A Tribute to a Dear Canine Friend.....

Well - we had a bad morning.  Our beautiful 4 1/2 year old Great Dane / English Mastiff mix slid on the ice on our back deck (a deck she had been able to clear for weeks now snow or no snow), and landed on her front leg in a bad way.  A really bad way.  Mike rushed her to the vet, but she was very honest and clear with us.  The break was very, very bad.  As a result, the best course of action was to have her put to sleep.

This was a sudden and rather shocking thing for us.  The kids are going through periods of crying followed by "life as normal", followed by crying.  To be honest - I am too.   Here is a picture of Sammy....

You get a general idea of her size next to our large orange tabby (Hobbes) in this picture.  Her back was up to my waist.  She was a sweet, sweet girl - and funny!! - thought she was a lap dog most of her life.  We are grateful for the time we had her!!  It will be a tough couple of days ahead - especially for the kids (who am I kidding - I keep hearing her collar!).  It has given us opportunities to talk about some things as a family and to hurt together.  We will really miss her.