the birthday of the sips

Sipsey chose us in the summer of 2006. Dirk and I went to look at a litter of Golden Retrievers, after researching and mentally preparing ourselves for dog ownership for three months. When I met her, I knew right away. All of her litter mates were passed out sleeping, but Sipsey was bouncing around the room. The breeders had actually barricaded their living room with pillows and chairs because Sipsey was always escaping. Then when Dirk snapped the above photo, everything just clicked. Being a photographer, I need a photogenic dog, right? And it doesn't hurt that she's a descendant from the original Air Bud from those children's movies!

We started taking Sipsey everywhere and letting her experience everything. She took road trips to North Carolina, the beach, and even as far away as Iowa. She was a little nervous about swimming in rivers at first, and would crawl up on me and wrap her little paws around my arm. In the first six months of her life, she'd been swimming in Appalachian streams, swimming pools, the Gulf of Mexico, and even broke through the ice at Pizza Hut on the lake in Ida Grove!

Sipsey is happiest when she's the center of attention, and hates when we call her a bad girl, ignoring her is the best punishment. She'll crawl up on our laps, lay her head on any part of our bodies close by, and give us love licks 'til you can't help but smile and forgive her anything.

Now that we live in a house, Sipsey's favorite thing to do is lay on the deck and sun herself, or stare out the front picture window for hours on end, watching cars drive by, squirrels, birds, joggers, anything that passes by (I call this Doggie Television). She transitioned well to the doggy door, and now we don't even have to go outside to play fetch with her. We can throw the ball out the bedroom or bathroom windows and she'll run out her door, down the steps, fetch it from the yard and bring it right back to us.

We had Sipsey's official birthday party last weekend with all of her best doggy pals (Frostie Paws frozen dog treats for each of the 10 dogs present, and margaritas for their owners), but rest assured she will be getting a Happy Meal for her REAL birthday tomorrow.

Yes, I am "that" annoying dog owner (but hey! it's better than being a cat lady, right?) I'm sure everything will change once I have children, but for now, Sipsey is my child. She's also been one of the best things that has happened to me since moving to Birmingham. There's nothing like getting home after work and knowing she'll be there to greet me like I've been gone for ages. She's also the hardest part about traveling, because she'll literally crawl on top of my suitcase when I'm packing. We throw around the idea of getting another dog, and part of me is excited for Sipsey to have a friend, but part of me is sad, because then it would never be just Sipsey and me ever again. She's my buddy, my pal, my constant companion. My hiking partner, my napping partner, my laying outside on a quilt friend. Last night, as I was sobbing over Otis on the couch, Sipsey just crawled up on my lap and looked up at me with her deep brown eyes. The hardest part about having a dog is knowing you'll outlive them.