Fridays are Golden

Ellie had a birthday Tuesday.  It was quite appropriate that her birthday fell on the first day of Summer because she has indeed brought so much sunshine into our lives.  She was born at Dichi Goldens (here).  After saying good-bye to our second English Springer Spaniel we decided a Golden Retriever would be quite suitable for our lifestyle.  One of the best decisions we ever made.

Ellie's first day in her new home.

Ellie is the kindest and most gentle dog you can imagine.

 She is an expert at finding the weakness of soft toys and quickly rips out the filling.

 She is so beautiful running in the wind with her gorgeous coat flying in the breeze.

 She loves to go hiking, especially on trails where she can be off lead.

Ellie loves tennis balls and often carries one or more with her.  This is one of my favorite photographs of Ellie.  She is not allowed into the hallway leading to my study.  I took this picture of her standing near the entrance of the hall while I was sitting at my desk.  She was silently begging me to come on out of there and play with her.

 The halcyon days are over.  Lucy arrived on the scene.  Ellie is extremely patient with Lucy.  Many people are surprised to learn that Ellie is the alpha in spite of her tolerance for Lucy's antics.

 Another of my favorite photographs.  Ellie leading the way on a brisk November day.  Ellie is two and a half and Lucy is four months old in this photograph.

We don't celebrate dog birthdays at our house.  But on those days you can be sure there is a lot of reflection about how much our dogs mean to us.  And some extra hugs for sure.

Ellie and I share a very special bond.  Sometimes she walks up and puts her head gently in my lap.  Other times she "talks" to me, wanting me to get down on the floor with her.  Truth be told, she would really love to be a lap dog if only we allowed her on furniture.  We share some wonderful times together.

The late Will Rogers once said, "If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." 

That's exactly the way I feel.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE!