We got a dog.
Those who have been around here for a while will remember that we had to say goodbye to our 15 year old Labrador Baby in March when she was put-down for cancer. We have missed having a dog around, despite fun visits with family and friends’ pets.
This is Carolina. 
She is around 6 months old and a mix—the vet’s best guess is terrier/welsh corgi. We got her from a volunteer rescue here on the island. Animal control is a problem here. One large facility on the island routes most lost/ found animals. Once the animal enters the place, they have only five days for an owner or adoptive family to come get them before they are put-down. According to the rescue organization we adopted from, the shelter puts down 50-60 dogs a day, with no end in sight. There isn’t enough space or money for all the animals.
The organization we found visits the control facility regularly and pulls healthy dogs they believe they can place with families. The dogs (and cats) are placed with foster families who are able to learn about and share with prospective adoptive families a dog’s habits and temperament with kids, other animals, etc.
She was pulled from the animal control facility at the end of July and named Carolina. We met Carolina at her foster family’s house the second week of August. I went to the meeting with my guard up, ready to say no if there was any wackiness or twitching from this pound dog. She played well with our kids, as well as the foster family’s other dogs, and it was clear that she was a great match for our family.
We brought her home a couple days later and have enjoyed every minute. At the risk of jinxing myself, I will say that she came to us crate trained, and most nights she crawls in her crate about 9:30, we shut the door, and she sleeps until 5 or 6 in the morning. She’s playful when she wakes up, but after that, she is pretty relaxed, content to follow me around, sleep on the couch or tile, and chew her toys. We’ll see how things shift once all four kids are in school, but we are sure enjoying the newest Weems!
Our vicious guard dog in the front window. Sometimes she carefully takes the letter “M” from our name and we find it under the couch.