Good luck Debbie and congratulations!

I have a Labradoodle and they are such affectionate sweethearts. If you look through newspaper ads, all pure breed dogs are very expensive these days, even the common ones. Technically, the Labradoodle is not a pure breed, but I imagine soon they will be recognized even by the AKC as their own breed. My dog's coloring has changed quite a bit since he was a pup, that seems to be pretty common in the breed.
I take my dog on a walk every day that's around an hour, lately I've been taking him on a second walk later in the day, he loves going out and I need to lose some holiday pounds. He's friendly with people and other dogs, but he is not an assertive personality, so he will get bullied sometimes and has been nipped a couple of times running loose at the dog park. Since my husband has problems with his legs, and my knee was hit into pretty bad at the dog park, I have been just walking him in nature/park areas on a retractable leash, we also take walk through the neighborhood sometimes.
Are you getting a male or a female, I have a male?
One thing is they are very high maintenance, I have a grooming table that I used for years to groom my Standard Schnauzers. With my boy now, I don't even put the table away anymore, I have to use it so often. I keep it folded leaning against the banister wall in the kitchen. Their 'hair' grows constantly, making it necessary to trim a bit with the clippers and clear the eye area. Without daily brushing and regular grooming, they are prone to mats and knots. They are magnets for weeds and briars too.