"I thought you weren't having any more kids?"

Don't flinch just yet, I'm not pregnant! If I were, I would have alot of explaining to do! On Saturday, we made a family decision to get a puppy. I have said for awhile now, that I would never get another puppy. We got Kida when she was about a year old, and she was more or less house trained. A Bunco friend of mine has a pair of Golden Retrievers that just had pups last week. I got to see them on Friday, more importantly, Karissa got to see them on Friday. We have been telling her all along we weren't getting one. Well, Steve and I got to talking and some of my friends made some really good points. Our kids are nearly 12 and 8 now. They don't remember a time without Kida. Kida is getting up there in age now, and is starting to slow down. A new pup will probably put some youthful spark in her eye, and see her become more active. Raising a pup will also instill a sense of responsibility and hopefully, caring, loving patience in the kids as they work together to raise and train her. Golden Retrievers are well know for being among the easiest to house train, and are very intelligent dogs. We have told them up front, that they will not sit back and watch their Dad and I do everything, they WILL help train and clean up after her. They seem pretty dedicated. Just to be sure, we recently purchase a brand new Bissell "Pet Pro" steam cleaner! Good foresight on our part! Karissa is busy researching the breed and house training tips. She is already up on techniques for crate training and positive discipline. We have about 6-7 weeks before we can bring "Kona" home. It's gonna be a pretty wild ride have a "baby" in the house again.