a situation that will happen before long, when we hit Spring Break. I never went into it with the intention of adding any kind of puppy camp to our lives, but holy Halleluiah, it felt like a revelation.

For an extremely affordable price, I can send my girl for either a half or full day of play, and it’s a win/win. 

She gets that hyper, play-with-friends, enjoy-the-outdoors activity in a way that makes her super comfortable there for eventual boarding. And I get MY FREEDOM!

She went again today, sort of last minute since we had a beauuuuutiful day before more freezing temps blow through.

It was her last chance for a couple weeks because she’s being spayed next week, so I’m very grateful it worked out. And honestly, I’m anticipating this becoming a regular part of our routine. Perhaps once a week—or at least every other week.

Life with a puppy has brought so many joys, but soooooo much work that I’m unimaginably grateful for discovering this positive outlet that will give me some relief—and my girl some happy play.

So, YAY, for everyone, everywhere doing what they need to, in order to maintain sanity and be the happiest version of themselves.

Puppy Day Camp for the win!

Happy Almost Friday, peeps.

Over and out.