Johnny and I learned an important lesson last night.  If you are a dog, these two can easily be mistaken for one another.....

The night we put up our Christmas tree, we noticed Palmer curiously sniffing the ornaments but we foolishly thought nothing of it.  He accidentally knocked an ornament out of my hand but what we didn't realize was that the playful little dog thought it was a toy.... a ball!  While I still wasn't convinced that he wouldn't mark the tree, I left work a little early to check on Palmer and came home to this...

Palmer was able to get 4 ornaments off the bottom of our tree and smashed them all to pieces.  Here's the guilty pup sitting in the middle of the crime scene.  I checked his paws thoroughly and looked for blood on our furniture and Palmer's blanket.  The good news is that there were no signs of injury and luckily Palmer didn't hurt himself whatsoever.

Our solution?  Move all the ornaments to the top half of the Christmas tree so they are far from Palmer's reach while we're gone.  Hahah -- after the initial shock and cleaning up the mess, it makes us laugh to think about how much fun Palmer was having with his toy 'balls' while we were gone.  He's just a silly little dog trying to have a good time.

Yes, it's yours, Palmer...

...no need to mark your territory.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here's a picture of our beloved Palmer on Thanksgiving morning... BEFORE the turkey!!

Sleepy Palmer

I sat at home waiting for AT&T for 3 hours only to wait another 3 hours for them to fix the problem.  I think our internet is fixed now but this is a picture of Palmer from today -- my sentiments exactly!!

Licking

Johnny sent me a Wikipedia link on Dog Communication and asked me to read the section on 'Licking'.  I read it outloud and my heart immediately melted because it describes what Palmer does to Johnny and me all the time...now we finally know what he's been trying to tell us!  Read for yourself:

Dogs like to lick human skin not only for the salt from the sweat, but also as a form of greeting, such as by briefly licking a person's hand after sniffing it. Licking is also used as a social bonding analogous to primate social grooming and stroking. This can indicate intimacy. Such licking is longer and slower, as compared to the brief licking of faces during a greeting.

Freshly Groomed!

We finally got around to bringing Palmer in for a grooming and I have to say, he's looking quite handsome!  Check him out:

Schmie

I miss my dog.  I have been stressed out lately (can you say audit?) and he must understand how I'm feeling because this morning, right when I needed it most, he jumped into bed with me, curled up, and gave me loving doggy kisses.  After the kisses were done, he nestled his precious little head on my side and in that moment, I was reminded of his unconditional love.  I love him!