This last year has been tough on all of us.  As the world shut down we lost our usual way of life, navigating a “new normal”  filled with masks, staying home, missing friends and family and experiencing loneliness. For some people the year included losing homes, jobs and loved ones and indeed suffering from the dreaded Coronavirus. So it is no wonder we feel so negative about 2020!

But in 2020 we learned a lot too. Mostly we learned about who and what was important to us. We learned about love and loss, about helping others, about community, about heroes.

Some of us found a way to fill our lives with more love, by getting a new puppy. Those puppies have marked a new beginning, a life filled with puppy breath and puppy kisses. These new additions to our families have taken up a huge space in our hearts and brought so much joy amidst the sadness and trying times of Covid-19. Yes it is amazing how love carries you through the most difficult times!

While I did not bring a new puppy into my own home, my daughter and her family got a wonderful little Aussiepoo, or Aussiedoodle, a cute mix of Australian Shepherd and Miniature Poodle.  Her name is Lexi and she’s bundle of joy and exuberant energy. Along with that love and joy come the usual trials and tribulations of raising a puppy - nipping, house-training, socializing and obedience training.  But when I see how much pleasure my kids get out of this new bundle of joy, and as I watch over this new beginning for their family, I see that all that puppy “stuff” is so worth it!

For me Lexi is a new dog model to photograph - so watch out, she’s sure to appear frequently in my Instagram feed and blog! Right now she is a real challenge to photograph. She won’t stay in a box or bucket for those cute pictures of puppies in objects. She will barely stay still for a few seconds, she is so boisterous. But I have managed to get a few photos of her to share here.

These photos will always be a memory that warms the hearts of my kids and grandkids as they look over pictures of their lovely puppy as she grows.

You too can make special memories of your puppies, foster dogs, or adult dogs. Contact me to discuss your pet and family photo session for the New Year.

As I look forward to 2021, I know I share with all of you the hope for a better year, for an end to this awful Coronavirus, or at least lessening its hold on the world and for more time with my loved ones.

Wishing you all a blessed  New Year in 2021.

As a pet and family photographer I am happy to serve the Greater Toronto area, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Thornhill, Scarborough, Etobicoke, Markham and beyond.

This is my first blog post of the 2021 Pet Photography 52 Weeks Project in which I will participate whenever possible. Follow the circle to Jo Lyons Photography, Barrington Coast Dog and Animal Photographer and check out her first blog post of 2021 on new beginnings.