Bella's 1st Gotcha Day and 3rd B-Day

Happy 1st Gotcha Day and 3rd B-Day

Bella

Bella in her dress she wore to the Basset Ball and her Queen Crown from the Waddle

 Bella in her dress and Birthday Party Hat

Okay, I can sit for this one 

 Bella being Bella in her B-Day Hat

Since we don't really know when Bella's Birthday is we are celebrating both her birthday and her gotcha day on the same day.  You can read Bella's Success Story below that was submitted to GABR the Basset Rescue where she came from.  We can't LOVE you enough Bella and Thank You so much for joining our family.  You have made us whole again.  Mommy, Daddy, Winston and Amiee LOVE you.  (Note from Momma:  Her big celebration will be on Sunday as we have to go out of town for the day and evening, pictures will follow next week)

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 Bella’s Success Story

One year ago today, January 5, 2012 we were lucky enough to have Bella select us to be her forever home.

Bella has come a long way since the cold September day when she was rescued by an Angel in Kentucky who contacted GABR.  She was 20 pounds and had severe manage and other health issues and spent 3 months with her wonderful Foster Mom Kateri Burnett.  She nursed her to health along with the wonderful vet clinic in Indiana.  Without her first angel and then her GABR angels joining in we would not have Bella with us today.

We were contacted by Emmy the day before Christmas, 2011 asking us if we would be interested in Bella as they wanted her to go to a special home.  Emmy was aware that we had just lost our beloved Cleo to cancer 2 days after the Waddle in 2011 and wasn’t sure if we were ready to open our hearts again, just yet.  We asked Emmy if we could have till after the 1^st of the year to decide and if we could please get some new pictures of Bella since all we had to go by was what was on the End of the Year Newsletter that year.

Well new pictures of Bella arrived and she had blossomed into a beautiful girl, not that she wasn’t beautiful before.  The New Year came and Bella was very much on our minds.  We contacted Emmy and made arrangements to do a meet and greet with Bella and our other bassets, Winston and Amiee.  We drove for 5-1/2 hours to Marion, IN to her Foster Mom’s house.  We talked all the way about her and to the others and would say we are just going to meet her.  Then the next sentence was who drives 5-1/2 hours just to meet a possible new addition and then drive home without them.  Well I can tell you NOT us.

Our meet and greet went wonderful and we were to meet the Vet team that took care of her.  So before we left Terri’s house she asked if we wanted all of Bella’s stuff.  I am thinking we really haven’t made a decision yet, but what the heck, why not.  Meet the Vet team and talked with the Doctor that actually cared for Bella.  Before we left the Vet office we had signed the papers then headed to the local park for some visiting, walking all the bassets together and Terri wanted pictures.  Her town has the most beautiful park and we walked everyone with no problems.

We then loaded Bella in the BUV (Basset Utility Vehicle) and crated as Terri had suggested.  Winston and Amiee are not crated.  Well Bella had figured out that flexible crate and escaped before we left the park and found her spot with the others and curled up for a long ride home.  We never heard a peep out of them the whole trip.  Stopped for a potty break and they went back to sleep tell we got home.

We arrived home and they played for some time.  They all three got along so well and lifted the spirits of Winston and Amiee since we had lost Cleo.  She wasn’t use to being in the house all the time since she lived outdoors for so long.  All noises startled her at first and she spent most time in the bedroom when not playing with the others.   Wouldn’t sit with you and had no reaction to butt rubs and never rolled over on her belly.

I am happy to say that today she weighs 40 pounds, spends all her time with us in the living room when not playing, destroys the bed every day after it is made so she can sleep in it with all the pillows around her.  She sleeps on her back and loves belly rubs.  She has also learned to enjoy butt rubs and makes the goofiest noises when you do it.  She loves to wear her girlie clothes.  She has brought so much joy to our house and watching her emerge from her shell has been an awesome experience.

She was crowned Queen of the 2012 Illinois Bash Waddle so we have been living how to live with royalty and treat her like the Queen we know she is.

We can’t thank Emmy enough for encouraging us to open our hearts again to such a special girl, Bella.  Thank you to all the angels from Guardian Angel Basset Rescue for saving her and healing her to the beautiful basset she was the day we adopted her.  We feel honored to have been selected by GABR and Bella as her special forever home.

Sherri and Wes