Happy National Dog Day!

Chances are, if you’re reading this, you are a dog lover. Are you one of those people that sees a dog out on a walk and needs to say hi to it? I’m not sure I’ve ever let a dog pass me that I didn’t say hello to or at least nod at (as if the dog knows a nod is a hello from me).

So yes, I am one of those crazy dog people. But dogs have been a huge part of my life and relationship with my husband. I met my husband at a dog park in downtown Chicago 12 years ago. I had a yellow lab, he had a cute crazy little mutt. The girls bonded and so did we. We got married on the beach and of course, our two girls were there. In newborn pictures, the girls were in with the new baby. They were our first kids and we loved them so much.

I had a retail store when we lived in Illinois and our lab Lola would come to work every day with me. She greeted customers and people would come in just to see her. They are really the best therapy and it’s proven that petting a dog’s fur can raise your levels of serotonin.  There is a reason why they are therapy animals!

Last year we had to put down our sweet Lola, our lab who was 13. She was perfectly healthy and then took a turn for the worse the night before our oldest daughter’s birthday.  It was the hardest thing to say goodbye to our sweet four-legged family member. She had been by my side through ups and downs, moves, our wedding, and then bringing home three babies. We were moving to Charleston in a few months and promised our oldest we’d get a puppy once we were in our new home in the fall.

Well, here comes the fall and she’s reminded us every day. Everyday guys! She meets lab puppies on the street and her eyes fill with tears, she loves them so much. She’s like her mama, she sees a dog, she needs to pet it. My son could care less about dogs and really just co-exists with them. My little one, I feel sorry for whatever puppy comes into our lives because I know she’s going to love them, but put them through the wringer and show them who’s boss.