Friday, December 30, 2011

When God Says YES

Long time friends know we've been searching for a match - a forever dog friend. Beatrix died on our fateful pcs journey to Japan. We weren't ready for a new dog right away. While Michael was deployed the children began to really desire a new dog. We told them we'd begin searching  when he returned home - it's been a year.  Michael and I have talked for years that we'd like our next dog to be a pure-bred beagle. 


We began to search. We quickly found that any dog in Japan is expensive and a pure-bred beagle was REALLY expensive. Months of searching, watching ads of those moving etc....still no perfect match for us.  Most of us began to try to talk Michael into a Shiba. They are the most common breed here and we liked the idea of getting a forever friend in Japan - as we would be able to take a part of Japan with us when we move.  


People began to share with us their knowledge of both Shibas and Beagles. Shibas are known as the "cat-like dog". They are aloof, independent, and tend to choose ONE owner...but we have lots of kids who want to walk, love, cuddle with their dog. We heard that Beagles howl, have separation anxiety, piddle (so do I), like to run, need lots of attention....We continued to talk, think, pray and search. 


My prayer was that we'd have a new forever dog friend in 2012. Michael was holding out for a Beagle, we were all trying to convince him they weren't such a good breed anyway and we'd love a Shiba....Beagle meant waiting until we moved back to America as we simply couldn't afford the price of one here and we didn't want to buy one, have her travel here, quarantine her for 6 months etc....


It had to be God that I remembered Richard and Susi had a Beagle they had asked us to dog sit nearly 2 years ago.  I  told the family it seemed like a good idea to see if we could dog sit for Mr. Richard and Ms. Susi as they had a Beagle and we'd be able to see if we wanted to deal with the quirks of a Beagle. We had begun to realize that all the quirks we heard about were ones Beatrix (whom we had for 15 years) also had. Beatrix was a Basset/Corgi/Mutt mix. We hoped dog sitting would either make us fall in love with the breed and at peace to wait for a Beagle or help us decide to get a Shiba. 


I contacted Susi and she was willing to let us dog sit.....we brought Yuuki home last night to "dog sit". Richard and Susi had told us that they had been praying about a new family for Yuuki. They love her and have had her since she was a pup, but they have a one year old and haven't been able to play with her as much as they had in the past. They didn't want to just "list her" and so hadn't said anything yet...They'd been praying.  They told us not to be pressured, to bring her home, keep her as long as we wanted and let them know what we thought. We did NOT tell the children this may turn into something permanent. 


 My heart was full when we walked out to the van and I could see the kids in the van, Yuuki in the middle looking out at us...


At home she sniffed the perimeter of each room of the house.....except our bedroom as we were warned she likes to mark beds...and we never let Beatrix in our room either.  



She thrilled us by running up the stairs when we went upstairs.....



She seemed obsessed by our bedroom door - last night and all day today. She didn't' whine or howl...just laid down outside the door and made clear she should be allowed in. Michael did allow her in to check the room out this afternoon and she's stopped parking herself outside the door. 


By 06:30 she had gone on five walks. Two with me early for her to potty....and then each child wanted to take her out when they woke up. She'd also been given Zander's favorite blanket. I was reminding the kids all day that we were dog sitting and she belonged to Mr. Richard and Ms. Susi...which was TRUE until Michael decided if we would keep her.

She followed us around, played with us, went on walks with us....we enjoyed a day getting to know her. She posted herself at the door when Jared and Michael left for work and seemed surprised they'd choose to leave. 

Later in the day Nolan, Stacia, Zander and I took Yuuki for a walk. It takes a while when each snow drift must be explored and sniffed. 

We were happy to see the ponies back...Yuuki gave them a checking out 






 When we got back to the house we were all amused when she climbed into her kennel and slept for a couple of hours. She was worn out...and we joked about running a pet weight loss spa.

 By this afternoon, the kids were saying it would be worth it to wait until we moved to the states to get a Beagle.

During movie time she amused us.....


 Michael and I talked and he had decided she'd be a God send for us if Richard and Susi hadn't decided they couldn't live without her. We checked. Their offer for us to give her a new home remained.  I put a bow on her head and we told the children.  She's already begun healing deep spots in our hearts which were hurt by Beatrix's accident.....Nolan said, "Oh good! Because I was thinking I'm already starting to love her." Zander and Stacia keep asking if she is our "forever dog".




Susi told us Yuuki likes plush toys so we gave her an adoption toy....she isn't quite sure what to make of it.


 We gave her a treat when she sat, shook and begged for Zander....since it was on the carpet Michael picked it up and threw it to the dining room...she ran and got it and hid it in the tree you see in the corner. We laughed as she stood guard.

 We REALLY laughed when Michael got up to go to bed and she immediately retrieved her treat. Evidently, she thought he would take it again and so had hid it.


God moved so beautifully to answer this prayer for 2012 before the New Year even begins. It's been a wonderful family lesson on waiting for God to answer and on Him delighting to give us the delights of our hearts.

We prayed for:

  • A beagle
  • Kennel trained
  • Young enough to have a good many years left, but old enough to be house broken
  • Affordable
  • We wanted a dog while we were in Japan 
  • I had hoped a new dog would let me take photos (as Beatrix always REFUSED her WHOLE life)

She's: 

  • Full bred
  • 5 years old
  • We were able to get a dog while in Japan
  • She loves her kennel
  • She is well-trained
  • She's spayed
  • She's microchipped
  • She's up to date on all shots
  • Adopting her blesses her "bio family" Richard and Susi
  • She certainly isn't camera shy
Yuuki - means courage and Yuki means snow. Her name is really Yuuki but either meaning will work fine if we don't pronounce YuUki just right. ::snort:: 

Meet Yuuki - our new forever friend. 




Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

10 comments:

heather in michigan said...

What a blessing, De'Etta! I'm praising God along with you!

Gilda- I am blessed to be married to the love of my life, Phillip, for the last 21 years. I homeschool my children, 1 graduated, 3 to go and I serve the Lord Jesus Christ in His strength alone. said...

We got our dog Zoe in a similar manner. We 'dog sat' and when we saw it was a good match asked the kids if we could keep her. What a wonderful blessing this is to your family, both Yuuki and the lesson on waiting on God. Enjoy!

Unknown said...

How wonderful that God has blessed you like that!

Jodi said...

I am so happy for you and your whole family! Look forward to hearing about all Yuuki's adventures with you. The pictures are adorable. I love that you guys were blessed with your forever dog!

Renee said...

so happy for your family... don't forget to update the microchip to your contact info - esp if/when you move

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Capturing comments from FB on this momentous post! ::snort::

Kristin - What a sweet blessing!

Yvonne Ferlita Yay!!!

Susi Thanks for writing De'Etta, I really enjoyed reading it =) She's so consistent. These are the things that we love about her, her funny habits and her 'way of thinking'.

Heather That's wonderful! Made me cry tears of joy for you all!

Heidi Hamburger Bjornes So happy for everyone!

Tina How wonderful!

Lauri Thanks for.sharing that. What a blessing!

Shelly I am so happy for your family! I remember when you lost Beatrix...it was just a few months after we lost our Dakota, who had been with us a year longer than our oldest child. The kids didn't know life without him and it was hard letting him go. I so understood your pain then and I certainly rejoice with you now!

Kristine ♥ ♥ ♥ I love how God answered your prayers just before the new year, in a way that only He could. Beautiful blog post; you just made my morning.

Barbara Does this mean the girls don't want to come play with my girls!
8 hours ago · Like

Lynette Bjornson Harple what a sweet story! Ain't God good, as they say?!?!?!

Melanie Tim Loved reading this blog. God is Great!

Debbie I don't think my comment posted, but I am so happy for all of you. We always had beagles growing up. They are very smart and a great family pet....very loyal.

Ginger What a super sweet story! I am so glad God blessed your family with this new little family member. :^) Loved all the pictures of her, too! God is so awesome, isn't He? He loves us through the big things and cares about little things (like the perfect canine companion) as well. I'm so happy about your New Year's gift!

Donna So sweet!

Beth D read with tears in my eyes as all worked out so well. The love of a pet is very precious!!!! I think she and lilly may be come friends as well.

Jodi like, super like, mega like!!! I need a bigger like button!!

Tracy What are you going to do with her when you come here? Is everyone coming? I'm happy for you! I will tell Melody that God answers prayers for dogs. We are waiting to have a "permanent" home before we get one.

De'Etta Ah Barbara Noah Harvey Stacia wants to bring Yuuki to meet Reeses - she is a bit concerned Lucy is too big for Yuuki. We are insanely giddy around here. ::snort::

De'Etta ‎Beth Bowers can't wait to introduce her to her new cousin dog,Lilly. LOL

De'Etta Richard and Susi (her first family) will take her while we are in Tokyo. Mike has written Dan about the upcoming trip. I think 4 of the kids and he and I are coming. Jared is working.

Stacy What a wonderful story De'Etta! I was moved to tears a bit as well. We chose a new puppy this week. We had been wanting the perfect dog as well and even adopted a Shiba in Japan but we didn't really have the chemistry with him and did find the perfect family for him. We had to put our old dog down right before Daniel was born so there was a hole for us to fill as well. Although Nadine is a bit of a trial at times as are most puppies, I think she is perfect for us. Have a fabulous New Year!

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Thanks all - and yes, we'll need to visit our landlord to pay a hefty pet deposit and the vet - to update our address on file (SOFA) next week.

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Patty Cute doggy! Happy for you all!
16 minutes ago · Like

Nancy It's puppy time !! Im really excited for you all that you found your forever girl.

Anonymous said...

Aaaaawwwww... im so excited! Cute and she has a personality! Awesome!
-Bre G

Anonymous said...

HI ALL: So happy for you. What adorable pictures. God sure had it all mapped out..... right. Teach who we are so she will know us if and when we ever got over there to visit. :):):) Congrats. love/prayers - Dad/Mom T.