Dixie waltzed through my door in Valdosta back in 2000, and in no time at all she stole my heart. Not only was she a beauty, she also had quite the personality! Dixie had the best qualities of both lab and retriever. She was happy and playful...and the birds and squirrels were always wary of her (yes, she did catch a few). Also, she was loyal, genuine, and easy going. Dixie was one of a kind.
Unfortunately it seems that we never have enough time with the ones we love. Dixie died 2 weeks ago. She was happy and playful on Thursday, March 5th, but on Friday, March 6th she was very sick. We rushed her to the vet, and they did everything they could.
But instead of focusing on how lost we are without her, we decided to pay tribute to what she brought to our lives.
Almost no one could refuse Dixie, but as you can see NO ONE adored her like we did either.
You'd have thought that Jason put a ring on my finger AND Dixie's b/c she understood right from the start that the three of us were a family. She was "Daddy's little helper" and "Mama's girl." Most importantly, she expected us to understand that SHE was the hub of our family wheel. If Jason ever kissed me before petting her...he heard about it!
Jason and I didn't exchange gifts this Christmas. But we couldn't let Dixie go without. She got this new bed monogrammed with her name (yes, she was spoiled).
Dixie was a true Georgia Dawg. While Jason snoozed, Dixie stayed up with me to cheer on UGA (that's Mark Richt on the TV behind Dixie).
And I don't think it's possible for a dog to love toys more than Dixie did. She had an entire basket full of toys. She especially loved the ones that made interesting noises...like her duck that quacked. She often took her toys night-night too.
She may have started out as my dog. But it didn't take her long to wrap Jason around her paw too. He talked to her constantly, and although he has never serenaded me...he constantly sang to Dixie. I always loved the way she would lay her paw on your arm when you petted her. It was like she was returning the love.
She loved blankets and was masterful at stealing them from you.
My point exactly! Thankfully this particular time, she stole the blanket from Jason.
She was never allowed on the bed when I had just a double bed b/c she wasn't good at sharing! But now we have a king size bed. Dixie realized that after Jason left for work at o-dark thirty every morning, she could hop up in the bed and snuggle with me for another hour or two.
Dixie always loved being on the couch. The problem was that she sheded horribly...and my couches have always been dark colors. In Valdosta my vet gave me a spray to put on the couch b/c it had a scent that dogs couldn't stand. Well, that would have worked if Dixie had known she was actually a dog! So of course she wasn't allowed on the couch when we were home. She just never understood that meant she wasn't allowed on it when we weren't home too. So, as tacky as it is...we always had to cover the couches when we weren't home. On this particular day, she thought I had left for work and was already nice and cozy on the couch. She was SO busted! (You can tell how much it bothered her.)
Dixie was always great with kids. Many people are nervous about dogs and babies. Well, since Dixie considered herself human, that wasn't a problem. She never once was anything but completely gentle. Above is Dixie and Christian.
Dixie sometimes provided extra seating when necessary. Reagan LOVED Dixie...and Dixie loved Reagan right back!
Dixie checked out Courtney (who was only weeks old). I'm not sure if she was more interested in Courtney, or if she just wanted to get some attention too...probably both.
Dixie was never a big eater. I never portioned her food b/c she never over ate, and she was always within the right weight range for her size. This last year she became very intrigued with the tub we stored her food in. Every time Jason would refill the tub she would sneak over and start eating out of it. I guess it tasted better since she got it straight from the container.
Santa came to see her too. She LOVED a good bone (retriever roll). Not only were they good to chew on, but she liked to play with them too. She would often throw them around and pounce on them. She also loved to torment Jason by trying to take them outside. She knew he would never let her, but it must have been fun to try.
Dixie was such a trooper. When she had an infection on her leg, she had to wear this hood. It was so pitiful. But like anything else, she made it work...and was as upbeat as ever. I did manage to get quite a few bruises from that hood though (she didn't "drive" it well). 
Dixie was always by our side, literally. If one of us left the room, she followed. Here she patiently waited while we were doing something upstairs. 
Dixie gave nothing less than complete unconditional love. This is a picture of a happy family.
Even after 2 weeks, Jason and I both still look for Dixie. It seems unreal that she isn't here. We miss her more than most people understand and more than words can express. But we are so very thankful that she didn't endure a long illness and that she didn't suffer. Our hearts haven't even begun to mend yet, but we are sure of one thing... we are so much better off having loved and been loved by Dixie, even if we have to go through the heartbreak of loosing her.
