Cheesy Diary

15/07/2024

Today is Gully's 3rd birthday!! 🎂 🎉🎁 I have no idea where that time has gone, in my head he is still just tiny baby Gully! He has had lots of extra treats and kisses and cuddles today and has thoroughly enjoyed being even more spoiled than usual!
It's been a very long time since I've posted an update here so please enjoy some bonus some pictures from a few weeks ago when Cheese and Gully had a lovely weekend sleepover at their Auntie Jayne's who was kind enough to look after them while I went to a concert! 🎟️🎶🪩

08/04/2024

The boys had a very exciting weekend as we went to visit their Auntie Jayney and Zak for a couple of days!! 💖
They all had a lovely time playing together and having a run around in Jayne's paddock, and weren't bothered about getting muddy as you can see! Gully also followed in Cheese's footsteps of causing trouble, normally Cheese always finds a way to get into Jayne's pond but as it was covered up Gully decided it was lots of fun to dig in some waterlogged plant pots instead!!
We all had a lovely time and now I think the dogs will sleep for a week after all the excitement!

26/02/2024

Hello everyone, sorry for the long absence but I have a little update to share about Gully. He went in to have a heart scan in order to investigate a heart murmur that got picked up during a routine check up. After an echocardiogram it was found that Gully has multiple congenital cardiac abnormalities. As he has about 3 different things wrong with his heart, along with secondary changes due to the anomalies, it's too complex to do any surgical correction.
This means that although he is doing okay at the moment and his heart is able to compensate for now, eventually it won't be able to and he will end up going into heart failure. Unfortunately that means he is likely to have a shorter life expectancy than other labradors. Although obviously these things vary from dog to dog, the number the cardiologist gave me was that he may only live to around 5 or 6 years old.
As I say he is showing no signs of these issues at the moment, and forewarned is forearmed so now we know what symptoms to look out for and can avoid situations that may put extra stress on his heart - and can give him lots and lots of extra cuddles too, if that's even possible!!

04/12/2023

Today is Cheese's 10th birthday!!! 🎉 Where on earth has all that time gone 🤯 I think his lead up to double digits has actually made him realise he is a bit of a old man now as he has definitely been spending more time napping, much to Gully's displeasure as he would rather be wrestling 24/7!! He has also been feeling the cold a bit more bless him, so has been cosy in his pajamas most of the time lately. However that's not all of the time, he still spends just as much time begging for food and being silly and ridiculously cute!! 🧀💖

Moss also deserves an honorary mention as it was his birthday last week and he turned 13!! He is finally old enough to fit his moody teenager personality that he's had since birth as he is still as lively and outspoken (!) as ever!

I've included a couple of recent pictures of Cheese just so that everybody can be reminded of how adorable he is on his special day 🥰

01/12/2023

Today is the 1st of December which in the past would mark the first day of the Cheesy Diary Advent Event! Mum always loved arranging it and was probably the one Christmassy thing she actually looked forward to, and I know a lot of other people have fond memories of the calendar too! 🎄 Unfortunately I'm unable to organise it myself this year but instead here is the post from Christmas last year with every single one of our Advent stars!! 🌟

02/10/2023

Hello everyone, Sophie here with a bit of an update!

I'd like to start by saying thank you so so much to everyone who contributed to and shared the fundraiser for helping with the costs of looking after Moss, Cheese and Gully. Everyone was extremely generous and the money raised is going to be an enormous help to ensure that we are able to keep the dogs as loved and well looked after as Mum always made sure they were.

We have recently finished negotiations with the landlord surrounding Mum's tenancy, which means we have at least a year of not having to worry about moving or anything like that! It also means that all 3 dogs are able to stay with us which as you all can imagine is a massive relief.

The dogs are all doing okay, slowly settling in to the new normal although I'm sure it won't be long before another spanner is thrown in the works and it will be all change again! 🙄 I hope you all enjoy the pictures I've included, I'm not as much of a photographer as Mum but hopefully these snapshots of their silliness suffice!

Thank you again to everyone that has sent well wishes, offers of support and kind messages to me and all of the family. It means so much to know that there are so many people out there that were impacted by Mum's kindness 💖

23/08/2023

Thank you so much to everyone that has donated so far to the fundraiser to support the care of Cheese, Gully and Moss following the loss of Mum.
There are only 5 days left so if anyone has missed it and would like to donate there is still time.
We are so grateful to everyone's contributions as amongst everything going on it will make things a bit easier to ensure the dogs are still able to be looked after properly.
I understand that it's a difficult time for everyone so there is no pressure to donate if you are unable to, everyone's kind messages have also been a big support for all of us throughout all of this 💖💖

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-for-the-life-of-cheese-moss-gully/?fbclid=IwAR11o134cNVJIEqvLz6gjPIIL6k3Z2grdotyibOLK-b6ieJIUtYiDdy9JMM

Sarah left behind her beloved dogs Cheese, Gully & Moss. We would like to raise funds to enable their care for the rest of their lives.

31/07/2023

A few people have asked on here if there is any way to provide support for the care of the dogs in this difficult time as they were so important to mum. Some of mum's lovely friends have set up this fundraiser for anyone that might be interested, but there is no pressure 💖

Sarah left behind her beloved dogs Cheese, Gully & Moss. We would like to raise funds to enable their care for the rest of their lives.

24/07/2023

On Friday our brilliant mum Sarah passed away from COVID. She passed peacefully and all her family were with her. She was the most special person we have ever known, and made an impact on everyone she met. The joy and kindness she put out into the world can never be matched.

💖 Sarah Hendy 7/1/1972 - 21/7/2023 💖

15/07/2023

Hello everyone, it's Sophie here. You might have noticed that this page has been a bit quiet, it's because Mum has been in hospital for a couple of weeks due to COVID. She is quite poorly, she is in intensive care and has been intubated and sedated since last week so that she is able to get enough oxygen. Cheese is not able to stay in with Mum but I am allowed to take him in to visit her. Any positive vibes anyone is able to spare would be much appreciated xx

In cheerier news, today is Gully's 2nd birthday! Obviously we have not been able to get too much sorted for his big day but it has been a nice distraction to see him have lots of fun with his new stuffed toys for the 5 minutes they lasted!

26/06/2023

Thanks to the lovely Cheryl and SteveƝ we now have the cable drums that I wanted 😁 The boys are already having great fun with them 😎

25/06/2023

*Warning: this is a long read, so move along if you'd rather*

On Wednesday the boys decided that they fancied spending the whole day (and night!) with Nanny....without me and Soph! 😲 So Soph and I went to see Harry Styles in Cardiff instead 😎🤩😍

It was SUCH a positive day! There was little traffic on the way over, we found our allotted parking space easily and, as we'd arrived earlier than expected, we went straight to the merch stall (where Soph went wild!) and managed to squeeze a cheeky Costa in, where we sat outside and spotted Harry attendees 😁

There's a bit of a "thing" where everyone gets dressed up in the sparkliest, shiniest, floofiest outfits that they can put together plus cowboy hats and feather boas are actively encouraged. Everybody freely compliments each other too - I had several people tell me that I looked amazing 😁

We then went back to the car to collect our outfits (thank goodness it wasn't parked far away - in the disabled section underneath the stadium) and had a chat with the stewards, who kindly let us use the toilet in the VIP arrivals lounge, told us how to find more stewards to help us, told us about their secret lift, then took over wheeling the wheelchair up to the street and were just perfectly lovely 🥰

After getting some lunch and getting changed, we then went back to the car to finish getting ready - one of us did our make-up and one of us had a nana nap. After my nana nap Soph helped me to do my make-up, then we headed back up to the street (with the use of a helpful steward, natch), to take photos and wait to go in. After taking photos we headed towards the stadium and were immediately accosted by a lovely steward who took over wheeling duties and took us straight to our seats - no queuing!! 😎

The playlist before the warm-up band was perfect - it was really something special to hear 65,000 people singing Sweet Caroline and Bohemian Rhapsody, amongst others 😁

Harry finally hit the stage and he was just perfect, as expected, but what I hadn't expected was just how excited Soph was - she sang at the top of her lungs and danced as hard as she could without getting out of her seat (we were in a wheelchair enclosure and, if she'd stood up, she'd have blocked the view of several people) 😎 Seeing her enjoying herself so much made the long 10 month wait since buying tickets definitely worth it 😁

After Harry had finished doing his thing, we stopped to take a photo of the feather strewn stadium floor then went off to find a steward who could whisk us away to the secret lift then show us to our car. I got changed back into comfier clothing and shoes and Soph started eating the car picnic. The drive home was so smooth and quicker than expected, mostly because I slept most of the way back 😴😉

All in all, after watching the gorgeous boy for less than 2 hours🙄, the other 17 hours that we were away from home were rather amazing and life-affirming, because there is so much kindness out there 😊

24/06/2023

Hot dogs (and a very grubby Teddy 🙈) 🌭🌭

22/06/2023

My heart and soul ❤️

18/06/2023

Thanks to my wonderful mum and my darling Sophie Jayne I finally have my doggy garden 😁

To the left of the tyres are plants that have appeared after making it through the weedblock sheet. There is long grass, borage, chocolate mint, Alpine strawberries and dandelions. The boys are already happy to step over, or on, the tyres to get to that corner.

The tyres have blue grass, Echinacea, Marigolds, Coriander, Curry Coriander, Basil, Rosemary, Thyme and Curly Leafed Parsley in them.

In the corner to the right of the tyres we've planted 10 seedbombs. The seedbombs each contain lots of perennial wildflower seeds.

It'll all look better once they've bedded in a bit. I'm really pleased with it all 😊

16/06/2023

What happens when you share a bed with two labs who don't care which body part they step on! Actually, it's one lab because the other one picks his spot and then stays there the whole night whilst the other pings on and off the bed all night 😠

15/06/2023

It's been Treatment Week again this week. Yesterday I slept through the whole thing! Today I didn't sleep quite as much but definitely had a cheeky nana nap 😴 I think Cheese hates being in the wheelchair.... 🙄🥰😂

14/06/2023

My gorgeous limited edition leggings from Lucy Locket Loves have arrived ❤️ I love them ❤️

12/06/2023

Gully's got a girlfriend 🥰 Anne and David stopped by for a few hours whilst they are en route to Chard for a lovely, relaxing break. Anne was a bit worried about how Sapphire would physically cope with the Yellow Yobs, but Gully had her playbowing and chasing around the garden straight away ❤️ The last time that Sapphire saw Gully he was only 10ish weeks old. Now, Gully is very nearly 2 and Sapphire is very nearly 12, but he is a very happy toy boy 😊

10/06/2023

Dis avdernoon it woz veree hot in da garden so I did put mi teddy in da paddly pool. Nanny did save mi teddy and put it on da shelf fing so as soon as she turneded around I did rescue it. Mumma did tell Nanee wot I did do and Nanee did peg my teddy on da washy line!!! So I did da jumpin and saved it, but Nanee and Mumma did see me and did peg my teddy higher up on da washy line and I tried and tried and tried to save it but I couldn't get it 😔 Mumma did give me mi teddy when it wos all dry. I fink I mite not put mi teddy in da paddly pool again..... GullyGulliver x

(You might need to click on the video if you want to see Pink Teddy 🤦‍♀️)

09/06/2023

A few days ago Dawn, Soph and I took our boys to Gnashers Field again. They all had a marvellous time running and sniffing everywhere 🙂 Gully found a deliciously muddy puddle to dig in. I took the proper camera with me so they only had to do a tiny little bit of posing for me 😉

(Here you go, Dawn, an actual miracle 🤪)

09/06/2023

What more can I say?? 🙄😂

07/06/2023

We've had a very busy afternoon today, so it was lovely to get home and get out to the garden with the boys 🥰

06/06/2023

.....and then he got wind of the camera! 😂

06/06/2023

Gully fell asleep on my lap mid-belly rub earlier 😍🥰❤️

06/06/2023

Yesterday we went to the Cancer Research shop where Auntie Tracey works. This cheeky boy took himself up to the counter to order a pupaccino!! 😳🙄😂

03/06/2023

Dining al fresco on this lovely evening 😋

28/05/2023

Soph and I made it to Costa earlier in the week 😁 Cheese was sooooooo happy to be there ❤️

28/05/2023

Comfy, Cheese?? 🙈