Bear, you loved snow...coming from Texas, that was so surprising! You didn't care if it was high snow or just a little snow...you loved to sit on the porch and gaze up at it coming down. Yes...you had your licks of it too!

We miss you so very much. Always and forever, Mom Cyndi

Bear...this was the best place to have you memorialized....because you always loved to sit in the fireplace, we removed the logs and made that a nice place for you to sit when you were here with us on earth....so now, one of your fav toys is there...along with your photo, paw print and tuft of fur in the glass frame. It brings me comfort to look over from my office and "see you there."

Always with love, Mom Cyndi

How I miss you!!  How I miss your "upsidedown poses" while playing with your toys!!

Here you are last Christmas sitting near the fireplace. (Electric that we did not use) ....I miss seeing you there. I miss you at night when you would run to go up to bed all by yourself at 7:30 pm. We would say "WHERE IS BEAR?" Real loud ...and you would come running down the stairs...look at us like HERE I AM! And then we would say "g'nite bear" and you would turn around and run back up to bed! Then when we came to bed you would get up and greet us and come to our bedsides to play, spin or get a cracker sometimes. I miss you so much!!

We love you Bear.

Made for you by Anya L.

She loved you too! I will always remember how she needed to go to dance class and you were so happy to meet her you hopped on her lap and would not budge...you refused to let her get out of the car! You just sat there looking up at her and had so much love "at first site" for her! I wish I would have taken a photo! It was funny how she and I tried to pull you up to let her out and you were just heavy weight....not moving an inch! LOL.........

and I will always treasure this from Anya. You were loved by many...and still are.

Bear's toy Molly placed at Fireplace for him

Our Molly must really miss Bear a lot. While she seems the same perky self...if we even say the word Bear she perks up and looks around. Yesterday she took and placed one of Bear's toys in the fireplace where Bear used to sleep always. It broke my heart when I saw her do that. I still cannot believe Bear is gone. I still look for him. Will the pain lesson? He truly touched our hearts and lives. Interesting how the blue color in the lower right is in this photo...that is where Bear used to lay all the time until he decided to start sleeping IN the fireplace...which is why we removed all so he could sleep there. Bear only liked small white stuffed toys...no other colors...nothing vibrant and not anything that squeaked...just plain ol' white stuffed toys. The snowman to the far left is where Molly placed Bears toy yesterday....and has never retrieved it from there so she knew what she was doing...which breaks my heart even more....for her.

"A Dog's Purpose" (from a 6-year-old):

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa , and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker 's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.
Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ''I know why.''

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I live.

He said,''People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?'' 

The Six-year-old continued, ''Well, dogs already know how to do that when they're born, so they don't have to stay as long.''