This is so much harder than I thought.

Last week I got my dream puppy. Hey, you're looking so handsome! But just like with human children, getting a dog versus raising a dog are two completely different things. This week I get my first taste of the madness that I signed up for, together with its ups and downs. This is really tough. This is my first week of living with a hell-raiser puppy. So when I was picturing my first couple of weeks with Wilk, my new puppy, I was like, I don't think I can do this inside or to see my truck, because I'm sure as hell it's gonna get busy and uncomfortable and intense. So I decided to rent out a small cabin in the woods here in Montana for two or three weeks. And this is it. It's pretty wild out here. Let's see how this goes. Anarchy Avenue. I like the sound of that. What do you think, little boy? Ready? Yes, you are. Hello! Ah, good boy! The amount of stuff that I carry now has basically doubled. Hey, Wilk! So this little guy has this bag, this blanket, this is my yoga mat, and my backpack. Hey, Wilk! Oh my god, you've got so much ----. Oh, you're just gonna lay down then. Oh, little teeth. Wilk? Wilk! Come on. Yes, good boy! Welcome to my little cabin in the woods. There is definitely magic here. It was time for Wilk to meet my family. Well, virtually, since they're literally an ocean away. But it's better than nothing, eh? Yes! So there's a really nice little mezzanine upstairs with an actual mattress, full-size mattress, and it's like a mini bedroom, but... We're gonna have to go out tonight several times in the middle of the night to do his business, so... So we're just gonna sleep on the floor. I brought my mattress from Odyssey, and we're just gonna sleep here. You gotta do what you gotta do. I never thought I would be actually quite pleased about my mattress being covered in carrot bits. This is very cute. This is all very different. You think you're gonna sleep here? You think you're gonna sleep in the middle of my mattress? Are you kidding? Are you actually kidding? Excuse me. That is not happening. This is your spot. I couldn't believe this sweet little bundle of joy just joined my pack. He was so cute and soft and tiny. Just a perfect little being. Hey, sweet cheeks. It's like my life did a complete 180 since last week, which I guess is to be expected, especially in the first couple of weeks of raising a puppy. I think it's just a rollercoaster, which it has been. And you know what? I just can't believe that this little thing has stolen my favorite sock. It's chewing on it. It's chewing it to bits and I still find him so cute. That would definitely be a red flag if he was a human male. But since he's a doggo, it's all right. So now every morning, instead of waking up slowly and having a slow, slow cup of coffee and, you know, doing my out thing, I get nipped by this little guy down there who does accompany me while I have my coffee. But I have to take him out first thing in the morning, play with him, spend some time together, do some cuddles. Just so sweet. And then our day begins. Feel like such a mom. So we're about to go and have breakfast. Well, this guy is about to go and have breakfast. Meanwhile, hi. I need to go to the bathroom. Excuse me. So there is a little outhouse there. So he has to come along with me because, you know, we're on our way to breakfast time. Crazy little thing. So he comes with me. I don't know what this is going to do to our relationship in the future, but I guess it just means that we're really, really close. Go. Good boy. Sit. Yeah. Such a good boy. All right, let's do it. Thanks, buddy. Yeah, I know. This is fascinating. Sit. Yay. Let's go. Come on. Exit. Yay. I tried to make sure that I could spend the maximum time possible with Wilk in these first days, but I still had to get some work done, you know. These are the rare moments where you see him napping. I repeat, rare moments. Most of the time, I found it nearly impossible to focus for more than five minutes at a time. Gentle. Yes. Everyone has an opinion on how to train dogs, even the people who don't have dogs themselves. All I knew was that we had to get started immediately and make it fun. So what I'm getting him to do here is sniff around, use his nose. Dogs perceive most of the world through their noses, so it's really good to get them to exercise their nose because it consumes a lot of energy and for puppies, that's quite important. Let's make a little trail. Yeah, it's a trail of food. Turns out, Wilk is pretty smart and he loves streets, which makes my job a little bit easier. But still, I just found myself spending most of my waking hours either playing with him or training together or just making sure that he doesn't eat any rocks to the point where I could just not focus on anything else. No running, no self-care, barely any work. My routine just changed completely and it quickly became exhausting. And you know what? I started to get angry at myself for not finding this whole puppy thing easier. You know what's really funny and kind of strange is that I can sit here in one of the most beautiful places in the world with an incredible community here on YouTube and on Instagram and it looks like I have everything and yet the last few days have just been quite taxing and tiring and beautiful but also just have made me feel so disheveled and so imperfect. And the world of social media is always so perfect, so I guess I just ended up feeling inadequate. Like an imposter. Like I should be perfect in these videos. Like I should do everything perfectly. Like I should have all the energy in the world and everything should be amazing all the time. But I know it's not real life. Yeah, you know why this stuff happens? This stuff happens because whenever a YouTuber tries to get a shot of themselves pouring hot water into a mug, inevitably there's spillage because you're holding a camera in one hand and the kettle in the other and you're looking not at what the kettle is doing but you're looking through the screen of the camera and this is what happens. But we cut all of that out in the edit. So you don't really get to see it except in crappy little moments like this. Yeah, you get to see this only. The picture-perfect fantasy. And that's it. Okay, you are picture-perfect. Yes, you are. You're just really not at all interested in me right now. Which is also okay. Instagram sells us this fantasy of the perfect hashtag dog life with none of the usual worries and drama of puppy ownership like trying to make sure that your dog doesn't choke on a piece of wood. This is a huge adjustment. Vilka is taking a nap so I have like 10 minutes to myself. Nobody tells us that these huge life adjustments, these big changes, whether it's getting a dog or a kid or getting married, as beautiful as they can be for sure, they're also extremely draining and taxing. And you do sit there sometimes asking yourself what the hell am I doing, you know? Like I'm spending the vast majority of my time trying to make sure he doesn't kill himself on something or doesn't rip something apart or just entertaining him. There's some cuddles in there too. But he just gets distracted after like 10 seconds and goes and chases after something. It's a big adjustment for sure. I decided to see whether any other dog owners on the internet felt like I did. You know, a bit shell-shocked and stressed. Or if I was the odd one out. Well, turns out that puppy owner blues is an actual thing. At least according to Reddit. I guess it's just it's okay to feel a bit overwhelmed sometimes. It's the year 2022 and you want to figure out how the hell to train a dog. What do you do? Well, you go to YouTube University. That's how I found Rachel Fusaro and her awesome dog training channel. She agreed to jump on a call with me. Tell me, how do I survive the first week with my puppy? And then, you know, how do I kind of set him up for a really good kind of life journey going forward? The first week is, it's either really, really good or really, really bad. I'll say that. So whatever happens in the first week, don't expect that to be the case in the next few weeks. It's not just the potty training and the puppy biting and all that. And I don't say this to stress you, but like this time period is the most critical. Like what you do today and what you do every day for the next three to six months is going to impact a part of your dog's life the rest of his life. My biggest goal will be to have him trained off the leash so that he can come hiking with me in different places and running and that kind of stuff, you know. He seems to have a really good demeanor so far. Just he's able to calm down around you. I like that he engages with you, but he didn't seem obsessive over it. So that's really cool. Rachel's tips were awesome, but her reassurance felt even better. I had been feeling so overwhelmed with everything and in times like that, sometimes you just need someone to talk you through it. Hey little boy, you're still too small. You're still too small to climb these big steps. Here we go. Yeah, tonight's the first night that Phil and I are not sleeping together. I don't want him to develop separation anxiety. I feel like that's what I'm giving him. We're together all the time. He's doing well so far. Hey, don't watch on the hat. That's someone else's stuff. You can't be doing that. No, say sorry. It's day six of living with a puppy and I'm feeling calmer. I'm feeling a bit better. I've talked to a few friends of mine who also recently got puppies and it seems like I'm not alone in feeling completely overwhelmed. They felt the same way. So at least it's good to know that I'm not the only one. Right? Yeah, that little munchkin is so full of energy. He's so hyper, but he's just a puppy. It's to be expected. So I need to give him a bit of credit for taking frequent naps. I always keep at least one thing in my life that's my kind of go-to if I'm feeling overwhelmed. Something I can control and come back to that usually makes me feel better. And I really needed that thing so badly just to reconnect to myself a little. I'm so excited. Ginny offered to take Wielik for a couple of hours so that I could go for a run. I haven't been running for a week. I know that doesn't sound like a big deal at all, but it just really started messing with my well-being and my sense of self and my self-esteem. So I'm gonna make this run count. And holy crap, Montana is so beautiful. Can I live here? Can I move here? Do you know anyone who has land for sale here? I love the little guy. I really love him with all my heart. But if you've ever had a puppy, you'll know just how intense it is. And it's so nice to just be able to get away for a couple of hours and do something that plays my mind. I just needed what I needed. This was amazing. One of the best runs I've had in a very long time. But I'm ready to go get my boy. Hey, my sweet little puppy. Hey, sweet cheeks. You're too small. Hey, sweet cheeks, ready to go? Well, we survived our first week together. That's just one week. Out of an entire lifetime of fun and madness and travel. And I have no idea what this is going to turn out to be. Probably the biggest adventure of my life. And yours too. Yeah, I didn't show you everything that happened this last week. Because in moments when Vilk was being super hyper or just totally obnoxious and biting everything and being a hurricane of energy, I just couldn't pick up the camera and film. It was too intense. I was trying to manage the situation, you know, but it's been tough. But we're here and things are getting better. And I just love this little guy so much. So much. You know, I really like you, Vilk. In fact, I would say I love you. Yeah, the most. In the whole world. Yeah. Yeah!