Favorites on Friday -- puppy breath
April 15, 2011 I warned everyone on my personal Facebook earlier this week that I would soon become one of those people. The kind who inundate you with photos of their pets and updates on every naughty little thing they do and general big-eyed photographic adorableness, because we just got word early Wednesday morning that on a farm near Harrisburg, our puppy had been born. I have been waiting for this like a pregnancy, since the loss of our beloved Jonah in January. There has been no time in my life that I have been without a Newf for this long, and it has left such a hole in our family. It seemed serendipitous that we found a farm called Opening Heavens Doors, with lots of kids, fainting goats and in-house Newfs that are bred but are pets/members of the family first. That they were expecting puppies this spring, when our grief might not be so fresh, seemed perfect. And now he's here.
So prepare, blog followers, Facebook friends, and Twitter fans to be inundated with puppy updates and photos as though we have just had a fourth, very hairy kid.
LOOK AT THIS. Two days old, the most beautiful little bruiser and already loaded with Newfy smoochiness.
Sometime in early June, hopefully in time for J's birthday, he will come home to our family, for a lifetime of couch lounging, pond-mucking, nature walking, and ridiculous canine spoilage.
The Name...
We're in the process of choosing a name. In order to narrow it down, we decided to stick with the Biblical. Not because we're so churchy, but because his predecessor was Jonah.
Feel free to vote by leaving a comment either here or on my Facebook author page for the best name:
1.) Sampson-- Hayden actually picked this out years ago, saying one day he would like to have a Newf puppy named Sampson, and how it would be so appropriate since he would be hairy and strong. Drawback--the natural nickname for this is also the name of one of Hayden's buddies/hockey teammates.
2.) Levi -- because that's what that hot, nude hummin' and drummin' Matthew McConaughey named his kid.
And also, a great nickname would be The General Lee. If you know us, well, you know the Hoffmans love us some nicknames. I can't count how many variations on the woman's name Margaret our son Max answers to--Maggie, Marge, Marjene, Marjorie... Bring on your ridiculous gender-bender nail polish controversy J. Crew.
3.) Noah -- we were all originally drawn to this because of its similar consonants and sounds to Jonah. And because as a water rescue dog, a Newf could save you in a flood. But there are obvious drawbacks, like the fact that the first syllable sounds exactly like a word I might scream if I saw one of my boys chasing the other with the pneumatic nail gun. (This never happens.)
So bring it on--I want to hear your vote! And prepare yourselves, do whatever you need to do, block me from your feed, unfriend me, or if you want more, SUBSCRIBE, because the level of puppy cuteness around here is about to get downright silly.
Jonah, Opening Heavens Doors, Sampson, The Name Game, puppy breath | Categories: FAVORITES ON FRIDAY
Reader Comments (6)
I'm in for Levi, though I do love Sampson as a close second.
I'm all for SKY high levels of puppy cuteness surrounding your family, and want to hear every precious word about the adventure!
I vote for Noah, because it does follow Jonah so beautifully. Sampson is overused as an animals name, and Levi sounds too human. How about Mo(ses) to lead you to the promised land of milk and honey, where grief and mourning slowly fade away?
Lots of love to you, Jon and the kids Chandra...
Kris
OH! We didn't even think of MOSES!!!! Love this one Kris. Thanks!
I LOVE puppy updates - absolutely adored your post about Jonah. Of the names you listed I would vote for Sampson, but would also suggest you consider Barnabas. Barnabas in the Bible was a humble, gentle, guy who was a special companion to Paul for a long time - apparently a kind, gentle, mentor type of figure who always saw the best in people and helped bring it out. The name means "son of encouragement". Can't wait to see more puppy updates.
Thank you so much Lisa. I like Barnabas quite a bit, and also Moses, especially with the Newf's inherent tendency to sort of mosey as they walk. The giant black dog in my next novel is named Vader, which I considered briefly. Also tossed around were Boulder and Thunder. We'll just have to wait and see.
I can't wait to see him in person and get to know him. J and I were having coffee this morning in our special "mommy daddy coffee tea wine spot" Piper made for us in the kitchen with decorations and blankets and chairs and pillows, and he was musing that he wished we could have DAILY updates on our puppy. "I don't think you realize what a dog person I am," said the first man I dated who my Newf Dakota actually liked. Ones who came before him washed their hands after patting Dakota, or had to take so many allergy meds to be around him that they slept through most of our dates.
The truth is, we are both ridiculous nurturers and it has been almost four years since we had a little one to slather with affection. This puppy is SO anticipated and loved in advance. We know he is getting great care in his first family, but his forever family is just itching to welcome him home!
There's a really large list of available names, so let's not limit the field quite so much. I'm liking: Julius (the couch ruler), Goliath (if he's headed that direction), Ladaah (just so you can say it with a Scottish accent), Zeeb (because it means wolf and sounds deliciously silly), and—most especially—Belah (because it means destroyer, and it would be good to utter in disgust or horror).
Oh, and since your post was littered with double-hyphens, my typographic snobbery requires that I point out that on the Mac you can press option-shift-hyphen to get a proper em-dash.