Charlie Part II

It appears that Charlie has returned to our home . . . in a reincarnated form so to speak.  In case you don't remember, I got Gavin a puppy, who he named Charlie, over the summer.  And then I had to give him away a few months later.  Gavin still talks about Charlie all the time, even though he cried a lot and whined about Charlie when he was living with us.  He clearly remembers only the positive aspects of their short-lived relationship.

The other day, I took Gavin to see the butterflies at the Fred Meijer Gardens.  He was more interested in the gift shop than the butterflies, but he still had a pretty good time.  Upon leaving, he wanted to get a stuffed butterfly . . . I talked him into getting something else.  He picked out a small, stuffed dog that he decided to name . . . Charlie.

Gavin has a lot of toys.  He has quite a few stuff animals.  But, I've never seen him take to one quite like this one.  In fact, I'm a little concerned that he thinks the dog is real.

Charlie goes everywhere with us.  He rides in the car with us all the time.  (Gavin tells me that Charlie likes to look out the window.)  Charlie goes to work with me since he can't go to daycare (or at least that's what I tell Gavin - I really just leave the toy dog in the car).  Charlie goes on walks and on bike rides as well.  Charlie eats breakfast with Gavin (he really likes cereal), and snuggles up with him in bed every night.

Don't be fooled - there's training wheels.  You just can't see them!

When we went shoe shopping for Gavin, we had to look for shoes for Charlie as well (even though I told him dogs don't wear shoes.  But, apparently Air Bud wears shoes, so . . .).  Charlie gets sick and has to lay on the couch for a little while.  He always feels better after a short rest, though.  Sometimes Charlie's naughty and has to go in timeout.  (I'm not really sure what he does to earn a timeout, but it must be pretty serious). 

I had to put my foot down when it came to taking Charlie swimming, giving Charlie a bath, and letting Charlie go potty in the toilet.  Charlie is a very affectionate dog (considering that he's not alive).  He gives kiss, likes to be pet (but don't pet his eyes), and loves having his tummy rubbed. 

I'm not sure how long will Charlie receive this vast amount of attention for, but if he starts trying to sleep in my bed with me, he's going to find himself in the dog house pretty quick.