by Hope
“We need a foster…two puppies, just for a couple of weeks.”
And me and my big mouth, sure, bring them on over.
So now we are up to 6 dogs, at least until the 18th. They are sisters, pointer mixes and they are calling them Thelma and Louise, completely fitting based on their circumstances and personality.
Evidently, this organization pulls certain dogs from the local shelters, get them vetted and then hold them in foster homes until transport takes them somewhere else where they stand a better chance of being adopted.
They pay for everything so there’s no financial strain. However, the energy level needed to deal with three
But man, I over-committed on this one. Three puppies, two completely wild with no house training or socialization at all. They are so sweet, but so wild.
I’ve told the kids and my boyfriend to remind me of how exhausted I am next time they ask me. (I wasn’t supposed to start until Princess/Beauty had moved out and school started, but they called desperate.)
Any one else has trouble saying no when people ask for this type of health?
On the good side, this will be a good thing to look back on if another dog/puppy pulls at my heart strings again. I think my 3 old dogs and 1 puppy are enough for me!

Hope is a digital marketing manager and foster/adoptive single mom to five kids. She has run her own consulting company for over 15 years and took a leap of faith returning to the corporate world in 2021 to a job and team she loves! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally mastered the balance between family first and wise financial decisions.
You need to focus on mental health as well as financial health (and physical health!). Being able to say No is sometimes hard to learn, but oh so important. You need to take care of you!
Yes, this experience if nothing else has taught me that. Even if it doesn’t cost me money, it definitely costs me time and effort, stress and frustration…all while I am kind of mourning the changes going on, natural changes, but still changes that I wish weren’t here quite yet. I appreciate your note on this, a good reminder.