happy 1st birthday, stella!!!! [and siblings!!]

one year ago, we started receiving the sweetest little photos like this from my aunt and her family, as the long awaited puppups were born!!

…as i look back at their puppy pics, it’s really hard to tell stella from her black sis, tikka, who belongs to my brother and sis-in-law. but… stella has less white on her chin and toes!

…stella, on her back, getting some mama lickies!

…the three sisters!! kaiya, my sis and bro-in-law’s pup, in the middle.

…stelly, front right! with her cute sibling crew. 🙂

…it was only a matter of weeks before we traveled northward to share our first snuggles! of course, i knew it wasn’t going to be easy, bringing her home, adding a german shepherd puppy to our household that already included and infant and an elderly pup… but i was fortunate enough to learn at a very young age [thanks to horse life!!] that the most challenging furry relationships often bear the most fruit, and that my sweet stella would be totally worth it. the stars just seemed to align for the whole puppy scenario, and i’m ever so grateful.

…stella and her beautiful mama, luna!!

…so, stella came south! along with two of sisters. and believe it or not, she was the same size as minnie back then!

…stella and kaiya!

…oh, stella! it was quite a juggle for a little bit, like i knew it would be! but, i mean… when is there not some kind of juggle going on in life?!

…puppy life was entertaining 🙂

…stella and tikka!

…stella spent two weeks doing some obedience training while steven had ACL surgery and began recovering. whew! once again, the stars aligned. that two weeks was vital!

…her beloved pink toy!! that thing is barely surviving after all the love stella has shown it.

…aaand every proper lady needs a purse. obviously.

…she did not remain minnie-sized for very long!

…oooh so much sister play ensued

…cone life came and went, thankfully! sorry ’bout that, stella girl. you were such a champ.

…though i had worried how things would go raising a baby and a puppy, she has been SO sweet and trustworthy. clumsy moments happen, for sure, but she loves her kiddos with her whole fluffy heart.

…we get asked from time to time how we suddenly ended up with three german shepherds in the family! of course, the story is so special, and i’m constantly reminded of the labor of love my aunt and uncle went through [ha, and luna!!] to bring a sweet, furry, poopy scenario out of a very tragic one. i know my cousin would be delighted to see all these luna babies living happily [crazily] ever after.