...And then she was gone

Neesie and Phoenix (Halloween 2005)

We knew the day was fastly approaching, but Bernice's passing still left us shell-shocked. We have been struggling with making the decision as to whether or not we should put her down for quite some time, but last night she made the decision for us. I found her lying down in the kitchen as if she were peacefully sleeping... only she wasn't. I knew that she was gone. I cannot even begin to explain how much this dog meant to Dave and me. We adopted her at the ripe old age of eight. She was an old lady in bulldog years, but she needed us and we really needed her. She was my baby before I was able to have babies. She filled the void for me until I was able to get healthy again and now I feel like another void is present. I will miss my therapy dog. She had a good day, though, so at least we can rest easy knowing that she wasn't hurting when she went.

Who would have thought that such a grumpy little bully dog could bring so much happiness to our lives. We will miss the happy football feet when we walk in the door, the snotty sneezes in our face, the sweet sounds of our little snore-bert, and yes even the flatulants and skid marks on the wall. Ah, good times. You will be missed my sweet Neesie, Bernie, Bur-meece (as Phoenix calls her), Bern-Dawg, our squishy face! Thank you for the memories and God bless you baby girl!