There's a new dog in the neighborhood.  Her name is Zoe.  She's 6 months old and has lots of energy.  LOTS.  She was thinking that Ellee Blue would be her new playmate. She was wrong.   

It has taken a little over a year to be able to enjoy a scene like this.  Only in the last few weeks has Ellee Blue  actually chosen on her own initiative to sit on the couch next to me.  She always wants to be next to me, but she's always been most comfortable on the floor.  So we've been working on it and now she seems to enjoy her place on the couch just as much as her place in her bed.  You see, Ellee spent the first three years of her life in a crate in a puppy mill.  As you can imagine, she's never really known how to be a "normal" dog.  And tonight, for the first time ever, she actually nuzzled up beside me, laid her head against my leg, and went to sleep.  That may not be a big deal to anyone else, but for this little rescue dog it's a HUGE step.  And it's great to know that when I'm sick and laying around sleeping all day, I don't have to feel guilty that my dog is laying on the floor feeling neglected because now she can join me for the lazy day on the couch. LOVE. THIS. DOG.