11/19/95-4/9/09
Your story with our family started 10 1/2 years ago.
You were a gift to my husband-to-be. We had talked about getting a dog, and so I searched. I found you at the Humane Society in Muscatine. (Grammy was along, to see Daddy's reaction!) Three barks in my direction was all it took. You were ours.
I'm not getting down off this futon. Sit somewhere else.Daddy was not quite thrilled the first time he saw you, sitting in my parents' living room. Here's how it went:
Daddy: What is that?
Mommy: It's a dog!
Daddy: I know it's a dog. Whose dog is it?
Mommy: It's your dog!
Daddy: ... No, it's not.
But you worked him over well. And since then, you have been the other woman in his life, and I have been fine with that.
You were such a loyal, SMART, sassy, funny, pushy, caring, stubborn dog, with a unique personality. And you were OURS--you made our family.
People always fell in love with you. If you wanted attention, you would walk up and flick an empty hand. If you wanted water or food, you would flip your food bowl until someone finally responded. If we started running a bath or even mentioned the word, you would hide. You would knock over the garbage can, and Tucker usually got the blame. You would drool for grapefruit. Only perform tricks for a treat.
Chase the cat. Let Tucker take your bed away in the middle of the night. Unmake Isabelle's bed during the day and lay in it. You knew if we were going on vacation or leaving the house without you. You loved to go on car rides, and stick your head all the way out the window.
Sweet Sassy.
Not a name I would have chosen, but a dog that I wouldn't have traded for the world.
Rest in peace, sweet girl. You've got a lot of love to spread around up there, and a lot of hands waiting to pet you.
6 comments:
Awwe...that is sooooo sweet.
Too bad she never got to meet our Toganou - with her strange liking for grapefruit and his weird obsession with carrot sticks, they would have gotten along perfectly! :)
Amanda-
she LOVED carrots, too!!!
Sassy was a true friend. Her eyes told it all. She will be truly missed, but I am suring there is soming "howling" in heaven today. She may be gone but her memories live on forever. We are thinking of you all and we love you,
Mom and Dad
Things about her I'll never forget:
- How she was our "mouser" before we had the cat.
- Her doing neuro exercises with Will. Just providing encouragement - it's not about the food.
- Her sugar-infused laps around the condo. (Who knew a basset had that kind of energy?)
- Her initial reaction to all four kids.
- Her self-guided tour of Tipton ... and the look on her face when we found her two blocks away. ("D'oh!")
- How she would do anything for a carrot.
- The tilt of her head. ("Grandpa Valet?")
- Her putting up with Tucker's bed-hogging.
- Reenacting COPS with Uncle Brian. ("Stop resisting! Stay down!")
- How every single passer-by had to pet her during walks. And every driver-by would smile and point.
We miss you, girl. Best dog ever.
I forgot about her reaction to the bathwater running - just lay flat down on the floor and don't move. They can't possibly pick you up.
A college freshman at a protest rally had nothing on her. ("Protest! Protest!")
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