Pup Holidays

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of The J.M. Smucker Company. The opinions and text are all my own.

 

I have mom guilt 90% of the time about 90% of everything. A part of this mom guilt is my mom pup guilt because I know it’s hard for our pup to understand that she’s been moved down the totem pole of life in the past few years. This is why I make sure to give her things that are special to her to make sure she knows she is loved and one of the family. A little back story on our pup, Georgia, is that she was mine before I had my babies, before I met Robert, and was there for me during the most difficult time of my life. I got her while living in Charlotte, NC while I was looking for jobs after first moving up there. She was 3 months old and so easy to potty train. I would wake up in the middle of the night with her and carry her 3 floors down of an apartment and placed her in the grass, so she would quickly learn to only go there. When I started working, I would come home every day on my lunch break and take her outside or go to the tennis courts and throw a ball for 30 minutes.

She made the move with me up to New York and accompanied me to explore the city on all my days off. She was always there for me and we created a nice little life in NYC during our time there together. We had our routine walks, found a vet we loved when she got sick, ran without a leash in Central Park, and went to Cavalier meet-ups. I know, life before kids seems so weird to me haha. Georgia took forever to (re)train to go potty on the pavement, because that’s just what you did in NYC! I would carry her in a little carry case over my shoulder on the subway when we had to get over the river to then walk a few blocks to Central Park. She came home with me on airplanes a few times when I would visit the south, and be in her little carry-on case at my feet. She has always been the best dog ever. When I got pregnant, she never left my side and always laid on my stomach. I swear she knew something was going on.

When the kids were born, her world turned upside down. For a little while, the walks had to be cut short and there was always someone else on my lap. Now that the kids are toddlers, they definitely love to chase her around the house. They always hug her with love and good intent, but I think at 9 years old now, she might rather just hang out alone. But every day when we get home, she is so excited to see us, all of us, and makes sure to give us all a kiss. The kids know to treat her like she is one of the family and they are the ones to give her treats which they love doing almost as much as Georgia loves getting them.

Pretty much the way to any dog’s heart, and ours specifically, is through treats. I make sure I choose the best for her as I do my own children, so I read ingredients and labels to make sure she has the best treats. I can find the best deals at Walmart, so I decided to create a pup holiday, and give Georgia her own basket of goodies. We always give Georgia Milk-Bone Original Dog treats and usually have a Milo’s Kitchen bag of something in the house for special occasions. When putting together her basket, I found Milo’s Kitchen Chicken Meatballs and I know she thinks they are people food (which is actually her favorite, so we need to sub dog treats here). Real chicken is the #1 ingredient and very important to me! Milk-Bone are great every day treats for Georgia, as they help clean teeth and are vitamin enriched so it’s much better than a huge treat every time she goes outside. We also get the Pup-Peroni Original Beef Flavor to spice it up as a special occasion treat. Real Beef is the #1 ingredient which she can smell from a mile away, she loves them. Georgia definitely gets a variety of treats over here! Even though Georgia has been through so many of my life phases and seems to adjust, still loving me and the people that are now our whole life, I will never forget our years alone together. One thing that will not change is every night she sleeps at my feet on the bed, always on my side. Through sleepless nights, newborns, toddlers, job changes, and blog life, she still knows she is safe with me and is one of the kids.

Here’s how I put together a basket just for our pup. I wanted to make sure to be realistic about what she loves and make it special for her.

-I got her a new little bed since she loves curling up in little spaces, which we will keep in whatever room we are hanging out in.

-champagne bottle squeaky toy

-stuffed animal that squeaks but also soft so that she can sleep with it

-Milk-Bone dog treats

-Milo’s Kitchen Chicken Meatballs

-Pup-Peroni Original Beef Flavor

Now you know a little bit more on the backstory of our pup and why she’s so special to us. I hope this gives you a few ideas if you’re a dog parent so you can give your pup their own holiday too! You can easily pick the treats up today in the nick of time, I know your pets will appreciate them!