Believe me, the cuteness that other people crooned over cut no ice with me at all; I couldn't wait for him to grow up 
I totally agree, I'm so glad Alfie is growing up now. I've loved him madly from the day we got him but I have to admit I LIKE him a lot more now at 7 months than I did at say, 3 or 4 months
I think it really depends on the puppy. I felt exactly the same as you two when Sapphi was a puppy. She was a nightmare. I remember my mum saying "when she's all grown up you'll want her to be a puppy again" my reply was I most certainly will not, and I never have. She's all grown up now, (well for a Lab anyway 
) and I love her dearly and I also LIKE her very much too. 
It was totally different with Max. He was a darling puppy, he was so good and so easy. He was gorgeous inside and out. I'd have him back as a pup any day. 
Barney's now just over 4 months old. He too (at the moment anyway 
) is a darling puppy. He's not quite as well behaved as Max was, but compared to Sapphi he's a dream. He's quick to learn and very responsive which is great. I love him to bits, and I also like him to bits too.
I didn't want to give the wrong impression of Alfie, he was actually a really good and responsive puppy and many times OH and I have said how lucky we've been with him but of course he still did puppy things and while we expected this and it was ok I'm still very glad now he's growing up. His basic personality hasn't really changed, he's always been a soppy, soft dog it's just now he's a (little) bit more sensible and thankfully the puppy chewing and play biting has stopped! I think now he's starting to see us more as friends rather than just playmates which makes a huge difference. Plus the older he gets the longer walks we can go on which is great
I agree with you about Goldies Sam, our first family dog was a Goldie called Ben and just like Max he was an 
from the day my mum and dad brought him home till the very sad day when we had to say goodbye to him 14 years later
Sorry Nicola, I didn't mean to insinuate Alfie was a nightmare.
Sapphi was my worst nightmare
, but I'm sure Alfie wasn't yours.
I just wanted to say some puppies are easier than others. Like Alfie Sapphi did the chewing and the play biting. She also did mass distruction, bouncing off the walls from morning til night, she'd jump on the sofa (despite not being allowed on) and wee, to name but a few.
Max never did any play biting or any chewing. He trained really easily, with the exception of recall
but that was rectified using a whistle fairly easily. He was always a calm puppy, really easy going and was a dream to teach walking to heel.
Barney too is quite calm, he doesn't chew (yet!) and his play biting stopped after a three days with training. So far, so good - lets hope it lasts.
