Lily came to us during Christmas of 2005 and grew from ornery, adorably klutzy puppy into a 100-pound, adorably goofy Great Dane who had a unique gift for bringing us joy and laughter and who made it her full-time job to keep our family together and smiling at all times.
Lily made everything fun. She was a very talented comedian. Just looking at her would make us smile from our head down to our toes. Puppy kindergarten, obedience classes, car rides, playing fetch, hikes, soaking up the sun, watching TV, chasing squirrels, snow days, swimming, float trips and lazy days on the couch are just to name a few. Her favorite place to be was with her family, especially right in the middle of a hug between her Mom and Dad.
Although once considered by her brother, Elliott the Standard Poodle, to be a complete pain, Lily grew to assume to role of his guide and protector as Elliott developed corneal edemas and lost most of his eyesight. They became fast friends and loyal companions along with their brother, Bogart Jones the Lab.
Lily had a severe addiction to peanut butter and was *extremely* persuasive in getting her Kong filled with it almost every evening, and sometimes an extra time during the day. Who can resist those beautiful blue eyes and a sloppy kiss? Not us.
Lily was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in May of 2014 and underwent rear leg amputation on May 8, 2014. Once she recovered from surgery she hopped on three legs like she was born to it. When she ran full speed you would have sworn she had all four legs. Squirrels resumed trembling at the thought of her. Not really, she was a terrible squirrel hunter but she never stopped trying and never stopped making us laugh out loud watching her.
We were devastated to say goodbye to Lily on December 28, 2014 but she will never, ever be forgotten and will always be deeply missed. We are so sad that she is gone but are so grateful for the time we had and all the life lessons she taught us along the way. She had a larger-than-life personality and brought the sunshine into our home. We will miss so many things about Lily but mostly how happy we all were when we were together and the millions of smiles and thousands of throw-your-head-back laughs that she created in our home.
Rest in peace, sweet Lily. Your Dad and I will continue to carry on your work of keeping the family close and enjoying all our time together. You will always be a big part of our family. We love you very much and always will.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful photos and memories of your sweet girl. It is really nice getting to know her better. Lily was obviously one special dog :). You will have your memories of Lily forever and she will make sure that you continue to laugh and love each other every single day.
xoxox,
Martha, Codie Rae, and the OP
What a beautiful story, thank you for sharing your grief with others. Your grief comes through your writing, and we felt it. It was difficult reading because the tears were in the way. You wrote that so beautifully, you could easily write a book and it would be a BEST SELLER. I can see it now: something like: Lillie, Elliott and Bogart, the TRIFAMILY. (ie., Tripawds) You could easily fill page-after-page with excerpts of your life with three dogs.
We love you and share your grief of your loss.
Love, Dad & BJ
Kerry & Jevon,
As I was reading your memours of Lilly, I identified so much with the grief I felt coming through your text. You were able to bring up the memories of Maryellen who passed on to Heaven 19 years ago. We spent 33 years together and raised two wonderful boys together. So many were the good times, the bad times, the hard times and the bitter times. I miss her to this day. I grieved for around ten years, and finally decided to “Go-with-my-life”. Your blog is a very essential part of the grieving process, and I encourage you to keep it up as long as it is a release for you. Like one of your people said, “One day you will wake up and smile at the thought of Lilly, instead of crying.” The Internet was available for me, but I never thought of writing a blog. (I don’t think the “Blog” was named at that time.)
The grieving process is a way our spirits have of healing from a very great hurt. The more we talk about it the easier life becomes to go on without the one you love so much. I had to go through it and so do you. That much we have in common, and I admire you for doing it.
As BJ said, “If dogs go to heaven, then Lilly is with Maryellen, and She has ALL FOUR LEGS!
I identify with your grief and I love you, my Daughter. Dad