I mentioned in an earlier post that I was going to talk about my sweet angel Quique (pronounced key-kay). I could probably talk about her all day, but I will try my very hardest to not bore you with ALL of the details. Dustin and I decided that once he was done getting his MBA, we wanted to get a dog. He was leaning toward a Jack Russell Terrier, but I wanted a more child friendly dog like a Lab. We looked and looked and looked some more. We thought about all different types of dogs. Once we got back from Italy (our celebratory trip for Dustin getting his MBA) it was time for a dog. Dustin did a lot of the searching and he saw this cute little lab online and there was one female left (I was insistent on a female) so he went to see her since I had another appointment that night. Can we say love at first sight? I told Dustin if he liked her to get her so he immediately put down a deposit and we picked her up two days later. She was almost 7 weeks when we got her so she was so small. She was so shy, almost scared of us, but she loved to roll on her back and have her tummy rubbed. (Little did we know that she would spend most of her time on her back – she’s incredibly submissive to other dogs). She cried all the way home (which was about 30 minutes) and it made me so sad. When we got home, we took some pictures of her:
Isn't she so tiny?
Sleeping Arrangements
We decided on the name Quique. We wanted something different. Dustin served his LDS mission in Chile and spent many months in a town called Iquique which holds some of his fondest memories, it was perfect! Her first night was a tough one. We wanted to crate train her to help with the potty training. The first night we had the crate out in the living room and we put her in just before we went to bed. Within minutes of climbing into bed, the whining started. I looked at Dustin.
Me: “Can we please bring the crate in here?”
Dustin: “Let’s wait 30 minutes and if she’s still crying we’ll bring the crate in here.”
3 Minutes Later…
Dustin: “Okay, this is too hard, just bring her in here”.
I spent the next few nights sleeping on the floor next to the crate with my fingers through the crate touching Quique as we slept. Lucky for me, Dustin went out of town for about a week. When the cat is gone the mice will play… so Quique spent those nights sleeping on the bed with me. Dustin came home for a few days before he had to leave on another trip so those days were again spent on the floor with Quique in her crate. When he was gone again, she was back on the bed. By the time he got back, she was used to the bed. I begged Dustin to please let her sleep with me until he came to bed and then he could put her back in her crate. Of course, he couldn’t so she’s been sleeping with us ever since!
Leaving Quique
We picked Quique up on a Saturday and we spent the whole day together. The next morning, I was teaching a class in church. Dustin had to leave early that morning for a meeting. When I showed up at church, my eyes were virtually swollen shut and my face was wet. Dustin asked me what was wrong and I told him the dog and then continued to cry. He thought something had happened to the dog. My response while crying was “I didn’t want to leave her, she can’t be home all by herself”. Dustin laughed and laughed. I didn’t find it funny. The next few days, I drove myself to work, crying. Each morning I had to call my mom and have her help to calm me down. I can’t even imagine what it will be like with a baby. I spent the next 3-4 months coming home every day at lunch to let Quique out of her crate.
Big Brother
A couple of months after having Quique, I was on our usual evening walk. There was somebody behind me that was yelling “Charlie”. I didn’t know a Charlie so I kept walking. Then I heard the same person yelling “Connie” over and over again. I finally turned around because there didn’t seem to be anybody else around. The couple and their dogs caught up to me and said “Oh we thought that you were Connie and that your dog was Charlie”. We continued to talk and they were asking me how old Quique was and where we got her. The couple suddenly turned towards each other and then said to me “I think that her brother lives just up the street from here. The puppy is the same age, looks identical to Quique and they got him at the same place”. Little did I know that this was only the beginning of a beautiful friendship! When I finally made it to Connie’s house, it was like Quique and Charlie remembered each other. You may say that’s impossible, but I won’t believe you. There is something special about the two of them when they’re together. They act the same, they play so well, they truly act like brother and sister. Connie and I are always comparing stories and they always seem to be doing the same things and have the same mannerisms. Connie and Jon have become dear friends to us. We usually make sure the puppies see each other at least once a week or they go through withdrawl and Quique has stayed with them when we are out of town. And yes, Quique and Charlie sleep on the bed with them too. In fact, Connie and Jon got Charlie before we got Quique and Jon had his eyes set on Quique. Luckily, Connie wanted Charlie so thanks to Connie, Quique became a part of our life.
We decided on the name Quique. We wanted something different. Dustin served his LDS mission in Chile and spent many months in a town called Iquique which holds some of his fondest memories, it was perfect! Her first night was a tough one. We wanted to crate train her to help with the potty training. The first night we had the crate out in the living room and we put her in just before we went to bed. Within minutes of climbing into bed, the whining started. I looked at Dustin.
Me: “Can we please bring the crate in here?”
Dustin: “Let’s wait 30 minutes and if she’s still crying we’ll bring the crate in here.”
3 Minutes Later…
Dustin: “Okay, this is too hard, just bring her in here”.
I spent the next few nights sleeping on the floor next to the crate with my fingers through the crate touching Quique as we slept. Lucky for me, Dustin went out of town for about a week. When the cat is gone the mice will play… so Quique spent those nights sleeping on the bed with me. Dustin came home for a few days before he had to leave on another trip so those days were again spent on the floor with Quique in her crate. When he was gone again, she was back on the bed. By the time he got back, she was used to the bed. I begged Dustin to please let her sleep with me until he came to bed and then he could put her back in her crate. Of course, he couldn’t so she’s been sleeping with us ever since!
Leaving Quique
We picked Quique up on a Saturday and we spent the whole day together. The next morning, I was teaching a class in church. Dustin had to leave early that morning for a meeting. When I showed up at church, my eyes were virtually swollen shut and my face was wet. Dustin asked me what was wrong and I told him the dog and then continued to cry. He thought something had happened to the dog. My response while crying was “I didn’t want to leave her, she can’t be home all by herself”. Dustin laughed and laughed. I didn’t find it funny. The next few days, I drove myself to work, crying. Each morning I had to call my mom and have her help to calm me down. I can’t even imagine what it will be like with a baby. I spent the next 3-4 months coming home every day at lunch to let Quique out of her crate.
Big Brother
A couple of months after having Quique, I was on our usual evening walk. There was somebody behind me that was yelling “Charlie”. I didn’t know a Charlie so I kept walking. Then I heard the same person yelling “Connie” over and over again. I finally turned around because there didn’t seem to be anybody else around. The couple and their dogs caught up to me and said “Oh we thought that you were Connie and that your dog was Charlie”. We continued to talk and they were asking me how old Quique was and where we got her. The couple suddenly turned towards each other and then said to me “I think that her brother lives just up the street from here. The puppy is the same age, looks identical to Quique and they got him at the same place”. Little did I know that this was only the beginning of a beautiful friendship! When I finally made it to Connie’s house, it was like Quique and Charlie remembered each other. You may say that’s impossible, but I won’t believe you. There is something special about the two of them when they’re together. They act the same, they play so well, they truly act like brother and sister. Connie and I are always comparing stories and they always seem to be doing the same things and have the same mannerisms. Connie and Jon have become dear friends to us. We usually make sure the puppies see each other at least once a week or they go through withdrawl and Quique has stayed with them when we are out of town. And yes, Quique and Charlie sleep on the bed with them too. In fact, Connie and Jon got Charlie before we got Quique and Jon had his eyes set on Quique. Luckily, Connie wanted Charlie so thanks to Connie, Quique became a part of our life.
Charlie and Quique - the only time that she has had a collar other than red. (about 1 yr old)
Charlie and Quique - they have spent a lot of time running around sharing a stick or a toy.Life with Quique
Quique is a riot! I think that her favorite things in order are 1)Dogs 2)Treats 3)Water(lake, sprinklers or hose) 4)Charlie 5)Dustin. I have so many stories to tell about her and her personality but I have gone on long enough. Not being able to conceive a baby in the last year and a half has been a struggle in our lives, but Quique has filled a void that we didn’t know we had. She has brought so much joy and laughter into our lives. Dustin may be her favorite (it must be a male/female thing) but she knows who her mama is. There is nothing better than having her snuggle with me in the mornings. She has pure love and complete loyalty. I love to come home and have Quique run to me wagging her butt (she wags more than her tail) and give me tons and tons of kisses. She is so submissive to other dogs, but can defend herself if she needs to and she loves everybody. I have also seen a different side of Dustin. He is so cute with her and loves her so much. Remember how I mentioned he wasn't quite wanting a lab, he has made it perfectly clear that we will only have labs from now on. We could not have asked for a better dog and we are so glad to have her as part of our family.
3 comments:
Those pictures are so cute! I love Quique - she is such a happy & friendly dog.
People never know how to say my name (pronounced Mickey)...but everyone in South America knows how to say it (it's short for Micaela, from my great-grandmother if you were curious..yes I got that name and my sister got Jessica! go figure)...anyway the point to this is that when I saw Quique and how it was pronounced I thought that was SO cool. That's the point- cool spelling. Sorry for the rambling.
So funny and so true! Kids can always say her name, but the adults always have a hard time, especially when they ask how it is spelled. We've had tee-kay, kwee-kwuh, kee-kee, you name it. I think that Mique is a really pretty name!
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