Hi!

Before I begin this blog post, I want to thank everyone who has inspired me. I have done a few blog posts about Sunny now and so I think it's time to talk about the people who have inspired me. If you know me, even in the slightest way, you may have inspired me by saying a few encouraging words. Or maybe you've been a large part of my writing process. These are just some of the people who have inspired me.

Gilda Syverson - Thank you for encouraging me from the get-go! You have really inspired me with all your encouraging words. You've given me art sets or books for my birthday and Christmas - both of which have helped me develop my reading skills and my art skills.

Lisa Kline - Thank you for editing both of my books for me and for all your encouragement! Your novels have also really inspired me. I have read them more times than I can count and I enjoy your interesting characters, the very exciting story lines and the animals that are involved in the Sisters in all Seasons series. 

Jo Rissanen - Thank you for help with the cover of both my books and for your encouragement! I enjoyed taking your art classes even before I began to work on my books and then when I did start writing, you helped me greatly with the cover art.

My Writing Group (including Lauren-Kate Stewart, Makayla McMinn and my mom ) - Thank you for everything you have all done to help and encourage me! You've all given me many many suggestions and helped me talk out lots of plot issues. And you've been there for me when I need encouragement and anything else! Lauren-Kate, it's been so fun taking this journey together. Your writing right alongside me has inspired me tons and I always look forward to our playtime afterwards. You've been such a good friend. Thank you, Makayla, for all your good ideas about where to add Harry in (readers will find out more about Harry when my third book comes out:-) ) and thank you for your chapter title suggestions. Mom, thanks for everything you do, not just writing, but just being my mother. 

And again, those are just a few of the people who have inspired me through this journey.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed my blog post.

Sydney

Hi!

I was asked to write another story about my pets by my friend Makayla. If you have any ideas of any other typesof stories you want to hear about on the blog, please contact me. So, I will be writing the story of Sunny.

It all started when our next door neighbor, a dairy farmer, was borrowing our pasture for his horses. As a thank-you, he wanted to give us a border collie puppy because his dog was about to give birth. I begged my parents to take his offer up because I'd never had a dog before. My mom and dad said that maybe after a little more research, we could possibly get a puppy. But, we had to look into other breeds first. I learned about Golden Retrievers and decided that was the breed of dog I wanted because these dogs sounded like good family pets. My parents told me we could get one under one condition. That was that I would write a report about golden retrievers. I did so happily and after I completed it, we began to look into the options. A lady who used to board her horses at our barn told us about a vet that bred Golden Retrievers. I was so excited. 

A couple months later, we went over to the vet's house, and we got to meet Sunny's mom. A few weeks later, late on Easter night, Sunny and her siblings were born. I had decided on the name Sunny a while ago and was looking forward to picking her out. At a week old, Sunny was small enough to fit into both hands. 

When it was time to choose which puppy we wanted, I couldn't decide. I wanted a girl, but that was the only standard I had. My dad pointed to  a sleeping puppy and said, "Let's get the sleepy one." I agreed because the puppy was a girl and I wouldn't have been able to decide otherwise. We didn't realize that all puppies take lots of naps.

We now joke that Sunny was just saving up her energy for when she went home with us.

At one point, before we could take Sunny home, she lost her collar. Luckily, we were able to figure out which one was her. On the day we took her home, she did a good job of whimpering when she needed to go to the bathroom as we were driving. The next nights were not great. We had to let her out three times during the night. My dad took the late night shift. My mom took the graveyard shift and I took the early shift. She did become better at potty training, but we had to learn to deal with her whimpering for the first few months. 

Even though Sunny is no longer sleepy, we love her dearly.

So that's the story of Sunny. Does anyone have fun stories about how their pets came to their families? If so, I'd love to hear about them.

Sydney