I expected Boy to fall madly in love with her. It has his been never-ending wish for years on end to have a puppy, a friend in canine form to run jump and play with. But the reality of a puppy, the chewing, the unwanted energy, the interference, the refusal to sit still and be cuddled… in fact, the refusal to do very much that she’s told by him all has meant a cooling of his affections. She’s loved, but in a more realistic, muted she’s-hard-work-too fashion than we expected.

Jolly was one of the reasons we got a dog – he was frightened of all dogs. His face rather fell when she arrived those few short weeks ago, and he has found rather more reasons than normal to be in other parts of the house. He doesn’t like her mouthing and chewing, he doesn’t like her energetic games, and he’s nervous around her when she’s excited (which is most of the time). But. He talks to her every day. He wishes her good morning and good night. He waits until she is still and snoozing, to sit by her and gently stroke her. In return she is unfailingly gentle and patient with him. Rarely jumps and invites games, doesn’t jostle him, and when he is sitting with reach she frequently just lays down beside him, waiting for his attentions. Clever girl.

But Pink. Oh my. This I didn’t expect. I presumed a puppy would be too bouncy, Pink would be too silly, and they would simply jostle along side by side wihtout much interaction.

Wrong. Wrong wrong WRONG.

It’s a love affair. Of mutually enormous proportions. They play. Constantly. They have unending patience with each other. They cuddle. They tease. They provoke. They adore. They even read together…

"...and this is the one where we see all sorts of butterflies..."

6.50 a.m. - Jymamas, too-small wellies and big brothers woolly hat. SO ready for the snow...

woot woot!

just a le-e-e-tle bit cute, yes?

The Delicious Jolly - not sure why but I adore this picture.

And the Pink one. Later, more suitably dressed, and just a little bit beautiful.

So, finally, Blue has had her second injection and we can take her to meet the Big Outside. Where did we walk her for this landmark event? There was never any doubt – we didn’t even need to talk about it.

Win Green.

See the tiny dark clump of trees at the top of the yellow-ish '3' shape? THAT's Win Green.

Oh, how we love that place!

It’s not much – just a hill top. The highest hill top for miles, from which there is a 360º view of the chalk downlands surround the Cranborne Chase. Tis magic I tell you. The tip of the hill has a small clump of trees standing on a Bronze Age Barrow, always a very special place to stand and just… be still… and breathe…and listen.

It’s the very first place my then-boyfriend (now-husband) took me, on our very first visit to Dorset. We’ve spent countless nights there, lying on our backs just watching the stars. We went there to absorb the news of impending babies, family deaths. To talk over life plans. Resolve arguments. Cure bad moods and Sunday-Sluggishness. To walk our toddlers in the shoulder-high grasses. To show the outside to our first brand new puppy Holly, to stretch her legs when she was too old to walk any further but still loved to get out and smell the flowers. And to scatter her ashes under the beloved trees.

Where else on earth would we want to walk Blue first?

Of course, there was snow. But in any weather, at any time of year, it never fails to lift my spirits and breathe a sense of calm and connection into me.

There wasn’t much snow, the wind was too strong and kept it sweeping across the hilltop. But man the wind was BITING!

Stilll, after a hesitant start Blue seemed to take it all in her stride…

Those three dots in the distance? That's the boys.

Wallpaper.

Skirting Board.

Cushions.

Furniture.

*sigh*

Even taking a photo doesn’t keep you safe from the Tooth Quest…

That's my camera strap she has.

And that's my cardigan. That I'm actually wearing.

We have been thinking about a puppy for a lo-o-ong time. Our last dog, Holly (a Christmas present to my brand new husband – Holly, geddit?), a German Shepherd x Collie died a very old lady five years ago. We were too heartbroken to go rushing off out to replace her, and then I fell pregnant with Pink, and we did the sensible grown up thing and waited. We both adore big dogs, and there was no way were going to do the whole puppy thing with a new baby, or a huge dog thing with a  toddler. So we waited.

Every now and then I would send links and pictures to C of rottweiler puppies, cooing and begging. He held firm – which was good, as it was definitely not the right thing to do. But it was fun pushing him, anyway.

Last summer we had a ‘serious’ talk, and both agreed that once Pink started school in Sep 2011, then we would begin looking. With no children at home all day, it would be the perfect time to introduce a puppy.

We knew we wanted a rottweiler (despite populist daily-Mail fed opinion, they are a wonderful family dog – intelligent, calm, kind and devoted), and we knew we needed one from a good breeder. We both agreed this was one breed we wouldn’t take on as a rescue with young children in the house. Holly was a rescue, we would happily rescue another dog – but just not this time. I’m quite QUITE sure that 99% of all unwanted rottweilers awaiting a new home in rescue centres around the country would make gorgeous family dogs. But we don’t have the luxury of time to correct any bad habits – we need a dog with four young children to be brought up with OUR rules, right from the beginning, with the ultimate faith and trust in the family – so we can have that ultimate trust in her, right form the start.

Unbeknown to me, C spotted a litter just down the road (there are very few Rottweiler breeders in Dorset and surrounding counties), born on September 14th. He rang the breeder, asked the right questions, then a few weeks later snuck off and picked out the prettiest of the bunch. Fast forward two months of covert communications, a week of bursting-at-the-seams-but-refusing-to-tell-me, then a mysterious insistence that we all wait in the lounge with curtains drawn whilst he popped out for ten minutes…

And so Harogebulls Queen Zena (or rather, Blue) joined our family.

We don’t love her much.

Obviously.

…after she spent ten minutes running away from it, sneaking up on it, pouncing on it and then killing it.

Of course.