Month: March 2016

My First BarkDay!

~ Holden the Golden ~ Leave a comment

Wow. I don’t even know where to begin! Let’s start with the backstory. On this day last year, March 21, 2015, my lovely doggymom Splash gave birth to seven puppies. My mom wasn’t even guarenteed a puppy, as she was seventh on the waiting list. However, fate must have known we would be the best of friends, because I just happened to be the seventh puppy.

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Wow, my mom sure did have a lot to handle! (Isn’t she beautiful)

A year later, I have done some wonderful things that I never knew were going to be possible. One of them includes probably by far the favorite thing thus far: my Birthday Party. I turned one year old today and we got to celebrate!

The humans had a cake made from Sugarland, and there was nothing left so you could say that it was mouth watering. But who cares about humans. Let’s talk about my cake! I had a dog friendly custom cake made by Woof Gang Bakery and I devoured in 8 seconds.

 

It was one of the most glorious things I’ve ever eaten!… except for those three socks I ate a few months ago… and underwear… (sorry mom). Anyways,  I had so many friends come to celebrate my big day! There was even a guy with a picture of a dog that looked just like me on his shirt. We instantly became best friends, except I am still fuzzier.

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Shirt has dog. He must be dog. We are best friends.

I got to hang out with so many of my four-legged friends, too! And even meet new friends!! Over 70 people came to hang out and see ME! I couldn’t believe it.

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One of the coolest things about my birthday party is that it wasn’t just for me. It was actually a fundraiser for the local animal shelter, raising over $150 and several dog toys to donate. I am absolutely blown away by how generous and loving people are, and how willing they are to donate to a good cause. I can’t wait to take the donation to the shelter! There are so many dogs and cats who need homes and are just waiting for someone to love them at the shelter, so I wanted to help in anyway that I could.

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Thank you SO much to everyone who came to my first birthday party! I couldn’t have asked for a better day. Sunshine, people, cake, and a little love are sometimes all a dog needs. To see more of the pictures, visit my Facebook page! Now, who’s ready to start planning next years party?!

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With birthday cake and popcorn,
Holden the Golden

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I love you, Mom!

PS.. my mom says thank you and she is so appreciative! not like she writes this or anything….

Spring Break.. me off a piece of that chicken

~ Holden the Golden ~ Leave a comment

So apparently, humans in college have this thing called “Spring Break”. Some people choose to go to Cancun, go on a cruise, or to visit Europe; however, some will choose to hang out with their furry best friend.

Mom decided that she wanted to take me to some of her (and my) favorite places. Honestly, anywhere I go that has food and toys is my favorite place, but don’t tell her that.

Our first stop happened to be a pretty special one. It turns out that it was the place where I was named after: Holden Beach, North Carolina. It has a pretty cool name if you ask me.

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Ah yes, make sure to get all of the sand on my nose.

At Holden Beach, we did a lot of hanging out and relaxing, since school has been so busy this last semester. If you’re wondering, I’m making all A’s in my classes. Even Chancellor Folt thinks I’m a smart pup (look at my last post). Though we did a lot of relaxing, I got to practice the magnificent game that I adore like crazy: fetch.

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This ball. Throw. Please. Thanks.

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This is soooo fetch. 

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My parents and I went on so many walks and they even let me OFF LEASH! They were amazed at how well I listened and came back when I was called.

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Puppy Sun Bathing.. it’s a thing right?

I LOVED going back to Holden Beach and I can’t wait to go back again soon. My favorite thing to do is dig a hole and place my ball in it, only to dig it out again. Probably the coolest thing ever. Besides chicken. Although we had a wonderful time at the beach, it was time to head to where my mom calls home.. The mountains of North Carolina.

When we came home, I couldn’t wait to go hiking again. Mom and I love going to Hawksbill Mountain, but we decided to do something new together. We chose to go to Linville Falls, and boy it was spectacular.

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Alright human, let me pull you up this hill.

I was ready to get on the trail the second I got out of the car! On our way, you can just imagine how many glamour shots mom took of me. She is practicing her photography, and I just happen to be her favorite model. IMG_9941IMG_9936

After Mom got done being annoying and making me smile and tilt my head, it was time. Time to get to the falls. We hiked to an overlook that showed how tall the actual falls were first, and the view was crazy. IMG_9962

Sure, it was cool seeing the falls but we wanted to get up close and personal (just like I do with every girl dog I see). We decided to hike all the way back and down to the most beautiful waterfall.

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“Don’t go chasing waterfalls”… lol I chase everything
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I LOVE WATER. I LOVE BEING DOG. I LOVE EVERYTHING.

The past few days have been some of the best days I’ve ever had. I have traveled through almost the whole state of North Carolina and made my way to see some breathtaking views. You could say I had one heck of a Spring Break. I love being a dog and being able to go to so many places that make me so happy. I can’t wait to keep sharing all of my adventures with you! I can guarantee you that there will be some exciting ones coming soon.

With mud and wet dog smell,
Holden the Golden

 

Chancellor’s Pet

~ Holden the Golden ~ Leave a comment

You know how there is always that one kid that knows everything and the teacher just loves? Yeah, well that’s me. Except no one gets annoyed at me because I am a dog. Oh, and I just so happen to be the Chancellor’s Pet.

Today was International Women’s Day, and I got to meet one of the most influential and strong women I’ve ever met! The Chancellor of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Carol L. Folt, walked out of her building saying “I feel like this is such an honor to be meeting Holden THE Golden!” Don’t worry, I only fandogged for a second. I was about to meet one of the coolest, most genuine Chancellors around, no big deal.

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Omg are all of these people coming to meet me? 

We met by the beloved Old Well, one of the symbols of the university, and you could say it was love at first bark. I found out that Chancellor Folt actually previously owned two golden retrievers, so we instantly had a connection.

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Does my smile look too forced? I got nervous.

I can’t believe she took the time out of her busy schedule to meet with me. I was so honored that the leader of our University came to meet me, a furry four-legged creature, to help check off another item on my UNC Bucket List.

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Score! I made the Chancellor laugh!

The love and support I have gotten from the UNC community has been way more than I could have ever imagined receiving. As a pup who just aims to please people and love everyone, it feels amazing to be at a place where many people want to return the favor. I am so thankful to have had this opportunity to meet Chancellor Folt, as I will always cherish this memory (and so will my mom). Thank you to everyone who has helped me check items off of my Bucket List and to those who read about all of my adventures. I can’t wait to continue to share more as I continue living this golden life as Holden.

With dirty water and dog slobber,
Holden the Golden

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Wake Pup, Carolina 

~ Holden the Golden ~ 1 Comment

Hello and Good Morning– My name is Holden the Golden and I’ll be reporting the news today.

Just kidding! However, I did get to go on set on ‘Wake Up, Carolina’ this morning. Wake Up, Carolina is the first morning newscast at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. And I got to make a guest appearance.

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Hi, I’m ready for my close up. Thanks.

I walked up on set and instantly new it was my time to shine. You could say that all eyes were on me.

Omg, I hear your famous, too. Let’s be best friends. 

Well, because I am a dog, and dogs aren’t usually in news rooms, I got a lot of attention. However, I showed everyone that I was just like them! Just because I have four legs and smell like bacon/trash doesn’t mean that I can’t sit in my own chair, too. I got to co-anchor with my new best friend, Maddie, who just happens to be pretty famous, too. Hey girl hey.

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You has treat? No? Okay, I still love you.

We were all mic’d up and it was show time. I had been sitting in my chair for a while so I was starting to get pretty sleepy… I even yawned while on air AND laid in Mom’s lap while she was talking. I didn’t plan on it being that cute, but dang.. right on cue.

It was so amazing to get to be on set today! Of course, I had no clue why there were all of these lights, and why people were jumping around trying to get me to look at them, but IT WAS AWESOME because I got so much love. It’s pretty cool being a dog because it just so happens to be that when you love people, they happen to love you back.

You can watch my feature (trust me, you want to) right here:

 

With coffee and cream filled donuts,
Holden the Golden