Goodbye Sweet Girl: A Memorial for Annabelle

This weekend we had the heartbreak of saying goodbye to our 8.5 year old dachshund. We're not exactly sure what happened but she wasn't acting herself the day before she passed....which gave me this gut feeling that I couldn't shake. I'm sad to say that I was right and she was nearing her end. Annabelle was my first dog and I couldn't have asked for a better pup. She was born on Valentine's Day 2006. We brought her home when she was incredibly tiny! She couldn't even get up the steps to the apartment we were living in at first!

One of her favorite toys started out much longer than her.

Annabelle knew how to get comfy. Her favorite fabric by far was fleece. She'd bury herself in it when she slept and wake up with "frito feet". ...a smell it seems all doxie owners know.

Her first trip to the beach: She had a blast but the sand caused a bit of trouble. All she wanted to do was sniff the sand...which caused sneeze after sneeze. Check out those flapping ears as she ran!

One thing she seemed to love was getting that last drop of my dad's beer. ...she is a German breed after all! Her and dad had a special relationship. For awhile, anytime she would greet dad she'd roll on her back and pee.

Annabelle had a boyfriend. His name was Apollo and he was a parakeet. Annabelle would spend time on the back of the couch just watching him, exchanging kisses every once and awhile. This is where her middle name, Avian, came from.

She was a nosey thing. Always knowing what was going on outside.

But she did have a problem with her ears. They didn't seem to stay in the correct place...seems another dachshund problem. ;)

And don't forget her crazy long tongue!

She was great with cats.

 And wonderful with the kids....especially loving when they were eating  ;)

Goodbye sweet girl. We love you and you are missed something terrible. I know you're waiting for us on the rainbow bridge.

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Best Shots: Sept 24

This week's best shots feature Maddy and our little hotdog, Annabelle. These were taken the same day I took the pictures for Project 52's birds/flying theme. While I love posed photo shoots, I love letting the kids loose to play and just snapping pictures too. I'm really happy with the way these pictures came out. But like last week, I'm looking to improve my photography. How could I improve these?

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Farewell Keme

It's a sad day here today. Hubby brought Keme, our mutt, to the SPCA this morning. We had a pretty scary night last night. Just like every night, we got the kids to bed and then hubby fed the dogs. Last night Keme got done eating first and went to eat Annabelle's. Annabelle didn't take kind to that and gave her a warning growl/bark. Keme responded by biting Annabelle's neck. Just as hubby got to them, Keme lifted Annabelle a little over the floor and gave her a shake. Hubby fought with her to release Annabelle but because she had locked her jaw, it took awhile. It probably wasn't a really long time in hind sight but in the moment, it felt like it lasted forever. I instantly knew that Keme was no longer welcome in our home. I love Keme but with small children and small animals, that's way too much of a risk to have in our house. I'd never be able to live with myself if something happened to a child, mine or otherwise. Annabelle was in obvious pain but seemed to be doing better than I thought she would; she even tried to jump on the couch. I called my brother who agreed to drive hubby and Annabelle to the emergency vet; I had to stay with the kids. The next couple hours seemed to drag on. Finally, they were home. Annabelle was still a little drugged up but she was good. She's on pain meds and an antibiotic. We're making sure she rests and are watching to make sure her wounds heal well. I'm sad not to have Keme here anymore but I know we made the right choice. I would never feel comfortable with her ever again. Sean hadn't fallen asleep by the time this all happened and came out to the living room while we were checking Annabelle over. I briefly explained that Annabelle was hurt but ok and was going to go to the doctor. After they left for the vet I sat down and talked to him about what happened. This is when him cracking his head open and needing stitches last year came in handy. It helped him understand. I also explained that Keme did it to Annabelle and since we don't want anyone else getting hurt that Keme was going to go to a new home. He was ok with this thankfully. He then proceeded to stay up until everyone was home, around 1:00! The one time Sean got really upset was when he told me that he wanted two dogs. That was before I could explain to him that Annabelle was ok. Two dogs is not out of the question but it won't happen anytime soon. When it does happen, it'll be a small dog, probably a pug. For now, I'm beyond thankful that Annabelle is ok.

Annabelle resting up

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Project 52: Week 37

I've been working on updating and improving my daycare website lately. One thing I added was a section introducing our pets. It was then that I realized I didn't have any recent pictures of Annabelle, our miniature dachshund. I had to fix that! Photographing animals is just as difficult as photographing kids! Here's how it went:

I told her to sit...

 Sticking out the tongue? Really!?

 Add a look...

 Finally! Was it really that hard to cooperate!?

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