A Boy and His Dog: It's a Girl!!!

Eli and the Power Paws folks came to the same conclusion yesterday! Quilter is the girl for Eli. We will bring her home this afternoon for a trial weekend. We are all nervous and excited! The Kong is ready...

Yesterday afternoon, after picking Eli up from camp, we all seemed to know that Quilter was the one. My heart was troubled all night, worrying about which dog would be picked for him, knowing that Quilter was the best choice somewhere deep in my soul, and listening to Eli tell me how much he felt for her. Power Paws noticed it, too, and we are so excited and at peace with the thought of her becoming part of our lives.

There are many challenges ahead. Cats, strange environment, the fact that we as a family can have no contact with the dog while she and Eli are bonding. No touch, no talk, no eye contact. Quilter will have to look to Eli for everything and he needs to be her whole world. I've spent a few hours with these dogs and I tell you that it will be the hardest part of this whole process - to ignore a sweet and loving dog in your presence. Goes against human nature! But we will follow all the rules because they only get to bond once. We only get one shot at this.

This rule will apply for the first two weeks while they are bonding. It will be so good for Eli. And watching the way she has been looking at him and connecting with him the last few days, I feel in my heart that it will be good for Quilter too! You won't see Eli around for a while, as he has to stay home with her for the first week (with the exception of going to dog camp next week) so our schedules will be different. I liken it to having a newborn in the house. Life just stops. :-)

Please pray for Quilter, as one of God's creation, that she be healthy and that she adjust quickly and happily to her boy.

And pray for her boy. He has learned so much, but will be learning more each day, with each challenge. He will have to grow up a lot in the coming months.

Today as we were driving to dog camp, we were listening to the song "Firework" in the car. And all I could see in my mind was Eli and his dog (and yes, I envisioned Quilter, even before I knew it would be her). It's just a silly pop song, but today, the words made me cry....

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting throught the wind
Wanting to start again

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards
One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under scream
But no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that there's still a chance for you
Cause there's a spark in you

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gunna leave 'em fallin' down-own-own

You don't have to feel like a waste of space
You're original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you're reason why all the doors are closed
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will glow
And when it's time, you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gonna leave 'em all in awe-awe-awe"

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It's always been inside of you, you, you
And now it's time to let it through

Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on slet your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gonna leave 'em all in awe-awe-awe

What more can I say? Baby, you're a firework! And you and Quilter are gonna shoot across the sky!

We want to thank all of you who have given money, prayed, cheered, cried and hoped with us during this process! Here we are!

But it's not the end - what's ahead? Eli will go through more training throughout the summer as Power Paws wants to keep working with him. They will evaluate them as a team every few months. In 6 months, they will officially graduate, complete with ceremony! In 2 years, if all is well, Quilter will be officially and permanently his!

Please keep in touch and follow Eli on this journey. You want to be there when they shoot across the sky!