10/20/01
I apologize for not getting back to you sooner. I did just like everyone else by not getting back to you right away about Tela after our visit, even though I told you I wouldn't! Well, everything went well and we brought her home. I decided to take Thursday and Friday off work in order to be able to spend those first couple days with Tela. I'm happy to say that all is going really well with us and Tela. She is very well-mannered, especially in the house, and loves to go outside on walks. We have socialized her a little bit around people and one other dog. She has also done well in those situations and seems really playful. She seems happy with us and loves the attention she gets.
So, it looks so far like everything will work out. Both Kris and I (and Tela, too!) owe you, Tami, Cindy K, Mike and Elsa G a huge Thank You! I am so grateful for all your help, support and patience. If there is anything else I need to do to help things go smoothly for you, please let me know. Otherwise, Thank You again for everything and I will talk to you soon! Take care, Cindy!

4/3/03
How have you been, lately? How is life in Leavenworth these days - has spring arrived there yet? How is the malamute rescue work treating you? It looks like there are still several mals available on the WAMAL website, and I'm sure you would just prefer there be none, since that means those dogs are not in permanent homes. I don't know if you remember me, but my fiancée (who is now my wife!), Kris and I adopted Tela in September of 2001. I've been real lazy about letting you know how she's doing, and I think the last update I sent you was about a year ago. Since I'm finally getting around to e-mailing you, I do want to let you know that Tela is still a very important part of our family, and she is still doing very well.
I know I mentioned in my last e-mail that we were looking for a house to buy. Well, we didn't actually find one until the end of last December. We looked for nearly a year and just didn't find any houses we really liked. We finally found a house that fit us well and moved into it about a month and a half ago. After an initial adjustment period, Tela seems to like the new house just fine. She now has (finally!) a nice-sized backyard to run around in off-lead. The house was still in the process of being built when we bought it, and the builder was nice enough to construct a six foot fence around the backyard. That was especially nice because it allowed Tela to immediately use the backyard while we all got settled in. So now she still goes on at least two walks per day and also goes in the backyard for a little while each day. We've had fun exploring some of the trails near the new house on our walks, and she's already met several of the other dogs in the neighborhood. Our next door neighbors have a male Golden Retriever and Tela enjoys talking to him through the fence and playing with him in the backyard. One of the nicest things about the new house is that it is pretty close to Mt. Hood National Forest, and we've already snuck out between rain showers to tackle some of its trails.
All in all, everything is just great with Tela. We've grown a lot closer to her, and she is a wonderful companion. Although she's very friendly with everyone and loves the attention she gets when meeting new people, we can tell she's partial to us and knows that we're the two people who will always take care of her. I think she considers us a part of her pack now! She is well-behaved but still not afraid to challenge the boundaries we've set. That's just part of her character as a Malamute and a trait we've grown to understand and love. I know the pictures I attached in my last e-mail were a little difficult for you to open because of the format they were saved in. We have since bought a digital camera, so I attached a couple recent pictures that should be in JPG format. We just bought the camera during the holidays last year, and we're still learning all of its uses and features. So, I only have two pictures to send you right now, but I promise to send more as we take them and get them uploaded to our computer. The pictures happen to be from our wedding, which took place December 22, 2002 at Tryon Creek State Park in SW Portland. Tela was of course there, and these are my two favorite pictures of her taken at the wedding. If you can't open these either or have trouble viewing them, let me know and I will make adjustments for you. I hope everything is going well for you, Cindy. Thank You for all that you do for these dogs as the time and work you put in is invaluable. Take care of yourself, and I will talk to you later.