New arrival

Meet Murphy. She's the new arrival to this little family of mine.

She's an 8 week old Jack Russell. I named her Murphy after one of my favorite characters in the movie Interstellar, played by Jessica Chastain.

We are all learning how to live together - Gypsy, Murphy, Maya and me. Nights are the hardest. Murph misses her mama and her litter mates and doesn't appreciate being locked in the bathroom for the night. She barks and howls initially and so far I have fought the urge to reneg  and bring her into bed with me. Eight years of sleeping with Maya has taught me that that's NOT a good idea. I'm not going to get into bad habits with this dog. It's only for a little while. She does eventually settle and, as long as I don't make any noise, stays asleep for the rest of the night.

Maya and Gypsy seem to like her too....although Gypsy is becoming annoyed at being chased around the house! Maya is incredibly patient with her although soft growls are heard if Murph crosses one of her boundaries or tries to eat her food! Maya is a wonderful example for Murph to grow up with and I'm hoping that the old girl can teach Murph some of her beautiful ways. I kind of wanted to get another puppy before I had to say goodbye to Maya.

Was it wise to get another puppy? Possibly not, but I love her and I'm smitten. I am fully aware that I got her to fill a need - that need to nurture something and to give me something else to focus on other than the mind numbing emptiness that accompanies the ending of my marriage. I'm done with pretending. I'm calling it as it is. This is rough.