On a night like tonight... and last night... and at least three out of seven days a week it seems when it is storming and Charlie is panting, pacing, drooling, whimpering, and overall stealing my few precious hours of sleep I like to try and think of how lucky I am.

When I was about to bring Charlie home my dad moved everything important to him to a place where Charlie couldn't reach, he hid his shoes, and everytime Charlie walked near a cable my dad was watching his every move. He expected Charlie to chew everything in sight and destroy the furniture as soon as he walked into the house. Charlie has never touched a shoe, cable, or even layed a tooth or paw on the furniture.



This was actually a day I realized how many stuffed animals I
had gotten when I was 10 and still had..
You can see them to the right.
They've been donated since then.



When we brought him home I made sure I could see Charlie at all times because I was positive he was not going to be potty trained and I'd have to clean up everything. He was completely potty trained. The only times he's had accidents were during storms (if I don't let him out right before they happen) and when he got a small case of the runs.



I have a few stuffed animals I've gotten when I was a child and kept including my giant stuffed gorilla, instead of ripping it apart Charlie slept with him. He completely ignores the smaller stuffed animal even though he will take a stuffed dog toy I give him and rip it to shreds in seconds.

Charlie isn't afraid of wheels either like a lot of dogs, which allows us to do so many things together like bike, rollerblade and skateboard, things that a lot of owner can not do.

Charlie LOVES car rides so it is never difficult to bring him on long rides to the lake or farm.

These are just a few of the things I try to remember on a night like tonight, when I am kept awake and in the morning when I am so sleep deprived I have to strain to complete the simplest tasks.

As much as I love to remember the things that make Charlie such a wonderful dog, I hope I can help him get over his storm anxiety a little more and maybe one day I can sleep through the thunder.

P.S. My friend had to drag me out of the humane society when we went to see the kittens and I think I'll be getting a kitten one day.