A friend of mine breeds standard poodles. She has had several litters of puppies at her house. I had heard about them and seen photos and videos, but had never been to her house to see them in person. She currently has 2 puppies about 6 weeks old. Part of raising them is to get them socialized and used to interacting with people. My friend had a “puppy party” today and invited me to come. When I went into her house, it was clear that it belonged to the dogs. There were 3 adult poodles that were away in their own room and 2 puppies that were in a large fenced in room off the entrance. After they all settled down a bit, she let the puppies out. There was a boy with a black coat and a girl with a light apricot coat. The boy was full of energy and mischief. The girl was more careful and calm and loved being held and stroked. They were beyond adorable. Other people came as well. A woman who is the host home for the puppies mother came for a visit. The host homes keep the poodles until it is time to breed them. Then if they become pregnant, they go to my friend’s house to give birth and stay until the puppies go to their new home. Then the mother dogs go back to their host home. When the mother dog came into the room, she was so excited to see her human. After a while, she came and sat by me. She was black with a couple white spots and was just beautiful. When I petted her, I was surprised that her coat was so soft. I guess I thought it would feel wirey. A younger couple also joined the group. They brought their poodle who was the older sister of the puppies. She was excited to see her mom again. But, the mom didn’t really reciprocate. She was more concerned what was going on with the puppies. After a while, the adult dogs were separated and the puppies were brought into the large play area by themselves. We played with them by encouraging them to explore. They got a treat when they did what we asked such as go through a tunnel, stand on a platform, get into the ball pit, etc. They played til they got tired. I learned so much about poodles that I had no idea I didn’t know. It was so much fun playing with the puppies and watching the interactions of all the dogs. I’m sure I was smiling and laughing the whole time. It was a joyful puppy party. I once again feel blessed and grateful for the friends I have in my life.

I Found God today in a puppy party.