All Dogs Go To Heaven

Yesterday we bid farewell to my childhood doggie, Lily. She lived a very long, happy life, and we will miss her dearly. My brother and I bought her for $40 in 1998 (which I'm not sure I ever paid my half of to my brother...) and we brought her home in an Apple Power Macintosh box. I was 12 years old at the time.

Almost a year ago Lily came to live with Sean and I in St. Louis. Sean never questioned taking her in and loved her as if he'd had her most of his life too. We're a bit heartbroken at the suddenness of having to let her go, even though we knew with her age it would probably be coming at any time.

Yesterday we spent the remainder of our day looking through photos and reminiscing about our pup. This post is going to be one huge photo (and video) dump of Lily throughout the years... so you've been warned. Please allow extra time for images to load.

 Lily at 3 months and me at 12 on the left, and nearly 15/27 years on the right.

We used to play fetch across the winter pool cover when she was a pup. I was jealous that she was light enough to walk across it.

She loved to play tug with a towel. That and hide new rawhides in couch cushions or the corner of a room. She would "bury" them by nosing the carpet around where she dropped the rawhide. And if you caught her in the process she'd look at you, appalled that you'd be watching her hiding spot, pick it up and move to a new corner.

She loved her buddy Chance, my mom's West Highland Terrier. He passed away about 4 years ago.

She was the subject of many scrapbook pages in the high school and college books my Mom made for me. My little Mizzou fan wore a Tigers collar for a long time, and got the '07 charm from my graduation tassel for this page. She had a habit of blinking one eye at a time, and my Dad always said she was winking at us.

 She proudly wore the pink peacoat (lined in gold satin :) I got her for Christmas one year.

She always waited patiently while we opened Christmas gifts, and allowed me to put all my unwrapped bows around her collar.

She turned 12 when she stayed with Sean and I a few years ago while my parents were on vacation, and we honored my friend Laura's beagle Carmel, who passed away earlier that  year, by making her a birthday hat like Laura always did for Carmel.

A few days later she was the excuse that Sean used to get me to the park he proposed at...

 And she was our only witness that day :)

And the following weekend we returned her to my parent's house. We had some fun tempting her with a treat in the pool like I used to do as a kid:

She came to live with Sean and I at the end of April 2012.

She ignored the cats for the most part, sharing their love of napping, and sometimes in the sun. Every now and then decided to play with their toys. She got one of them stuck in her lip sometimes and it made us laugh.

We always found her sleeping in odd positions, half off her bed, behind a chair, with her tongue sticking out.

Her little hips started to give out on her later in life, so we'd often find her sprawled out on the floor. It didn't seem to bother her though as long as food was involved!

She was a very messy eater.

And cute as can be.

Yesterday morning I was able to calm her and hold her in my lap while she took a nap. She hasn't wanted to be held like that in years.

Sean and I took turns hugging on her and giving her treats. She was content. We're happy she didn't suffer. She was a huge part of our lives and we can't quite believe she's gone, but we know we did the best we could for her and we imagine her in doggie heaven, enjoying the grass and sun:

We love you pooch. Thanks for being a loyal companion for so many wonderful years.