The Process of Drawing "Peach": from study to final portrait

Here's Peach, a Champion bulldog. She was a a diva, a character, and she was much loved by her family. Peach passed away recently, and I was honored to draw this gorgeous girl. The above image is a pencil study of her expressive face.
Above, I am working on capturing Peach's unique look. What a dog! Just look at that face! I really get to know my subjects as I draw them and study their images. Peach captivated me, and provided me with a fun challenge: capture the spirit of a diva champion bulldog with oodles of personality.
Here is the final portrait. The charcoal was given a bit of a kick with pastel color accents; charcoal and pastel complement each other wonderfully. I love using pastels to give subtle highlights and accents to charcoal works--it can really make a subject jump off the paper.

Can you just hear her say, "urrrrrrmmmmm..." as she rested her head on her paw? And what do you suppose her eyes were saying here? Was a nap interrupted? Or, was she just told to get off the new couch? Or, maybe a cat walked by and got her attention for a moment...then, it was nap time again...Or perhaps this popular doggie-thought crossed her mind at this moment: "Hey, when's dinner?"

details:
Peach, 2008. 9"x12", Charcoal and chalk pastel on Canson drawing paper.