Lucia and Sherman's little victories!

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Well, would you look at that! It’s 2019, and life in our home is VERY different from what it was at this time last year! If you’ve followed our story through my posts on Instagram, you might have noticed we added a surprise new family member to our household in December! Don’t worry – I plan on catching up on those blog posts and writing about Everett’s arrival! I’m still getting out of the haze of having a newborn at home! Anyway, as I begin sharing about Everett, it seems right to include the dogs as well! Today I wanted to talk about Lucia and Sherman’s little victories with their new human family member, and how we’re celebrating them with Purina® Pro Plan® Focus® Sensitive Skin & Stomach Salmon & Rice!

Instant Love

When we brought Everett home from the hospital, I was extremely curious to see how our dogs would adjust to a baby in the house. I had my predictions, but you just never know how things will turn out in situations like these. They had watched us over the months as we prepared a nursery in our back bedroom. They saw the crib installed, the glider assembled, the stroller wheeled in, and the baby clothes hung. I usually leave the nursery door open during the day, and I even caught Lucia in the room a few times. She would lay on the rug and stare up at the crib, even though there wasn’t a little baby in it yet! I had a feeling she was going to be so good with our child.

Lucia

As I predicted, Lucia was instantly smitten with Everett. What a little victory! Starting on day one, she was extremely interested in him. When he would let out a little cry, she would run over to his bassinet to check on him. If I didn’t get there fast enough, she would come find me. There was even a night when Justin and I were changing Everett together in his nursery and he was crying quite a bit (we were still novices at diaper changes then). Lucia stood behind us and started crying too! She is continuing on in her “duties” to this day.

I will always cherish the times when I sit on the couch with Everett and Lucia comes up and plops her head down on my lap. She loves to stare at him, and has even made him giggle when she has licked his little toes! I have been amazed with how quickly she formed a bond with our boy!

Sherman

Ok, I’ll be honest – I wasn’t as confident with Sherman. Sherman has been my faithful sidekick for a few years now. I don’t know if it was because he was rescued or if it is just his personality, but he has always been incredibly attached to me. I was pretty fearful about how he would adjust to a baby in the house and the fact that some of the attention I used to give to him would now be on Everett.

I’m not going to lie: the first few days were not my favorite. Sherman was fine with Everett, but he was mad AT ME. If you didn’t think dogs could give you the cold shoulder, I’m here to tell you – they certainly can. When I would do anything with Everett, Sherman would walk the other way. He wouldn’t sit on my lap, he wouldn’t come to me when I called him. He would only answer to Justin, and on a few occasions I was almost in tears. My best buddy was mad at me, and I couldn’t figure out how to turn it around.

Honestly, it just took a few days. I had to give him some time. Then: victory! It somehow clicked in Sherman’s head that the baby wasn’t bad, and he realized he actually wanted to be around us. The cold shoulder turned right around. Whew! Sherman realized that some of Everett’s lounging items were the perfect size for him, and I’ve now caught him sleeping in them. He’s become a lot more interested in Everett, and will happily hop up on the couch or the chair with us for a snuggle! It’s a bit of a handful for me, but I’m completely ok with it!

Purina® Pro Plan®

When it comes to celebrating Lucia and Sherman’s little victories, I do find it important to give them the fuel they need! Even though they won’t be competing in any dog shows, that doesn’t mean I don’t want them feeling like champions! Did you know that Purina® is a sponsor of the Westminster Dog Show? The 2019 show is approaching – we are always excited to tune in at our house and see all of the amazing dogs! In fact, 11 of the last 12 Best In Show Champions at the Westminster Dog Show were fueled by Purina® Pro Plan®. It’s a brand we know and use in our home! We love that there are 70+ formulas that deliver advanced nutrition and outstanding taste. If you’ve been around the blog long enough, you might remember that Lucia has a bit of a sensitive stomach. The Purina® Pro Plan® Focus® Sensitive Skin & Stomach Salmon & Rice is an amazing choice for her, as it supports her specific nutritional needs (in this case, her tender tummy)! Other needs can include life stage, lifestyle, breed size, or other unique needs. For more details on this particular food, visit ProPlan.com/Focus.

I cannot tell you how many different dog food brands we tried before realizing that Lucia required a more specialized food. To that point, I love that Purina® has a money-back guarantee on their products. For more details, visit ProPlan.com. And if you’re wondering where to pick up your next bag of food, PetSmart is the place to go! We actually had a brand new store open up near to us, and I absolutely loved shopping not only for Lucia and Sherman’s food, but also for other fun goodies and gear! I may or may not have picked up a new bow tie collar for Sherman that is printed with slices of pizza. It was calling my name! I did manage to resist bringing home a new harness for him as well – it was tough though! As an added bonus during my shopping trip, my local PetSmart has a current promotion on select bags of Purina® Pro Plan® dog foods – I was able to save an extra $3 on a 30-35lb bag. And, as a January bonus for being a Treats member, I earned 3x the points on my purchase of the food! The Purina® Pro Plan® foods are easy to find in the store – there was actually an entire aisle in my local store just with Purina® products!

In addition to purchasing a food for Lucia’s sensitive skin and stomach at PetSmart, I decided to try Purina® Bright Mind® Adult 7+ to give to my sweet girl. Lucia is now 10 1/2 years old, so we are doing all that we can to keep her feeling young, healthy, and happy as she ages. Honestly, she still seems like a puppy a lot of days, so keeping her that way is a priority. The Purina® Bright Mind® food contains enhanced botanical oils shown to promote alertness and mental sharpness in dogs 7 and older. There are also Omega-6 fatty acids that help her skin stay healthy and make her coat shiny! Since Lucia’s hair is black, a shiny coat really makes a difference on her! For more details about the food, visit ProPlan.com/BrightMind.

If you’re ready to get into the Westminster Dog Show spirit, Purina® is hosting a bracket challenge! Check out the link here for Purina® Pro Plan® offers and bracket info. You can even get up to $4 OFF a 47-50-lb. bag of Pro Plan® between 12/31/18 – 3/3/19. I’m all about saving, so this offer was a great one to take advantage of!

Visit yourpetourpassion.com to learn more about the bracket challenge, Purina® Pro Plan® promotions, and more!

So, I’m curious – what have been YOUR dog’s little victories in life? I want to know!!!!