A Hotel of My Own

I was reading a Phoenix Magazine a couple of months ago and I saw an ad for a hotel that really interested me.  It advertised a room specifically for dogs.  Actually, it was a separate cottage, just for dogs.  It was in someplace called Cottonwood, Arizona.  I've never heard Mom or Dad mention Cottonwood so I didn't know where it was.  But I knew they were looking for places to go that we had never been, so I put this hotel on the family calendar.  I entered it on a day in October and just said, "Check out Tavern Hotel in Cottonwood."

Dad saw it on the calendar and thought Mom had put it on because she wanted to go there.  So he went ahead and made a reservation and then told Mom about it.  He even found the Dog Cottage and that was the cottage we reserved.  He did tell me that I would have to loose 15 pounds because only 50 pound dogs could stay there.  That's kind of discriminatory, I think.  What are we big muscular dogs supposed to do?  Sleep in the car?

Well we got in the car one day and headed to this Cottonwood.  Before we made the turn off the 17 (in Phoenix we call the streets "The 17", which is wierd, and someday remind me to tell you why they do that.  But I'm not supposed to digress, so back to my story), we tried to stop in Camp Verde to go to the Verde Brewery for lunch.  When we couldn't find it, Mom stopped and asked someone for directions.  We tried again.  This time we found it.  One look at it and Dad nixed it.  It didn't look like his kind of restaurant, I think.  It smelled good to me, but we went on to Cottonwood.

We found the Tavern Hotel with no trouble and then we went to the Dog Cottage. This was heaven.  The bed was big enough that there was even room for Mom and Dad on it as long as they promised not to take up TOO much room.

But the outside was something else again.  I had my own backyard bathroom.  (Not that I would ever go anywhere near my own bedroom, but I thought it was a nice touch anyway.

I explored all around the place.  We had a nice front door with the address so we wouldn't get lost.  

Then there was a corridor on the side of the back.  I still don't know what it was for, but it was fun to explore.

After that we went to get the lunch we missed out on at Camp Verde.  I got my usual place under the table.  But I don't mind.  As long as I get to go to the restaurant with Mom and Dad, I'm happy.

And I must say.  I really enjoyed staying at the Dog Hotel.  I hope we do it again soon.

Hope you have a nice hotel that caters to you!

Love, G

Secrets

I was looking through Mom's emails the other day.  I found one that she forgot to open and it had a picture of me.  I decided to pull it off her emails before she saw it.  It was a picture of me and my friends Roxie and Boss.  Here it is:

Roxie is the yellow lab.  Boss is the black lab.  And I'm the cute one in the back.  

We usually play on the green spot over on Rusty Spur.  Most of the time, Jack is with us.  Jack is 8 years old and he is Roxie and Boss's brother.  He likes to throw a ball for the three of us and Boss and I usually get it.  Sometimes, though, he throws it right to Roxie so she doesn't feel left out.  She's kind of a prima donna.  She doesn't like to get in the fray when Boss and I tussle for the ball.  Oh, but I'm digressing again.

One day, Mom and Dad had to go somewhere and Mrs. Jan couldn't sit for me.  So they got another dog sitter.  Her name is Ellen.  Just like my Mom's name.  In fact there must be a lot of Ellens around here.  Do you remember my Mom's friend?  Her name was Ellen, too.  How do they tell them apart?  I don't know any other Guinnesses.  

Anyway, this Ellen, the dog sitter, was also sitting for Boss and Roxie.  She decided that after we all played, we should go and play at Roxie and Boss's house 'cuz they live right next to the green spot.  

That was fine with me.  I always wanted to see Roxie and Boss's house.  I can hear them having fun in their swimming pool sometimes when I go for a walk from my house.  Their pool is right across the street from my house, but you can't see the pool because it's behind their back wall.  But they always sound like they are having fun.

See, that's Boss's house where the arrow is.  I'm standing on my driveway taking the picture.  The green spot is on the other side of their house.

We went into the house and Boss took me back to the pool.  He jumped right in.  I'm not that big on swimming, but I did get on the stairs and get my feet wet.  Roxie just ignored us as usual.  

When we Boss and I came back in, Ellen-the-dog-sitter took a picture of all three of us.  You can even see the wet footprints on the floor from Boss still being wet from the pool.  I hope Ellen-the-dog-sitter cleaned it up before Jack and his Mom and Dad came home.  I wouldn't want them to be mad at me and Boss.

I don't know if Mom would be mad that I went into Boss and Roxie's house, but just in case, I think I'm not going to tell her about it.  On the other hand, maybe I'll just save it and show it to her when it gets hot again and I want to convince her to get me a pool like Roxie and Boss have.  

A pool would be fun.  Mom was ALMOST going to get me a little pool like they have in the dog park in St. Louis.  But Dad says it would attract mosquitoes.  I don't want to attract mosquitoes.  Lots of Arizona people have gotten sick from mosquitoes.  

But how come Boss and Roxie don't get sick from mosquitoes with their pool?

Life is a mystery.  

Hope you have a pool and don't get bitten by mosquitoes!

Love, G