Finally the names....

A couple nights ago we finally got a chance to sit down and pick names.  Some of them have meaning behind them, others of them are what the kids picked, but now at least you can put a face with the name.  It started to rain toward the end so a few of the pics are just ok, and not to mention some of them don't have a lot of sit at this stage in the game.  I guess that's what makes it fun and interesting all at the same time.  As a family we all decided it would be fun to name our own pups. Seeings how the youngest members of the family always choose their favorites we thought we'd all get in on the action and claim one as our own.  With the recent wedding our family is now 8 strong, plus a significant other which makes 9.   However KK assures us that she can have 2 pups we worked together to come up with the last name.  Here is the list of family members and the names/pups they chose.
Robyn-Sutton
JJ-Izzy
Shalee- Nala
Austin-Ruger
Madison-Rey
Devon- Reggie
Gracyn-Kiara
Boden-Rhett
Kinley-Bella
Family Pup-Lizzy

Bella

Izzy

Kiara

Kiara

Lizzy

Rhett

Rhett

Rey

Sutton

Nala

Rey

Reggie

Sutton

Ruger

4 weeks old!

4 weeks old and so many exciting things happening in their little lives so far.  The weather has been outstanding, so the time outside has been great.  For only being 4 weeks old, I don't know if I've ever had a litter as active as they are already!   This weekend started out with them celebrating their first wedding on Friday. My oldest son Austin, who "technically" owns Maggie married his high school sweetheart so having the puppies a part of the festivities seemed like a good idea!  I say technically because, in a few weeks when they move to their new house, I'm going to have a tough time letting Mags move in with them!  She has become such a big part of my life. From the morning runs, to the endless hunting trips, and everywhere in between Mags has been a part of my daily routine for 2.5 years now.  Fortunately they are only moving a couple minutes away!   Along with the wedding festivities the pups also started eating wet food this weekend.  In only a days time they've figured out that when they hear the pans start to make noise that the food is coming, and most certainly let me know that they are hungry.   Below are a few pics I was able to capture from the wedding shoot, but there will be more to come later.  I can't wait to see what the professional photographer has to show!  You can see that the pups played pretty hard this weekend.  When they all find a place to snuggle up in the green grass for a nap, you know it's been a great day!

The puppies got their first taste of the great outdoors yesterday.  For a brief moment they explored their new surroundings, but it didn't take long to fall fast asleep in a heap of puppies.  They continue to grow, and change daily and it won't be long before they are running around and playing more than they sleep. The kids are starting to pick their puppy and we're starting to sort through the names!  That's always one of the things we enjoy the most.  They are all so similar in color, and other than a little variation is size they are pretty tough to tell apart!  I think this is going to be a challenging litter in that respect, but as they continue to get older hopefully more of those subtle differences start to come out.

2 Weeks

As we surpass the two week milestone, the puppies have grown and changed so much.  We were on vacation for a week, and its hard to believe a puppy can change so much in such a little amount of time.   We're used to being with them from day 1 to week 7 so the changes aren't as noticeable when you see them everyday.  As of Sunday their eyes started opening, and by Monday they were all opened up.  They are starting to scoot around the whelping box a little more, and but for the most part they are pretty content snuggling up with each other and finding momma so they can nurse!  Mags is doing a great job, and for a first time mother she's a natural just like her mom is!   That's one of the traits I love the most about a lab!  Their mothering instinct comes so naturally.  The second picture down is one of my favorites.  I think it pretty much sums up how we all feel about the pups. Gracyn is pretty quick to mother them herself, and I'm pretty confident at age 7 she could handle raising a litter of pups on her own by now. What most of you don't recognize about that picture is that's Remi (grandma) taking a little time to show her affection for the pups.  Any chance she can, she will sneak in the shed and check over the pups. Mags doesn't seem to mind too much, and I'm pretty sure if I let Remi in with the Mags and the pups she would help take care of them right along side her daughter. In many ways, dogs are a lot more like people than most realize.  I also think this is why the bond between dog and person is so strong.  Hope you enjoy the photos and we'll keep you updated with many more pictures along the way!