Christmas Goodies!

Boy did I ever have a fun Christmas! I even got presents from people Mom works with! Treats and toys aplenty...I love the boxes the best!

I think my very favorite gift was a handmade fleece blanket that Jill gave to us. Mom and I snuggle up at night in front of the fireplace and we both fit under our binky!

Little Barkley Bunting wants to go a'hunting:

Jingle Bubs Jingle Bubs Jingle All the Way!

Dog Park Fun

I love the dog park! Every day when Mom gets home from work I knock her over trying to get into the car cuz I know it will take me to the park! I cry all the way there (3 minutes) since I know what is awaiting me...sniffs aplenty and fetching galore! I can't figure out why she makes me take a bath most of the time when we get home though...

Christmas Card Outtakes

Once again it is that time of year where Mom makes me sit pretty for the annual Christmas card. Usually I am a total ham and LOVE the lens. However, I really like to make her laugh so sometimes I make it difficult for her...

They call me Mellow Yellow

Can you believe it has been so long since I last wrote in my blog? Mom's been keeping me busy playing in the snow and watching Christmas movies. I LOVE the snow and the cooler weather! Mom seems to, but it sure takes a long time to get out the door these days. Mom puts layer after layer on - I can barely see her face by the time we make it out the door. I keep losing my tennis ball at the park, but I am stubborn and dig and dig and dig until I unearth it. If it gets really cold, I have to put my booties on. I can't believe I have to wear booties! I try to kick them off as I walk, but I know it means I get to go outside so I don't care so much.

As I write I am sitting at the pet lodge. First I was at another house with 2 dogs and a cat. Cats scare me, so I don't even go down the hall if it is there. I forget how big I am!

The nice lady Robin that I was staying with dropped me off at the lodge yesterday. Mom has been gone for a while. It seems like a long time, but I am told it has only been a few days. I guess I have to stay here until Friday! My GrandPAW is sick and in the hospital in Duluth. I know it must be important for my Mom to leave me for so long so I just dream about going to the dog park as soon as she gets home! I have plenty of friends here - furry and fleshy alike. Mom called for a status report tonight and she was told that I was a "sweet, mellow, well-behaved boy". They keep me up by the front desk since I am so quiet. I like it up here since I get to watch everyone coming and going. I also get to have doggy play time each day. I miss my Mom, but I know we will be together soon.

Here is a picture of us happy together as we will soon be again...

Bathtime Barkley

Barkley Bubby you’re the one
You make bath time lots of fun!
Barkley Bubby I am awfully fond of you! (bobobodeo)

Barkley Bubby joy of joy
When I squeeze you you make noise
Barkley Bubby you're my very best friend its true

Every Day when I make my way to the tubby
I find a little fella who's cute and yella and fuzzy
Rubba Dub Barkley!

Barkley Bubby you’re so fine
And I’m lucky that your mine
Barkley Bubby I am awfully fond of you

Reader Note: Camera was not intentionally brought into tub situation. Camera on PHONE used to capture images.

For the love of peanut butter...

Monday morning…again. I lie in bed while mom takes a shower. We sure do get up a lot earlier during the week.  It is dark and cold out in the morning when we walk outside now. I wonder where the sun went? I prefer it cool anyway, I hope that white fluffy stuff that falls from the sky will come back. I dive right into it and come out with a snout full of it! I think it is fun when I can make it turn yellow.  

I see mom running around all spastic – why does she get like that? She hurries me through breakfast and we only take a really short walk. I need to be inspired to do my duty, but she keeps rushing me. Darn it – I like the weekends much better!

When she starts filling my big boy Kong with peanut butter, I know it’s time for me to go downstairs to my room while she is away. I wait patiently for her as I hear her trip down the stairs carrying three bags, her coffee mug and my Kong all while she closes my puppy gate. There it is…my Kong filled with peanut butter. My FAVORITE! Wait, I have lots of FAVORITE things... Bones, bacon, popcorn, pupperoni, milk bones, fish oil capsules, heartworm medicine, sweet potato fries, ham…

She turns the radio on so I get to listen to music all day. I don’t know who told her I like the oldies, but I wish she would let me listen to KQRS! As I watch her leave I make a sad face. She makes one back at me as she opens the door.  I wonder where she goes. I really hope it isn’t to spend the day at the dog park without me…wait – I still have my peanut butter Kong! And rawhide, and bones, and toys...

Barkley the Snuggleupaguss

I sure do love all my friends – furry and smooth alike.

My Auntie Wendy is my very favorite – here is a picture of me planting a big wet one on her last year on a hayride!

I also love Emma – we have slumber parties sometimes and I move from my mom’s bed to Emma’s bed. Even though Emma is in a twin air mattress, I climb up on her and snore throughout the whole night. She doesn’t seem to mind – she just lets out cute giggles and hugs me. Here is a photo of Emma and I on the first night we met. I am told I was much littler back then, but I don’t notice any difference. The second picture of Emma and I shows us holding hands. If you look closely you can see me winking at the camera!  Last year at Halloween Emma and I went trick-or-treating – mom dressed me up in a hot dog costume, but it was too small. She still made me wear it though.

Then there is a photo of Dusty and I snuggling last winter. He doesn’t seem to like me much as he growls at me a lot. But here he seems to like me okay. Mom does say I am a good Snuggleupaguss. Maybe Dusty thinks so too.

As you can see, Roro and I love to share the water dish. We make a mess all over the house splashing water and slobber! My mom calls him “Rolo”, but I can’t pronounce “l’s” so Roro will have to do.

I can’t wait to make more friends and write all about them!

Birthdays are the Best!

I think it is mom’s birthday coming up…which reminds me of my birthdays past!

Okay, I am only two, so I don’t have too many behind me. They were like any other day, lots of snugglin’s and kisses and treats. However, we did end up spending even more time at the dog park! When we got home I got to eat SOFT food (I hear that’s only for old dogs with bad teeth). Then I had presents – I found out there were toys and treats under the paper. Don’t tell my mom, but I honestly liked playing with the paper more than what was inside.  I know I had great birthday celebrations because I woke up in the middle of the night and threw up in the corner. That’s always a sign of a good party – right? Mom didn’t seem to think so though.  I guess she doesn’t like to get up in the middle of the night to clean up my messes.

Look at all these pictures of me playing with my presents!

Foreward

I remember the first time I saw his picture on Craig’s List. The ad had a non-descript subject line – something about “take me home”. I opened it up and fell in love at first sight. He was laying on a bed with the sweetest face I had ever seen. His pink nose is still as pink!  We decided we would call the number and I prayed that if it was meant to be, we would get a call back and have ourselves a new puppy.

Later that day we got a call back and found out the family that bought him had a 4-year-old son who was deathly allergic to the puppy and had to give him up. They had bought him from a breeder the prior weekend for $400 and asked for $180 for a rehoming fee.  We agreed to meet them in Elk River in the Target parking lot the following morning. I remember the man laying him in the grass and I grabbed him with vigor. He was super cuddly and HUGE already!  He was 8 weeks old that day (July 6, 2008). After a short conversation we decided to bring him home. He sat in my lap and cried the whole way home. I have to admit, the anxiety kicked in immediately. I knew my life would never be the same again. What I didn’t know is that the next year would bring horrible heartbreak, infinite tears, intense anxiety and worry, a closer relationship to God and the most intense love I have ever felt.

My purpose in writing this blog is to forever capture my life with Barkley and to honor the immeasurable blessings God has given me with this chapter in my life. Words will never be able to convey the whole-hearted love I feel from Barkley. He gives to me the unconditional love that my heart seeks and did not fully experience until this dog’s life was entrusted to me. I am organizing this blog in “byte” form as the stories are just that – tidbits of humor, chaos, laughter, joy, anger, frustration, soul-searching, and above all else, love.

The first night, Barkley was left in his crate to sleep. He cried all night as did I – he cries rarely now, but it still tugs at my heart. The next night and every night since he slept on the floor in my bedroom. When he was small enough he would crawl under the bed. Every once in a while he still tries to get under there, but his lunkhead won’t make it very far.

When we would walk him as a puppy people would always comment on him. He still gets a lot of attention and loves every minute of it. He has great big lion paws that used to be oversized for his body. It was fun to watch him grow as each body part went at different intervals. His snout is much more pronounced and his ears much longer. His weight in the beginning would go from 17 pounds to 25 pounds to 32 pounds to 45 pounds within just the first few months and increased with each vet visit.  By his first birthday he weighed in at 82 pounds. I believe his weight is protective as he falls UP stairs, trips on carpet and lands on linoleum with brute force.  He is a loveable lummox. Now at the age of 2, he is a big strong boy of 102 pounds.

His first summer was full of frustration as I attempted to walk him. He grew more uncontrollable as he grew in size.  I didn’t realize how important early training was. Consistency, the experts say, is key in successful dog training. At that point, the only thing I was doing with any consistency was getting frustrated. I was amazed at how difficult and all-consuming puppies could be. Looking back it was the single most important life experience I have had to date. I wish I had been more patient, but now I am a much wiser person and dog owner. I am still learning every day, but I have learned how to take things in stride.

Barkley had occasional accidents, but for the most part he was easily potty trained. I believe we just didn’t know the signs in the beginning. He did have a bad case of worms a few months upon entering the family. That caused him to poo in the house, but medicine quickly took care of the illness.  Ironically it was as we were asking the question “where did he pee?” that a bare foot would step into the "puddle".  I soon realized that my lawn would be a yellow mass of dead grass soon. That is only the very beginning of the wrath of Barkley’s destruction… The list is long and my memory is short, but I remember infinite piles of toys (and the stuffing) dotting the living room carpet much as a stormy sky is littered with cloud clusters. There are still limbs all over the house - a blue bunny arm here, a pink flamingo beak there.

Just tonight at the dog park I was reminded of how sweet, gentle-hearted and personable Barkley is. Watching him interact with humans and dogs alike makes my heart warm. He is most content to just fetch for hours, but when humans and dogs approach him they usually receive a sniff and nice sloppy kiss in return.

Today is the first entry into Barkley Bytes, but there will be much more to come. Life with a 100-pound lab (a la Marley and Me) is, by far, the most interesting, silly, wild, goofy and loving thing that could happen to me. I am so thankful and look forward to many more stories. I hope you all enjoy...