Elanor's Photo Gallery

It's official: I've chosen a name for my puppy - Elanor. I call her "Ellie" for short, but she's learning to recognize both her full name and nickname.

Jeff had suggested it, actually. We were talking about good names from literature we liked, and he remembered that in The Lord of the Rings, Sam names his daughter Elanor on Frodo's suggestion. The unusual spelling (most people spell her name with an extra "e" - "Eleanor") comes from Tolkien's version of the name. In the context of TLOTR, "elanor" is a beautiful flower.

If you're a real fan, you might know that it comes from the Sindarin Elvish el ("star") + anor ("sun"). But that's venturing pretty far out into the waters of geekdom, even for me. ;)

Suffice it to say, I liked the name, I liked the literary allusion, and I liked how it fit my pup. So Elanor it is!

Now, here are some pictures. I've posted a few of these online, and e-mailed a few more to some of you. But there are fresh ones from today, and this is the first time I've gathered them all into one photo gallery.

I'll make a mention in the blog whenever Ellie's gallery is updated.

So far she's been absolutely a dream. Don't let the "ferocious puppy" pic in the gallery fool you... Ellie's a sweetheart, and she's already got the puppy pads figured out. One legitimate mistake out of maybe eight or nine attempts since she came yesterday. I'd say that's a FINE record. =)

I'm learning a lot by being a "puppy papa." But I'll have to post more on that some other time. Right now, I'm ready for some supper.

But take a look at the pictures, and just tell me you wouldn't have fallen for her like I did!