Welcome to our blog!

 Welcome to the blog home of Waldo and Mama.

Who are we?
Mama is a just that - a mom to several children, and a nana to one.  One child has ADHD, and is on the autism spectrum. One child is a pediatric brain cancer patient. Mama works in the library as a storytime coordinator, a few days a week. Mama works with preschool aged children. 

Mama also has PTSD. Caring for a child with brain cancer, going through all the things such as discovering the tumor, staying in the hospital, getting ready for surgery, canceling surgery, staying at the Buffalo Ronald McDonald House, oral chemo, radiation. And being away from the family for months, takes a toll on a person. Pre cancer diagnosis Mama was already diagnosed with Adult Separation Anxiety Disorder. So having to stay away from her family was brutal. Many night were spent crying herself to sleep.

We opted to purchase a puppy for our child with cancer. Cancer really takes a toll on a kid. After several months of training, Mama realized she needed her own service dog. So another adventure began. In late December, Mama found Waldo. Waldo was from an oops litter. His mama was a small Chihuahua and his daddy was a small beagle. So Waldo is a Cheagle.  Waldo was born towards the end of October. (For those that need to know, he is a Scorpio.) Waldo has the body of a Chihuahua, mostly, but with some long legs. He is still very small. 

Mama started working with Waldo pretty much right away. Just simple things, like sit, and crate, (going into the crate for meals), gentle, touch, leash training, etc. Waldo is VERY receptive. Waldo spends his nights with Mama and the love of her life, Daddy. The days the Mama goes to the library, Waldo usually does too.Waldo has become the greeter at the library. Hi! How ya doin'? Let me make you smile today. He is very good at this job. 

The boys service dog in training, is not allowed to really mingle with other people.  His job is to focus on the boy.  That said, with Mama's work, she needs Waldo to interact with people. Unless something significant happens, Mama is usually quite happy at work. So though Waldo needs to pay attention, it is not his job at that time. That is his play time. His socialization time. He enjoys playing with the kids that come in. It is very good for him. Especially being a little guy. Little dogs need a good amount of socialization so that they accept people, and are friendly.

So, that is a little bit about us.