Re-united

Between our crazy schedule and the schedule of Sunny and her trainer we haven't been able to spend much time with Sunny lately.  And Charlie has let us know he doesn't like the long wait between visits.  He's actually been verbalizing that he misses Sunny and asks when he'll get to see her again.  For Charlie to verbalize what he's thinking and what he wants is great.  Many times he can't express what he is feeling and instead it comes out in frustration and ends in meltdowns.  

Our standing appointment each week is Thursdays but with the long period of time from our last visit with her, and Charlie's stress level from having an unstructured Summer, we asked if Sunny could come earlier this week.  And she did!!  Thank you, Mike, for being so flexible!!

We've had a busy Summer so far with lots of unstructured time and lots of camping.  All of us love camping, but it proves to be tough for Charlie.  Usually by the first full day he's asking to go home.  We find ways to get us all through the trip, but sometimes it can be tough.  This weekend's camping trip seemed a little more difficult so a visit from Sunny was just what we all needed.  

See that grin? That grin says it all.

The boys enjoyed playing with Sunny this afternoon and having some fun with her.  Mike showed them how to give her some simple commands and then give her treats/praise for listening.  Charlie got to walk around the living room with Sunny while holding the handle on her vest.....and LOVED it.  The boys even got her to crawl through their play tube a few times!  They were so excited that they got her to do it.  

Sunny wasn't so sure about the whole thing at first.  Took a little convincing, but she did it!  And had Charlie to greet her at the end.  

We'll be getting into the "meat" of training starting next week.  Up until this point, Sunny has been doing all the hard work and training.  But starting next week, Tyler and I will begin to spend several hours a week with Sunny and Mike so we can learn how to give commands and handle her, especially out in public.  We'll do this for 3-4 weeks and then start to slowly incorporate the boys into those training sessions as well.  Tyler and I look forward to these sessions and know we are blessed to have this opportunity.  Not everyone with service dogs gets to be this involved with their dog's training.  

We were told Sunny gets to fly on a plane this week during a business trip Mike needs to make.  Mike knew one of our requests was for Sunny to be familiar with flying as we'd like to travel as a family in the future.  We're excited to hear how that goes!

Sometimes Mike will let the boys give Sunny some treats during her visit.  Charlie has come to love laying down, setting the treats on his torso and then have Sunny eat the treats off of him.  Charlie calls it "being a table" for Sunny to eat off of.  It's pretty funny to watch.

Hugs goodbye for this week

All the fun must come to an end at some point (for now).  Goodbye's are tough.  Especially when Charlie whispered in my ear during Sunny's visit today, "can Sunny come live with us now?"  It's so hard for him to understand the time frame.  We keep reminding Charlie that Sunny still needs lots of training so she can do so many wonderful things with/for him.  He seems to understand that part, but how long it will take is harder to grasp.  Until next time....they sealed it with a kiss.

Seal this goodbye with a kiss