Kim Wilbanks

Four lanky legs with four big paws, one long tail, two floppy ears, two green eyes, one brown nose, a bunch of whiskers and a sweet personality – that’s our Boone.

Baby Boone Is Born

Today (February 6, 2022) we are celebrating Boone’s second birthday. On this date, two years ago, we got the email from Brenda at Lakewood Labradoodles that the Mama Jazz gave birth to six nearly identical puppies — three boys and three girls. It was Jazz and Jag’s last litter, the Out Of This World Litter.

About a month later, we got to visit the puppies and interact with them. It was part of the puppy matching process. We noticed one puppy, Mars,  had a little white patch of fur on top of his head. On March 27, 2020, just as the COVID pandemic was shutting the world down, we found out that Mars would be ours. We were over the moon!

We picked our new puppy up on April 17, exactly one year after we had said goodbye to our beloved corgi, Higgins. He wasn’t Mars anymore though, he was our Boone. 

A Source Of Joy

Boone has brought so much joy, laughter, fun, mischievousness and sometimes stinkyness into our family these past couple of years. The first few months were a little rocky at times and I questioned the wisdom in getting another dog more than once, but he’s definitely our boy now.

I’m attempting to be a writer so most of my days are spent at home. I love having my buddy close by while I’m working on my laptop. (He’s snoozing on the loveseat in front of my desk as I type these words.) He lets me know when it’s time for both of us to take a break and if it’s nice (which it usually is) we will go outside for some fresh air — maybe walk around the yard a few times or play fetch with the ball.

The nurturing, mom part of me loves having someone to take care of. It doesn’t matter that he can’t talk; we have our own way of communicating. Boone definitely gives me a purpose and keeps me from feeling lonely in my empty nest.

Not The First But Probably The Last

I’ve only owned one other dog, our corgi, Higgins. He was a Christmas gift to my then fifteen year-old daughter so I guess, technically, he was hers. But she relinquished all ownership when she went off to college. Her brother had moved out of state for college two years earlier so her departure started my empty nest experience. I don’t think I would have survived without Higgins.

Both of these dogs, Higgins and Boone, worked their way into our hearts. They became a part of our family — on most days, a family of three. They both helped fill the void left when our two children went to college out of state, then stayed, married and set up their own homes.

Boone is very different from Higgins. He’s all legs with a floofy tail that waves like a banner when he walks. Higgins had short, stubby legs and no tail. Boone doesn’t seem to have as many quirks as Higgins, like going ballistic if you said, or even spelled, certain words. 

There are some similarities between the two dogs, like their easy-going nature. Boone is a great traveler as was Higgins. We rarely hear a peep from him on the twelve-hour car ride to North Carolina. That’s a good thing because we do like to go to the mountains of North Carolina.

A Dog In Every Empty Nest

If you’re getting close to being in the empty nest and you don’t already have a dog, I would suggest getting one. They fill an emptiness when your children leave the nest, they offer companionship and they give you something to take care of. 

So, Happy Second Birthday Boone! (We’re hoping this doesn’t mean you’re in the terrible twos). Thanks for being such a sweet dood. We love you! 

If you haven’t already noticed, I really love my dogs. They have been the subject matter of many of my blog posts. If you would like to read some of my older blog posts about my corgi, Higgins, click here, here or here.