After agonizing over our Houdini dog disaster a month ago, I continued looking for a dog for our family, but started thinking it just might not happen. And then we found Licorice.

(It’s okay if you just started cooing at the screen and talking to that little face in babytalk. I do it to her all the time.)

You would think—after all the time it took for us to get to this point—that I would’ve realized exactly what I was getting myself into with a new pet. And I did. Mostly. But even though Licorice is three, the fact that she’s new to our home and a relatively recent rescue means that in many ways, she’s a puppy. And having a puppy is not all that different from having a baby, it turns out.

So let’s check in on how my typical day has changed.

Typical before-the-kids-leave morning before the dog: I get up, I make coffee, I check email. I do a little work, then I make breakfasts and pack lunches and get the kids off to school.

Typical before-the-kids-leave morning after the dog: I get up (earlier), I make coffee, I take the dog outside. I check email. I tell the dog to get down. I do a little work. I tell the dog to get down. I make breakfasts and pack lunches and listen to the (tethered, so that I can accomplish this) dog whine for a bit, then I feed her and take her with us on the walk to school, which means what used to be a pleasant 20-minute walk has turned into a training session. But at least I get to stop and bag up dog poop, too. Ha.

Typical after-the-kids-leave morning before the dog: I sit down and work until lunch.

Typical after-the-kids-leave morning after the dog: I sit down and do some work. Then I take a break and we do a few training exercises. I work some more. We go outside. The dog takes a nap and I work.

Typical afternoon before the dog: I work all afternoon until the kids get home.

Typical afternoon after the dog: Well, so far she sleeps, so maybe I take her out once, but I still get to work for most of it.

The biggest change for me, actually, is that my kids are old enough that I can usually get in another hour (maybe even two) of work after they get home; they get a snack, do their homework, practice piano, etc. But because the dog is little and my son is… uhhh… exuberant (and easily distracted)… now I have to police the afternoon situation much more carefully. “Get off the dog,” is becoming an oft-repeated phrase around here. (”We were playing!” is the typical retort, in case you were wondering.)

We will all settle in, but at the moment I feel a little off my game.

Of course, then I look at that face and rub her little head and don’t mind in the slightest.