Meet Abby and Jo

"No! I don't want two puppies," Jerry said, over and over again. "No!" But two weekends ago I found the two puppies I wanted and printed them off the computer and presented them to Jerry. I guess I wore him down. We brought them home nine days ago.

Early in our marriage we were going to get two dogs and a cat. They're names would be Emma, Abby and Jo. I can't remember why, but we only got one dog and called her Emma. Twelve years later when we were looking for another dog, Sam came home with us. She just didn't look like an Abby or Jo, and the name Sam fit her well.

Sam was just eight weeks old when we brought her home, and after three months I said I'd never get another puppy. Of course, I was working then, so the loss of sleep was difficult. With retirement brought new opportunity.

So the names Abby and Jo have been playing in my head for many years, and my heart desired two puppies. Labrador Retrievers were my second choice, with Golden Retrievers being first. But they were out of our reach, so I found these two sisters from a breeder in Bird-In-Hand.

The Amish family were friendly and easy to chat with. Mrs. Glick works in the Amish Market in Hunt Valley on Saturdays, and one of the daughters works in the Germantown market. Misty, the mom, was calm and friendly, and it was a joy watching the puppies run around their yard. The two females were picked up and made the ride home to Mt. Airy.

Abby, with the red harness, is aggressive and loud. Jo, with the green harness, is calm and quiet, although we've seen her do her fair share of attacking as they play! At 12 weeks I can hardly pick one up. Their paws are huge and they look healthy and strong. I love the snap below of Jo chasing Abby. Note Abby's eyes. They look terror filled and she was moving!

Sam's having a difficult time adjusting to their presence, but we've seen good progress through these early days. The little ones certainly want to be friends with her! Sam turns 10 his June. Just Monday afternoon we observed Sam trying to play with them for the first time.

March brings my 65th birthday. I not only got Medicare, but I got two sweet puppies to love and enjoy. Now that's a gift!

Below are some snaps from the beautiful snowfall on Monday. Abby and Jo loved it!