Something else happened at the end of January. An adorable little French Bulldog nosed her way into our hearts and home. Jonathan and I have been talking for years about the possibility of getting another dog. We knew we wanted something small and cute like Commodus, but that shed less and wasn’t so hard on our allergies. We also knew we wanted to get a dog while our kids were still young, although we thought it was still a year or two off.

Then our neighbor had a litter of French Bulldogs. He asked Jonathan to photograph them for him so he could post an ad. The real problem came when Jonathan opened the door to our home and hollered to me to come out and see these cute little puppies! I said I was busy but he persisted. I came outside and that was pretty much the end of it! There were five puppies – two girls and three boys. We were both instantly drawn to the pied female with the mild temperament who just wanted to snuggle.

Our neighbor told us we could bring her over and keep her for a while, see what we thought. So we did (well, the kids and I did). And she never went back! Meet Phoebe Roomba King:
 

With her sister.

Just look at what a cuddle bug she is!
  

Jonathan was smitten!

Just a little bit excited! Phoebe may have come a little bit sooner than planned, but she has been an amazing addition to our family, teaching the kids responsibility and empathy and providing plenty of humor too. She also keeps our kitchen floors sparkling!

The kitties tolerate her, and they are getting more and more comfortable living together. I think they are cool with being chased a little since Phoebe provides a welcome distraction from the kids.