Home for the Pawlidays

I really hadn't planned on writing anything else this year, but I'm in NJ for the holidays and have a bit of time on my hands. 

November in Charlotte. We started early this year.

This year looks different in many ways. Without taking into account the cluster that has been 2020 (but don't worry everyone, according to the memes as soon as it hits 12:00am on Jan 1, 2021, all will be well with the world again), the holidays can be a stressful time all by themselves. Normally I pack up the dogs and head north about a week before Christmas, and come home to NC after January 1. While that was still my plan this year, everything is still looking a little different. 

I hemmed and hawed about the responsibility of going home, number one. I have to cross VA, WV, MD, PA, and NJ state lines to get from Charlotte to NJ. I'm also coming home to my parents, and I feel a responsibility to keep them and everyone else safe. For most of December, I kept my bubble especially small and only saw a few of my barn friends on outdoor adventures. I didn't stop overnight in VA or MD to visit a friend on my way up, and only had to stop once for gas and walkies for the dogs. Pro tip if you're traveling through the southeast: Sheetz are the best places to stop. They have good gas prices, there is always a safe grassy spot to walk dogs, their bathrooms are always clean and nice, and they have endless snack options. 

While home, I won't be making my usual round of visits to friends and family. I'm seeing only my immediate household and a few other family members that are in my parents' bubble already. I'm hoping to meet up with one friend for a hike, but safely outside and distanced. A positive side affect of COVIDmas 2020 is the immense relief of social obligation and pressure. This introvert doesn't hate it. 

That does, however, mean I have a lot of time on my hands, which I did not account for. It's great being home but as a nearly 29-year-old home in my parents' house for two weeks, stir crazy is a real thing. There's also snow on the ground, so walks and hikes are not entirely in the picture right now given salt all over everything and icy snow on trails or paths. The saving grace has been the four dogs that currently reside in this house. 

Zuzu, my five-year-old black Lab/Golden mix, and Franny, my almost two-year-old Potato English Lab, are the best travel companions and love coming up to NJ to see their Golden friends. My parents have Phoebe, a two-year-old Golden Retriever, and Phrankie, a four-month-old Golden who is actually Phoebe's half-sister's puppy. Lost yet? 

Left to right: Phrankie, Franny, Zuzu, Phoebe

We arrived here Friday evening, having made great time flying up 81 with relatively no traffic. There was snow starting in VA, but it was barely flurrying as an aftermath of the storms they'd had earlier last week. We pulled into my parents' drive and it was immediately dog-central in the best way. 

Note that Zuzu does NOT partake in cuddle puddles and is usually glaring from across the room.

My dogs met little Phrankie when I was up earlier this fall, and Franny absolutely adores this baby dog. Cue immediate snuggle sessions on the couch. There's also a lot of snow on the ground outside, which they have all been thoroughly enjoying. Franny is the only true southerner, having been born in NC, but saw snow last Christmas when we came north and also went to Vermont. Since Zu has lived in NC with me for four years now, I think her cold tolerance has also diminished and both she and Fran last about 15 minutes before they start holding their paws off the ground, staring at me pathetically and wondering why the fun white stuff hurts their paws. 

You might know that it's one of my life's goal to get as many ridiculous pictures of my dogs as I possibly can. They are extremely good sports about it and know all kind of helpful things, like how to wear hats and antlers and jump into small chairs and pose there for a picture. See above and below pictures for reference (or follow me on instagram, @lyssabd).

At first we just snapped some fun snow pictures. My dad (who I will later refer to as Billy) has a nice camera, so while I snapped some low-quality images with my iPhone, he snagged some really clear shots. Which don't look as nice once I loaded them into Blogger but it's fine, they're not edited.

"Those peasants may fight over a stick, but I shall survey my kingdom." 

A cold Tato

Baby Phrankie

Phoebe is so gorgeous.

Then I decided to get creative, and Billy was on board. Franny is the champion of all pictures; she will sit, stay, and stare straight at the camera endlessly. Zuzu is usually fairly cooperative, but has Opinions on who she wants to sit next to and almost always stares off into space, convinced her best angles are captured when she looks away from the camera. Over my visits home the past two years, Phoebe has also become fairly decent at sitting for pictures. Phrankie just wants to do what the other dogs are doing. But also wants to eat their antlers and she'd like the world to know how much concentration it took to resist the temptation of antler jingle bell snacking. 

On Sunday afternoon, I brought the creativity inside and we captured these gems as well. It was way easier than anticipated getting all the girls to sit for these photos. I'm so impressed by Phrankie, she was so good for a baby girl!

Franny's face is my favorite in this one.

My brother has been messing around and editing some of the pictures my dad took which has been fun to see. Pretty much everything I shared is as-is with some high-quality doggos and they make me endlessly happy.

In November, I also booked a session with Amelia Campbell. She used to board at my barn and is wanting to build her photography business and me and a few friends were able to have her out for some photos. She got a few non-Christmas photos too, but maybe I'll share those later on. We got to do a Christmas mini-session and she grabbed these gems which made it onto my Christmas card this year. We had a lot of fun, and I love having furmily holiday photos. 

Image by Amelia Campbell Photography

Image by Amelia Campbell Photography

Billy and I have some plans for even more fun and ridiculous dog pictures, which I plan to continue spamming Instagram with. Happy Pawlidays, everyone!

Updating at 5pm Tuesday to add that I had a great idea at lunch today and Billy and I made it happen, with a little help from my brother's photoshop skills! 

I can't wait to lighten Zu's face up a bit on this one, I think this is so cute even if Fran looks
like a dumpy potato.

How gorgeous are these golden girls?!

This is the unedited original

Which I then asked Zach, my brother, to update with a Rudolph nose for Phrankie and a beard
for Santa-Zu.

And this is my favorite cartoony version with added in snow effects. This is bringing me so much joy this holiday season, and I'm looking forward to coming up with other crazy ideas this week!