She’s Seventeen!

Yes, our little girl is seventeen years old today.

We found her when she was 11 months old – on December 4th, as a matter of fact – at an animal adoption fair north of San Diego. She was being walked and was coming in our direction. Don saw her, immediately stopped and dropped to his knees, and said, “Now, there’s a girl!“

She had been rescued from somewhere in the California desert.

We took her home, gave her a bath, introduced her to Winston and this ball of fire completely enchanted us. (We discovered that a border collie has lots and lots of energy and is very, very smart.)

Since then, she’s traveled across the country in a car, she’s lived on both coasts, she’s been a wonderful sister to her two brothers, and she’s been the best daughter ever. She’s brought great joy to our lives.

And she’s been with us almost our whole married life.

When we lost Winston suddenly, she kept us going.

When we lost Riley, she kept us going.

She has charmed everyone she has ever met. She loves people. She’s pure LOVE in the form of a dog.

She’s frailer than she was when we took this picture last year. She’s much frailer. The last year has seen dramatic changes in our girl. So many conversations center around missing something she used to do but no longer does. She doesn’t pounce anymore. She stopped jumping up on the loveseat a couple of months ago. She no longer happily runs to meet me when I come downstairs in the morning. We miss seeing her famous smile. The light in her eye has dulled, but it’s still there if you look closely.

But she’s still feisty and demanding. She still loves to eat. She still sniffs the ground when I let her outside in the early morning. She can still aim that ‘border collie stare’ at me when she wants something. She’s still and always will be our girl.

Happy Birthday, beloved girl. You’re seventeen today! Mom and Dad love and adore you and there just might be some extra treats today.

Happy Monday.