One year ago, this little pup became part of our family. I still can’t wrap my mind around the fact that it has only been a year, because I can’t imagine life without him.

On New Year’s Eve, we made the trip down to Waterloo to “just look” at some dogs. Little did we know we would be bringing one home just hours later. We had originally gone down to see a dog named Walker. We played with him outside and we both thought he was nice, so we waited for one of the volunteers to talk about adopting him. While we waited, we walked around and saw this one dog curled up in a ball in the back of his cage. Unlike all the other animals in the shelter, he was quiet and lifeless. He barely turned his eyes to us, but when he did all we could see was sadness. It nearly broke my heart. So we figured we would take him outside for a little walk, just to lift his spirits while we waited to talk about Walker.

When we got him outside, his face immediately lit up and it was like he was an entirely different dog. We could tell he wanted to roam around but instead of taking advantage of the open space, he simply sat by our side to get all the loving he could. It was in that moment, we knew we couldn’t leave him in that shelter for one more minute. So we made a quick run to Farm and Fleet to get a few essentials and we brought him home.

It has been a whirlwind of a year with lots of destroyed toys, furniture, and clothes but it was filled to the brim with cuddles, laughter and love. I truly can’t imagine life without this lazy, funny, unphotogenic dog by our side. He has taught us so much in the little time we have spent together. He came from a life of unimaginable hardship and yet he continues to love us as if he has never been wronged. So here is to another year full of memories with our high fiving, water hating, bone loving, little rescue pup.

Check out just a few of our favorite memories and photos of our little G-Man!

Let’s just say his first day of obedience classes did not go…well. He may or may not have made two separate messes in the hour we were there!

While he still hasn’t gotten over his fear of even the smallest storms, he has gotten very good at hiding from them.

All geared up to cheer on his favorite lacrosse girls!

Don’t let the puppy eyes fool you, this was taken moments after he destroyed our couch.

Gunner is not a fan of physical exercise. Anything over half a mile will result in him laying on the trail until he is given enough fuel (aka treats) to continue.

He loves going for rides in the car, but only so he can bark at every vehicle larger than a car.

He may not be the most photogenic, but at least he knows how to look at the camera.

Gunner’s first family vacation was a success. We drove 8 hours up to the north shore of Minnesota with this pup and barked at every semi for the first few hours! Then he wasn’t too sure about these waves so he decided to bark at those too.
Family photos by Lake Superior! Still isn’t too fond of running but we did make it through one 5K together. While we still haven’t found a way to curb his Hudini like traits, we can’t stay mad for long when he gives us those puppy dog eyes.