My Holiday Diary

OMD... do you remember where we left off a few weeks ago? When Mama sprung the pawful news on me that she was going all the way around the world to Australia for the holidays — to visit her family — but I wasn't invited to go along?

Paw here to sniff out the full, almost unbelievable story. There was so much drama and stress, I had to come up with a Sad-face-in-a-suitcase Plan A, a Fun House Reservation Plan B, and the pawfect Treat Bonus Plan C just to make sure I would have a pawsome holiday one way or another.

So after all that craziness, I thought I'd share a few paws-down memorable moments with you — because a lot can happen in three weeks when a floofy doodle's life is turned upside down by his very own Mama.

Sad things. Pawsome things. New things. Fun things. Unexpected things. And one very, very unfortunate hair thing.

Which Plan Worked?

Plan A didn't work. As you can probably guess by now, my Mama took off to the other end of the world for the holidays without me. Plan B worked! I got a reservation at the Fun House with my best-in-the-world, super-cool 2nd family — Dominic, Christina, and, of course, Luca! Plan C half-worked. I got a massive stash of treats to take on my vacation.

Being Brave

I'm trying really hard to be brave and not super sad, but it turns out that "I'll be back soon" means something very different to dogs than it does to humans. Very, very different. And the Christmas tree is sparkly and pretty — but it is absolutely no good at giving snuggles. The boxes are everywhere, all within reach, but only for looking at and not for chewing, which is not how it works at home with my Mama.

I am being loved so much, as always, by my best-in-the-world, super-cool 2nd family. But missing someone doesn't stop just because love is all around you. That surprised me more than I expected.

So tonight I made myself a promise — I decided to believe that tomorrow would be easier. Not because I knew for sure that it would be, but because being brave isn't about not feeling sad. Brave is choosing to hope anyway.

Mama will be missing me, too.

New Friends

I woke up today, and my heart felt too sad to ignore, and I just didn't know how I would get through another minute without my Mama — and then Shumie and Molly arrived pawsitively out of nowhere — they burst through the door, both super cute and ready to play. Shumie is short, and Molly is tall, and even though I look the biggest, I actually fit paw-fectly in the middle, making our pack complete. We didn't stop playing for one single minute — it was more fun than I could have imagined. They flipped my heart from sad to glad, and the Fun House holiday had officially begun.

You can't always plan the things that flip your heart when you need it most. You just have to leave the door open — and trust that something pawsome will burst right through it.

Mama will be so happy for me.

Fun Times With Luca

Yes, for sure. We played basketball and chased the ball. We watched football and movies, and Luca even planned a special surprise outing, but wouldn't say one word about what was in store.

We hopped in the car — he still didn't say where we were headed — and then, all of a sudden, just like that, there he was. Right in front of my very own nose. The one and only Santa. Ready and waiting just for me — the one and only Toffy, AKA Floof.

I sat up so tall and so still and so impawtently proper! He seemed very impressed with my therapy dog manners — in fact, I was so paw-mazing that Luca and I got to sit in his very own sleigh, and the treats that came after were paws down the best I'd had the whole pawsome day!

Certified Therapy Dog. Part-Time Security Dog. Santa's Very Own Helper. OMD — my résumé keeps growing.

Here's what I know — when you show up as your very best self, even when Mama isn't there to see it, pawsome things happen. And sometimes those things come with a sleigh.

Mama will be so impressed with me.

OMD! A Dog-Bun! One look at this video from today and you'll notice something very embarrassing. Before you say a single word — my hair situation is not my fault.

And it has nothing to do with my best-in-the-world, super-cool 2nd family. The truth is, this time Mama wasn't much of a planning guru when it came to getting us both packed and ready for our holiday, because she failed to leave enough time to trim my signature bangs — which have grown extra-long and super floofy. And now I have a dog-bun on my head that I do not love, not one bit.

I'll have plenty to say about this when Mama gets home.

Mama will be in paw-ful trouble with me over this.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/b8f523_84065774bdec4d6782075a65d90f8f17/480p/mp4/file.mp4

Boxes Ready For Unwrapping Oh. My. Dog. YES. FINALLY — the moment arrived.

I had been watching those boxes for DAYS, well, actually for over a week to be exact. Sniffing them. Circling them. Pawing them. Assessing them. The big ones. The small ones. The soft ones. The hard ones. Wanting so badly to just start ripping them all apart.

And finally — today was that day. I was up before anyone. But I still had to wait for Christian to arrive. But once she said "Get it", I went in nose first. My plan was to stay composed and not make a big mess, but that strategy went completely out the window in less than two seconds, and it became the most paw-mazing, ribbon-flying, paper-ripping, bag-shaking, bow-on-my-nose chaos I have ever been part of in my entire life, and I loved every single second of it.

Here is what I know for sure — sometimes the best gifts are not the things you get but the expawriences you have.

Mama is going to love hearing every single detail of this.

Mama's Home!

I was relaxing after a very pawsome — lots of chasing, lots of eating, and lots of playing when my ears heard something that made my heart skip one thousand beats, and my tail wagged so fast I was worried it might fly right off me and across the room.

I didn't waste one single second. I sprinted to the front door so fast that I left no space to stop — and crashed straight into it. Bumped my head. But sat up immediately, as tall and as straight as I pawssibly could, and waited for Christina to come open the door.

It had happened before. More than once. And every single time I had walked slowly back to my spot with my tail hanging very low and my heart even lower because my Mama was not at the door.

But this time — when that door opened — it was her.

My Mama. Right there. Actually, really, finally home.

I jumped so high I nearly reached her face. I spun so fast I nearly fell over on my face. But then Mama sat down on the ground, and I snuggled up with her until my heart slowed down enough to believe it was really, truly, finally true.

Three weeks is a very long time to be apart from your Mama when you're a floofy doodle who loves his Mama more than anything in the whole entire world.

But that one moment made every single second of the waiting worth it

Every. Single. One.

AND THEN...

Just like that, everything was exactly as it should be.

From the drama and the stress, to the Fun House and new friends, to Santa's sleigh and ribbon chaos — it was the most pawsome holiday I could have asked for. But none of it came close to that moment at the door. Not even a little bit.

And now I had everything I needed heading into a brand-new year! And I wish you the very same! That 2026 is filled with everything your heart is running straight toward!

Toffy xoxo

#lifewithtoffy #toffysdogblog #thinkliketoffy

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