by Hope
Before you say it, I am struggling. Struggling with my kids growing up and moving out and being far away. I mean, I’m good, but it’s hard. My whole life has been built around being mom. It’s a real change to not be needed in that role so much.
So I did something…I got a puppy! A free puppy. Hello, Facebook Buy Nothing group! A whole litter was posted for free. They said the mom was a Shar pei, the dad unknown and they would be ready in 4-5 weeks. I jumped on it.
And here she is…my new baby, Addie! And yes, I do snuggle her every afternoon after work just like a baby. All my other dogs are adjusting and actually for the first time playing. It is amazing to see. (For those that don’t know, we’ve been fostering dogs for years, they are all older and pretty emotionally damaged from their previous life.)
Addie follows me everywhere inside and out. She is finally sleeping through the night. And I took her to Tractor Supply vet day for her first round of shots and de-worming (right around $100) a couple of weeks ago. She’s also started going to the weekly outdoor concerts with me in our tiny town.
This was her first time on a leash, so it was a learning experience. I realize this is something else for my budget. But more than that, this is for my mental health. She makes me happy and comforts me and gives me someone to play ball with…and I love her!
Hope is a creative, solutions-focused business manager helping clients grow their business and work more efficiently by leveraging expertise in project management, digital marketing, & tech solutions. She’s recently become an empty nester as her 5 foster/adoptive kids have spread their wings. She lives with her 3 dogs in a small town in NE Georgia and prefers the mountains to the beaches any day. She struggles with the travel bug and is doing her best to help each of her kids as their finish schooling and become independent (but it’s hard!) She has run her own consulting company for almost twenty years! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally in a place to really focus on making wise financial decisions.
Congratulations, she is darling!!
Addie is adorable. Sometimes it takes a four legged friend to help us through tough times. I got my Lucy after dealing with depression. She keeps a smile on my face.
She’s so cute! Dogs are definitely good for our mental health. My 2 make me laugh every day.
Sharpeis sometimes have issues with their eyes, although Addie does not appear to be as wrinkly as her daddy likely is ,you’ll definitely want to make vet visits and treatment a line item in your budget. There is absolutely nothing worse than having a sick animal that needs several hundred dollars worth of treatment and trying to figure out where that money will come from. On another note are you ever going to give us a debt or budget update? I am curious as to where your student loan stands since you have purchased the house, helped cover school, helped purchase a car while trying to pay your own down fairly fast and have had medical issues to deal with. I get that finances are fluid but debt is incredibly easy to put off and pretend it does not exist as I am sure you are aware since these student loans have been in existence the entirety of your blogging at this site.