Introducing... "UNCLE STU"

So... if you didn't already know this, We had committed to buying a new puppy since we lost Kemper. We decided it was time to go for it again.
Well, when Kemper returned home, it was only 2 weeks before the day we were to pick up the new puppy. Matt decided that regardless of Kemper being back home, we were still getting this new puppy that we had already grown somewhat attached to.
So... here he is!


Here are a couple pictures of the week before we brought him home when he was still with his 9 siblings.



If you're wondering about the name... Here is the story... I had thought of the name Stuart, I thought it sounded like a good dog name. Matt liked it and the boys liked it. I then ended up looking up the meaning online just to see what Stuart means and thought the meaning was great... it means "Guardian of the home" perfect! then we told a few people here and there and got the funniest reactions. So we thought maybe there was a better name out there, but when Kemper returned to the picture we decided we had to name him uncle something (he truly is Kemper's uncle) so Uncle Stu just seemed like the best name for him! and the kids started calling him Uncle Stu and that was the end of that. He is called Stuey for the most part.

Here is Uncle Stu the day we brought him home! He loved chasing the boys on their scooters! He was exhausted though and whined almost the entire time he chased them.


Camden was so excited to have another puppy to bond with!


on his first weekend with us we took him on a walk/hike for about 2 hours! Again, he whined almost the entire way! Silly Dog!



Biggest Problem of a Black lab...they're hard to photograph!
most of the time you can't even see his eyes!!!


and Kemper is adjusting well! I think he actually likes having the playmate around! He was a little rough at first, but he's learning quickly. He's such a joy to have around the house! and a GREAT doggie!


And... Beyond the life of Dogs, we have done a few other things!
We went to see the Harlem Globetrotters! They are hysterical!
Our friend is friends with one of the team members so we got great seats! the boys got a "globetrotter" basketball and even had it signed by one of the players!



Hudson has been taking ice skating lessons...and I can't seem to find a single picture to show for it! oops!
and Camden went skiing for his first time this weekend!!!
Here is a video! He did so good! I was totally impressed! I think he's faster than I am! okay, so I know he's faster than I am! :)

MIRACLE!!!!!

Guess who this is?!?!!

It's KEMPER!!! He's BACK!!
It's such a miracle! We can't even believe it!!
He is ENORMOUS! At first it was hard to recognize him through his extra 30+ pounds and grown up face, but after spending just an evening with him, we totally can see Kemper in that big body!!

as you can see, his head reaches the couch cushions! and you can see how big he is compared to Hudson! It's wild!

He definitely has his same quirks! He still likes to try to hid his bone (rather than eat it) He still pulls his blanket out of his kennel! it's pretty funny!

His sister was taken at the same time he was and they were both returned yesterday. We're not sure what happened, somehow they ended up on some very nice family's doorstep 11pm on Wednesday night. Yesterday they took them to the vet to get scanned and found their owners!
We prayed all along that they would be in a loving home, well taken care of and that they (Kemper and Stella) would be together. All of those prayers were answered! and of course we prayed we'd get them back, but we figured by now, that just wasn't going to happen.
they are SUPER healthy! (maybe even a little on the chubby side!) and they are friendly and not skiddish, clean, happy and even obedient! He still sits and remembers our hand command for sit! it's amazing!
It has been 3 long months that he's been gone! he is now 7 months old! and is just about the same size as Samson was!
We look forward to sharing more stories as we reconnect and begin the bonding process where we left off!
YAHOO!!!!!!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2008!

what's happened here since I last wrote?
Well, we went Christmas tree hunting... that was eventful!!

Why the picture of a Llama? well, the first tree farm we went to had more wild animals than Christmas trees! Llamas, Turkeys, Peacocks, and don't forget Kangaroos!!!


after 2 attempts at finding a new tree farm, we headed to our good old standby, Farmer Brown's Tree Farm in Arlington. We always find a great tree. WHY WERE WE LOOKING ELSEWHERE?!!? Who knows! This year was no different. We found a perfect tree...
decorated it...

and presto.
The Christmas season had arrived.

Then we got some snow! what a treat!! Made for some very happy boys!

Hudson had a very specific list of things to "get done" while we had snow!
#1 Have a snowball fight (no pictures) but it happened.









#2 Build a snowman (complete with a carrot nose from the garden) Yes, I still have carrots buried in the garden!











#3 Make snow angels (by this time the snow was quickly turning to slush) oh well!













#4 Go sledding. They weren't too successful, but they gave it their best shot and got a couple of "runs" in (if you could call it that) before they gave up on it.










Then came the rains!! and the flooding that was national news!
Our little 'stream' became quite a lake!

and our snowman, well... he became a mutant.



What else...
Camden did some Christmas baking (he made all of these chocolate covered pretzels by himself!

Hudson tried his feet at ice skating! His buddy invited him to 'buddy day at his ice skating class' and Hudson liked it so much he just started his own ice skating class! afterall, he does want to be a professional hockey player when he grows up so I figured we better take a few classes on how to skate!



And we had a Christmas party for Flip! and the caterer made FLIP cookies! isn't that cool!?!


Wow, I may have to do another installment to cover Christmas and new years! If I keep going nobody will ever get to the bottom!
I'll get caught up one of these days!