Cal's New Best Friend

Sorry Ella and Wyatt, you guys have been replaced as favorite friends by...Dawg! (just joking!)

For several months now, Callen has been watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while I shower and get ready in the morning. (This has drastically cut down on the amount of makeup I have had to replace since he is mesmerized by the show and won't bother the drawers in the bathroom anymore!) A few weeks ago, Doug and I were in the attic doing some cleaning out. I came across a bin of mine that had stuffed animals in it. I found a Pluto dog from my Disney days, and decided to give it to Cal to see what he would do with it. Much to our surprise, he instantly took to it. 

'Dawg' (pronounced with a southern twang) is actually named 'Hot' (like Hot Dog!) but is mostly called dawg. If you ask Cal dawg's name, he will tell you it's Hot. When you ask Cal who his best friend is, he will tell you dawg! Dawg goes for lots of car rides, but never into stores, and does everything Cal does around the house. He drinks water, gets his teeth brushed, wears PJs...you name it, dawg has probably done it. Each night when it is time to read to Cal, he grabs dawg and puts him in his lap so dawg can enjoy the story as well. We have to tuck dawg into bed...blanket over his body and either his ears or an old hunting hat of Doug's to cover his face. Dawg is the first thing Cal wants in the morning. If Cal is working on a project with Doug, he has dawg take a turn with the hammer, drill, or whatever they are working with. Dawg always has to have a turn.

Enjoying hanging from the fort just like Cal did

Along for the ride

Watching the construction trucks

Hard hat (thanks to some kind people at Fluor) and dawg!

Piggy back rides

Just giving dawg a big hug

Reading all about trucks

It is soooo cute to see Cal love on dawg so much. He is genuinely so excited when he sees the stuffed animal. I am amazed at 1) how long Cal has had this fascination with dawg and 2) that he has taken to a stuffed animal and treated it like a family member!