5 Gifts Ideas for Your Traveling Canine

This week for the 5 Days of Christmas Traveling, I’ve shared:

• 5 Christmas Light Displays Worth the Drive
• 5 Tips to Help Keep You Sane While Traveling
• 5 Gift Ideas for the Traveler in Your Life
• 5 Gift Ideas for the Traveling Teen

You can also read one of my posts at The Homeschool Classroom:

• Creating a One-of-a-Kind Bible in Nine Easy Steps 

For my final post in the series, I had planned to share some of the unique places that we’ve shopped for Christmas gifts or Home Tours around the Country that you shouldn’t miss. Instead, I decided to share a few gift ideas for some of the other special members of your family, your faithful, four legged traveling canines. 

In three years, we’ve barely gone anywhere without ours. Let me tell you, our dog has really logged some miles! And he’s a great traveler.

1. Our dog may love to travel with us, but he also likes to see where we’re going. When he was smaller, he often sat on someone’s lap. Now that he is bigger he demands a seat of his own, but he’s not quite big enough to see out the window. Which is why a booster/car seat is #1 on my list of gift ideas for the traveling canine.

2. I don’t like giving up my comfy bed when we’re traveling and either does Vincent. This  travel bed is perfect for the dog on the go!

3. Vincent knows it’s time for a trip when I begin to pack necessities in his travel bag. Every dog should have one and this one is great because it comes with portable food and water containers that match the bag. I’m a sucker for matching pieces!

4. You do realize that responsible dog owners clean up after their pets, right? I love these handy waste disposal bags that can clip right on Vincent’s travel bag so I know just where they are when I need them.

5. I’m a fan of practical ideas, but your four-legged- fur- baby wants something fun for Christmas, too. Every year, I pick up one of these ducks to go along with other  stocking stuffers. Not only does Vincent love to open them, these toys keep him occupied for hours on the road!

  Don’t forget to visit the other bloggers that are participating in the 5 Days of Christmas series! 

A Slob Comes Clean - Getting Your Home Company Ready

Feels Like Home - Christmas Traditions

Somewhat Crunchy - Christmas with Dairy Allergies

Spell Outloud - Children's Books

Mama's Learning Corner - Children's Crafts

Many Little Blessings - Edible Gifts

Sunflower Schoolhouse – Decorations

An Oregon Cottage - Christmas Cookies

Catholic Icing - Wishing Jesus Happy Birthday

The Homeschool Classroom - Gifts Kids Can Make

Mama's Laundry Talk - Laundry Gifts

Successful Homeschooling – Serving

*This post contains affiliate links.

Squished NO More!

Okay, I did mention briefly that we went to Ohio over Mother's Day Weekend for my brother's wedding. Well, this is a glimpse into our car- (do you remember that my Trailblazer had a major breakdown on the way back to Alabama at Christmastime, so we left it in Ohio at my mother-in-laws and rented a car to get home)? Well, that was a mouthful, I'm really glad I got all that out! Well since then, we've been sucking it up without a vehicle, saving money for one that would be a better fit for our family. Check out the pictures from this trip in the largest rental "car" that I could get.And, yes, I could have rented a minivan or large SUV if they were available...and this particular day...that wasn't an option.
They do look comfy, don't they? Did I forget to tell you that we took the entire family along?
Vincent tried to get comfortable but just couldn't do it and of course everyone kept pushing him around. Here he is trying to lay on my lap with his head under the steering wheel. After the gear shift got knocked in neutral my husband forced him to sit on his lap the entire rest of the trip.

Well, on the return trip- it was an entirely different story. While my husband left a day earlier than us to return the rental car, the kids and I picked up our new to us vehicle and dropped my mother-in-law off in Knoxville, Tennessee on our way home.
Chelsea looks happy doesn't she? I can't say they were initially thrilled about being the proud owners of a custom conversion van with PINK interior, but it seemed to grow on them once they realized that everyone had their own space. When I say everyone, I do mean everyone. Check out Vincent now! He managed to make quite a mess, but that only means he was content and felt at home.
After we dropped off my mother-in-law, Joshua and Chelsea switched off and on between the front passenger seat and the back, but Nickolaus didn't budge the entire time. You see that lump stretched out across the back seat? That's him, sleeping almost the entire 11 hour trip! OK, maybe he did manage to rouse himself enough to eat and go pee but really other than that we didn't hear a peep out of him.
Now that's what I call room!

Can you say Freedom?

The forecast today called for Thunderstorms and Tornadoes. Not a pleasant combination. Especially since we've already experienced one tornado touching down near us while staying in the motor home.

Though we awoke to rain, the severe weather wasn't supposed to hit until 3:00 p.m. so my husband and I took the opportunity to hit the store for our weekly grocery run while the kids were still sleeping. By the time we returned, unloaded and found a place to put all of our provisions, the skies had cleared and we thought it would be safe to take our furbaby for a quick walk in between showers.

He was soooo excited to hear the "W" word that he began racing from the front to the back of the camper at full speed. Quite a site to see really. Since we replaced the carpet with the laminate flooring he runs to one end, slides, struggles to regain his grip and starts all over. One day I'll video it so you can all have a good belly laugh. Somehow we managed to get his leash on and get him outside while he was bouncing and jumping all around. You'd think he hadn't been outside for days by his reaction. Poor puppy. We walked to a nice shady area and turned him loose just as the rain drops started to fall. Unfazed, he raced around....



and around...



until he could run no more....



He was free and he was lovin' it!

Dog on the Loose

Today the unthinkable happened. Our puppy escaped. While we thought he was peacefully resting outside, enjoying the day, he had discovered that his chain was never attached to the post and took the opportunity to further explore our surroundings, mark his territory, roll in all kinds of gross stinkiness and sniff out the local wildlife.

I wonder how long it had taken him to realize that his chain was unsecured. I’d like to think that he had waited outside and tried to get our attention before bolting. That he tried to scratch on the door, perhaps even whined when he missed us and we didn’t answer, but with Beagle blood surging through his veins, it’s possible that he’d realized our error in split seconds and escaped.

Maybe in his own canine way he’d planned for this moment…peacefully biding his time while secretly plotting a way out. But I doubt it. Our dog is a family dog. He loves us way too much to want to be free. And since we rescued him from the pound when he was deathly sick and nursed him back to health, he’s certainly grown to think of us as part of his pack and we all love him. Life just wouldn’t be the same without him.

As rotten as he was today, it’s hard for me to believe that I didn’t miss him sooner but to be honest, I was enjoying a few minutes of peace. I did ask where he was and my son replied that he was outside, but I never thought to check on him. My husband was the first to notice his absence. When he arrived home from work he wasn’t greeted with the customary jumping-licking-mad-dog-running-circles-around-him-routine that takes place daily. If my husband missed it, this tells me that maybe he just pretends to be aggravated by the attention that our hound bestows upon him.

Still, when this ritual didn’t take place, he knew something was amiss. His question of Where’s Vincent? sent us all clamoring out of the camper in search of our beloved pet. After ten minutes of searching and calling his name with no sight of our puppy I began to think the worst. Where could he have gone? There was a Marriot next door; I could see him in my mind jumping on all the guests in the parking lot. Maybe he’d made it onto the nearby army base just in time for firing drills. Or found the interstate. Or someone found him, thought he was cute and claimed him. Or….

No need to go on, thankfully my son had found him. He was as happy to see us as we were to see him.

Waiting....

Today I caught my puppy gazing off in the distance...
waiting for my boys to return from an outing with friends...
or for my husband to return from work.
So sweet.
I couldn't resist snapping a picture.
Too cute...

The Joy of Traveling with Pets

This is what happens when you leave a puppy unsupervised in the camper.



Need I say more?