merry merry from charlie...

We are a little late with our latest post, but we have been in a whirlwind since last weekend! Robert came to visit us before we trecked out on our Christmas journey and we had the best time - Charlie even helped himself to a bag of homeade sugar cookies while we were at dinner one night, but thank goodness he didn't get sick:) Charlie has done so good the past week or so but I on the other hand forgot to charge the camera and the battery went dead very soon after our trip began! I have a few pics to post but my mom is sending me a few more.

We started our holiday in El Dorado with Robert and his family. Charlie loved seeing Rhi, Robert's blue heeler, but she is very old and doesn't like to play very much so he enjoyed the peace and quiet before we headed to Forrest City on Christmas Eve. We were so excited that Maddie remembered Charlie! She was so happy to see us pull up in the drive way - they played and ran the whole time we were home! We are happy to report that our Christmas tree remained standing and no valuables were broken just a few pictures in the hall were left a little dismantled from the herd running up and down the hall:)

Charlie also got to make a trip to the "big city" that is better known as Memphis! He got to meet some more of our family friends, Ann, Annie P, and Mary and of course, everyone LOVED Charlie! We also took Charlie to Ann's house to run around in the backyard and tend to his business! We think he was a little nervous at Margaret's so we wanted to give him some time in the backyard:) I think Charlie's favorite part about the "big city" was sleeping at Margaret's because we slept in a king size bed. To bring you up to speed, Charlie has been sleeping in the bed with me so he was very excited about getting to stretch out in the big bed! Another favorite of the big city, was picking up bar-b-que to take back to the family in Forrest City. We put it in the trunk, but Charlie knew something was in there that smelled yummy to him - he went crazy sniffing for it!

We have now made our trek back west and our spending a few days in Little Rock at Robert's before going back to NWA for New Year's and his Mom's birthday. We hope Charlie remembers:)

Santa brought Charlie a big bed (it even has his name on it!) from Orvis and we put it together for him last night, but the real bed was more comfy to him:) We went for a long walk this morning and he came in and flopped right down on his bed - we know he will love it when we get settled back in Fayetteville. Here are a few pics from the holiday. We want to thank all of our family for hosting us this past week - we had the best holiday ever and our looking forward to many many more! Here is to a great 2009! love you all!

a busy saturday...

Charlie had so much fun today! While I knocked out some Christmas shopping, he went to play with Clarence. Clarence is a small black lab and is so cute! I'm so thankful for the many friends we have with dogs so that they can play together while I'm at work or need to run lots of errands. When I went to pick up Charlie today, I forgot the backseat was full of presents, so Charlie had to ride in the front seat! I was laughing out loud at him because he looked just like a real person sitting in the seat - his head hits the ceiling! He also loves hanging his head out the window too! Here are a few pictures....He is now snoozing!

My mom sent me some pictures she had taken from Thanksgiving. The other dog is Maddie, their German Shepard. Maddie and Charlie love playing with each other! We hope our Christmas tree is still standing after we arrive next week:)

Charlie LOVES the TV! TOO much turkey:)

charlie goes to work!

We have had a busy week! I had a visitor at work one afternoon and he had so much fun! I even decked him out in his very own Pagnozzi cap!

The weather has been icky and cold this week but today the sun was shining so Charlie went to play with his new friend, Winnie, to get some fresh air! She is a black golden doodle about half Charlie's size but they play so well together. As soon as we got home Charlie went right to sleep! I found him under the Christmas Tree! I told him to rest up because tomorrow he is going to play with Clarence while I do my Christmas shopping. Robert went to El Dorado this weekend and we miss him already! We can't wait to see him one week from today!!

oh charlie...

I have been a bad mother and have not yet posted his pictures from Thanksgiving, but they will be coming soon. We have been super busy since getting back to Fayetteville on Monday. Charlie has done really well in the house while I'm at work. I leave the Disney Channel on for him and he seems very content. No accidents except for he tried to get into Allison's bagels but we figured that he didn't like them because they were whole wheat:) We have seen Ashley and Blake several nights this week and Blake and Charlie love running around together. When I came home yesterday I found Charlie on the couch! Here are a few pictures....you will notice we have a tree up but no ornaments yet, wondering how Charlie will do first....

let our travels begin...

Well, we have been very busy the past few days and Charlie has been on his best behavior! (Get ready, this a long post!) I needed to go into work for a few hours before I left town for the holidays so I left Charlie alone in the house for the first time. He did SO well - no accidents and everything was all in one piece when I returned home. Charlie really likes hanging out on the balcony off of my bedroom - here are a few pictures that I took Monday morning before I went to work.

We began packing our bags (yes, charlie has his own overnight bag too!) We packed his food, treats, his leash and what was left a hotdog squeeze toy and his chicken too. Charlie likes to follow me everywhere I go - so he made as many trips down the stairs as I did. We were soon all packed - even had to give the car a good cleaning to make room for my stuff and Charlie too and we were off on our journey! It was Charlie's first time to ride in my car and he loved hanging his head out the window!!

We made it to Little Rock with NO accidents - yea! Charlie slept the entire time. Charlie was a little confused when we got to Robert's but he was wagging his tail in no time! We also learned a few new things about Charlie on our first visit to Robert's. One, we learned that Charlie WILL get on the couch. We decided that it is because there is more room on Robert's couch for Charlie. We also learned that Charlie will chew on things other than his toys. He chewed a belt loop off of a pair of Robert's pants - So we know what Charlie will be getting Robert for Christmas:) We also learned that when we leave Charlie in the car to run into the grocery store he likes to move to the front seat! I was laughing historically when I got back to the car on a quick trip to Kroger. We said our goodbyes and parted ways for the Thanksgiving holiday. Charlie was so sad to leave Robert and we think a little confused too - where am I going now?!

On the way out of town, we stopped at Fresh Market to pick up steaks and shrimp to take to his grandparent's - when I got back to the car there was a man putting grocery's in his car and he said, "mam, I have to tell you, when I walked by your car I thought to myself, wow, that kid needs a haircut!" That kid is Charlie! Charlie will not be getting a haircut anytime soon - we love his big fluffy, curly hair!

We made our journey over to Forrest City (yea, no accidents!) but it was a little tricky introducing Charlie to my parent's german shepard, Maddie. Charlie was VERY calm, but Maddie went CRAZY! Barking and jumping everywhere! We let them sniff each other and Maddie finally calmed down. Charlie has had a few accidents in the house, but we know Maddie just scared him (or that is what I'm thinking). They have been running all around the house and it sounds like a herd of cows but all is good. My parents also have a cat that Charlie has been trying to find. The cat likes to hide behind the tv - she will probably not come out until we leave on Saturday, but Charlie has enjoyed looking at her - the picture is below.

meeting charlie..

YEA! We have Charlie and he is a so much bigger than he looked in his pictures but he is our new best friend!! We made the trip to Branson to pick up Charlie and meet his owner Erin. She was so sweet and even sent us with his leash and some of his favorite toys. He was a little hesitant at first to get in the truck, but after some lifting we got him settled. I rode in the back with him and it was to much surprise that when we both sit up he is SO much taller than me and his head almost hit the ceiling! Erin told us that the drive to Branson was the longest he had ever ridden in a car so we headed straight back to Fayetteville. We did very well until we were about 20 minutes away when Charlie had his first accident. Luckily, Robert had put some towels on the backseat.

We got home and Charlie walked all over the house checking out his new crib! We found out that Charlie's collar and bed that we had bought was not BIG enough, so we will be making another trip to PetSmart! Charlie is such a big and loving dog and is so soft!! He did very well and just laid on the floor all afternoon watching football with Robert - I think the ride wore both of them out, they were snoozing after no time! Charlie is so well-mannered. He doesn't get on the furniture or even drink out of the toilet.

Last night a big group of our friends got together for a Thanksgiving party. We took Charlie with us and he even got to meet his new doggie friends, Blake and Clarence. They had the best time playing in the back yard! We just know Charlie is going to be a social butterfly like his mom and dad! We all had a great time at the party and Charlie slept all night! He laid by the bed and didn't budge all night!

Here are a few pictures from our first day with Charlie. We have a big week ahead of us - Little Rock tomorrow and Forrest City the rest of the week for the holiday. We can't wait to see how it all goes:)

Charlie checking out his new toys and bed - the bed is a little small for charlie, but he has been using it as a pillow and he has already pulled the squeaker out of one of his chew toys too:)

Yes - Charlie is much taller than me when he sits up in the car!

it's official!!

Well....it's true. Tomorrow at 10am, Robert and I are going to become dog owners! For the past few months, we have had a serious craving for a puppy and tomorrow that dream is coming true. We are not getting a puppy, but a 75 pound golden doodle named Charlie who is just over a year old. Long story short, my mom received an email a few weeks back from her cousin who knew of a family needing to find a home for Charlie. As soon as we opened the picture we were in love with him! He looks just so darn loving and cute, how could we not resist!? So, I got in contact with the owner the very next day and it was a done deal. We decided to wait 2 weeks to give them a little more time to say goodbye to Charlie and we set the date - November 22nd, 10am in Branson to meet our new four-legged friend and to for a new chapter in our life to begin!

We have been doing the normal things to prepare for our furry friend - trips to PetSmart and PetCo, checking out doggie daycares, and I even checked out Charlie's crate for myself! We have all the essentials - dog food, dog bowl, chew toys, and even an overnight bag for when we go see Robert in Little Rock. We are keeping our fingers crossed that Charlie likes to ride in the car:)

We will post pictures soon of our new friend...countdown has begun...less than 12 hours!