Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Happy Birthday Dixie!

Two years ago today, this beautiful little puppy was born.  She was itty bitty and incredibly adoreable.  At five weeks old Steven and I brought her home and into our lives.  We named her Dixie - a tribute to all things we loved and held dear.

Don't think we're horrible people - we didn't realize how young she was at the time.  We found an ad for pure bred boxers and jumped at the chance to bring this beautiful puppy home.  It wasn't until we were driving home that I did the math.  It was April 13th and we were on the way home from a family shower in Jackson, MS.  We were to be married in June.  The breeders told us the litter was born on March 10th.  And with all the weddings plans and showers and crazy schedules, March 10th seemed like such a long time ago that we didn't even stop to see how old she really was.


We loaded Dixie up for her first trip to PetSmart the next day in order to purchase all the puppy essentials.  The "trainer" at PetSmart made us feel HORRIBLE.  She chastised us for "ripping this poor puppy from her mother too soon."  She informed me that at such a young age Dixie couldn't even regulate her own body temperature - she was an infant - and we shouldn't have her.  How were we supposed to know?  The breeders listed the litter for sale...one way or another Dixie was going to be sold to a family - I was just glad she came to us. I vowed to take care of her as well as her mother would have.


I am the reason she is so spoiled.  She stayed with Steven the weeks leading up to our wedding and I insisted that he allow her to sleep in the bed with him - after all, she couldn't even regulate her own body temperature. (To this day - she insists that her place is in the bed beside her Daddy!)  When he was out of town, I watched over her like a mother hen.  She was never out of our sight and we constantly showered her with love and affection.


Who wouldn't love that face though?  By the time she was eight weeks old she was completely house broken.  She could sit, stay and lay down.  She was the best puppy.  She was our jewel.

Dixie's first trip to the lake - she *loved* the water!
She was not too fond of the cold air and insisted on wrapping herself in the towel!
Daddy's favorite girls

We were so attached to her by the time our wedding rolled around that we decided to take her on our honeymoon with us!  Steven, more than I, could not stand the thought of leaving her when she was still so small, so the day after our wedding the three of us began our first family road trip to Destin, FL.

Dixie's frist trip to the beach.
She loved to growl at the waves!

Now, over a year and a half later, I love her as if she were my child.  In dog years, she is technically 14 and believe me - there are many times that she acts more like a moody teenage girl than a sweet little puppy, but she still makes my heart melt at some point every day.  She has literally licked my tears away as I have cried.  She serves as my ever faithful gaurd dog when Daddy is away on business.  She's my running buddy and personal space heater during the cold winter nights.  She is the.best.dog!

Spoiled??
My pretty, pretty girl.

So now that I that I have managed to solidify my place as "the crazy dog lady", I guess there is only one thing left to say.  Happy Birthday Dixie Belle!  Mommy loves you more than you could possibly know and I promise we will go for a super long birthday run when I get home tonight.  I love you!

22 comments:

tootie said...

Awww, she was the cutest puppy! That is a sweet story!

Stacey said...

And I said it was only an ordinary day, sorry. Happy Birthday Dixie! I just hope your second pup gets the praise on his day too. Those children after the first just don't get the pictures or anything else. And that first one just sets the bar so high. I bet you are wondering if I am talking about the dog or you don't you? HA HA. Love my girl and my grandpup! Happy Birthday to both of you!

Julie Leah said...

How precious! Dixie is so pretty! I love boxers. If I get another dog it will definitely be a boxer! Happy Birthday!

Unknown said...

awww, what a sweet post! Happy Birthday Dixie!

Sole Matters said...

I LOVE boxers, and she was SO cute as a puppy, and even cuter now!! Happy bday dixie!!

agalandherdog said...

Happy Birthday Dixie!

Manda said...

Happy Birthday Dixie!

Stephanie Hartman said...

Aw Happy Birthday Dixie...

Karina said...

She is so sweet! Happy birthday from me and my pup Onyx!

Gracie Beth said...

She is so pretty!

Mrs. Lopez said...

Happy Bday Dixie! Shes too cute!

Anonymous said...

how cute!! happy birthday!
My story is kinda the same with my lil man.. his 10th b day is next week, I will post our story!

KW said...

you stinkin' MADE ME CRY!!! especially the "licked the tears" part because koda does that to me too and EVERY TIME it makes me cry more because i think it's SO sweet!!! i love LOVE smooshed face boxers and the baby pics are TOO CUTE! do NOT feel bad, you had no idea she was too young to leave her momma and, from what it sounds like, you did a GREAT job filling in!!! happy birthday dixie girl, i HOPE you're the winner of a little birthday TREAT!!! :)

Lisa said...

Awww she's too cute! Happy birthday Dixie!

Whitney @ EHFAR said...

Happy Birthday Dixie! She is adorable. I want her :)

Nikki Neurotic said...

Aww, so sweet. I love hearing about other people's dogs.

Brittany Ann said...

I am totally the crazy dog lady, too! Never fear! And how sweet was she!

Don't feel bad about having such a young pup. It's the breeder's fault, not yours. I'm just glad she ended up with a family that loves her very, very much!

I actually had a golden retriever pup at that age - when the vets said she was too young. She was a wonderful puppy, and I actually think it helped bond her to us. She passed away, but will always be my favorite lady dog! I've only had boy puppies since!

Taylor-Made Wife said...

Happy birthday sweet puppy! She was such a cute puppy!

Mrs. Pick said...

Happy Birthday Dixie!

This is such a great post! I love our boxer, Ali the same way! He is just a little younger than Dixie. Ali will be 2 in July!

Seeing puppy pictures of boxers makes me want to get another one!

d.a.r. said...

Awww so sweet!!! She is just precious! You sound like a great dog mommy.

Nicolasa said...

She is beautiful! That is exactly how I feel about my Daisy! I actually just posted about her yesterday.. she's a Boxer as well!

Happy Birthday Dixie!

Harley said...

Oh I love boxers... she's gorgeous!

I love my dog too so you're not alone in your Crazy Dog Lady status!



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