Five months ago, we decided to get a puppy! At first we experienced some serious puppy blues, asking ourselves, “what the heck were we thinking?”. Slowly, Murphy (the pup) started to get better and better. He was listening to commands. He stopped chewing our shoes. He formed a “friendship” with the cats and stopped counter surfing!
Then came the day he introduced himself to the chickens as we were eating breakfast inside! The gate was accidentally left open. He got curious and wandered in. That’s when he saw Princess, the chicken!
Unfortunately, the introductions didn’t go smoothly.
Murphy’s instinct was to chase and shake. The poor chicken didn’t survive and we were at our wits end with this dog who we loved so much, but continuously got into BIG trouble!
We needed to figure out how to help him. This involved learning from dog trainers, frequent walks and many enrichment games.
Well, that was a month ago and, since then, Murphy has been gold.
This experience reminded me of when my kiddos were babies. I remember MAJOR ups and downs during that time! When I thought, “I got this!” something would throw me off course! Aye.
So, what got me through this discouraging time when I was experiencing low lows with my littles? Community!
I surrounded myself with positive influences, encouraging friends and supportive family! If they were in any way toxic, negative or challenging to be around, I actively chose to stay away! I knew I couldn’t handle more on my plate and so I built a strong community around me to get me through!
Like our puppy experience, you have to keep riding the waves. Every low leads to an inevitable high. It’s all a stage! Our Kukoon Community is there to cheer you on and support you along your journey!
