Yes, We Have A Dog And Her Name Is Lily
Tags:In a post a few days back I mentioned something about letting the dog out or feeding the dog.
More than one person in the comments said, "You guys have a dog?"
Whyyes, we do.
For those of you who haven't had the pleasure, say hello to Lily. She's nine (just a bit older than Simon) and she's been with us since she was 6 weeks old.
Here she is with our second black lab, Wyatt, and Simon in 2003:
And here she is in 2004:
Lily is the reason we will always have female dogs from now on. She's kind and gentle and loyal and just gets a tad-bit excited when someone comes to visit.
My Dad had a black lab growing up: Mac The Knife.
I grew up with a black Lab - Mac The Knife Jr.
Labs have always been a part of my life.
Lily is the third black lab to live with Chris and me.
A couple years after Chris and I were married we brought our first black Lab pup home: Eddie. Eddie was killed in an accident before he was two. It was a terribly sad, heartbreaking experience.
After Eddie, we knew we wanted another dog. We found Wyatt online and drove to Northern California to pick him up. Wyatt had more of a "person" personality than any of other dogs. Seriously. He was four or five when picked him up and he lived to be about nine. He got to live out the last few years of his life at the beach with my parents.
Lily came to live with us right around the time that Wyatt did - so for a number of years we had two dogs. Which was interesting in our small living quarters with a new baby.
Lily is awesome. She's really all you could want in a dog.
Once a year Lily goes bird hunting with my Dad in eastern Oregon.
This year, before heading to the other side of the state, Lily went to Grandma and Grandpa camp for some conditioning work. She's getting up there in years and needs a bit of physical training to get her in shape for the rigors of hunting. When she goes to Grandpa and Grandma camp she goes crabbing in the boat with my Dad. He throws tennis balls for her over and over again. They go out exploring in the sand dunes.
Needless to say, when she sees my parents pull up to our house she gets really excited and I think she probably wants to go home with them.
When they get over to the east side of the state it's all business.
Some years there are other dogs along for the adventure.
She totally loves it and she's great at retrieving the birds.
After a long day of hunting out in the crazy weather she usually gets a nice warm bath and then gets to sleep with my Dad on the bed.
Around here, Lily is my daily companion. Most of the time you can find her here with my in my office or she follows me around the house as I do this and that.
Neither of the kids have an extra-special bond with her. It's more of a co-existence. Simon's gone through periods where he wanted to cuddle with her (and she's happy with that for sure) but it hasn't been an ongoing thing.
As I was looking for photos with Lily in them I had to laugh because we have lots of photos where part of Lily is in the photo. Photos like this:
And this one where she's in one of her favorite spots under the table (in our old house):
Most of the time she's hanging out waiting for a snack:
Here she is on the move (that's Wyatt in the foreground) back in 2004 or 2005:
She's definitely a people dog. She wants to hang out and she wants to stay close to home (both Eddie and Wyatt were always interested in wandering). She barks really loud to let me know when someone is out the door and then wiggles and wiggles and licks the person who ends up on the other side of the door.
She's an awesome dog. Love you Lily-girl.













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125 comments
Yeah. I have been wondering why you haven't done a page about lily. You talk about her every once in awhile and I see her in pictures, but I have never seen a layout about her. Funny, because I was going to send you a tweet this weeking asking this question.
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Ali,
Thanks for sharing Lily's story with us. I have such a soft spot for labs myself, and just lost Zachary, my black lab on September 28, 2010. He was not quite 11, and just a great dog. I know I will adopt another one from a Labrador Rescue organization for sure at some point. My first lab was a mix of Rotweiler and lab, and her name was Daisy. She was the smartest dog ever, and could escape from any enclosure, even at the kennel. I hope to hear more stories about Lily in the future.
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I love the story of Lily and your dogs...I see a mini album coming on. We got to see some glimpses of your new office - are you going to share your new space with us?
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This makes me miss my yellow lab "Max"...I would love to get another one... maybe in the next year or two. Thanks for sharing!!
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OMG I had no idea you had Lily either. I knew we HAD allot more in commone. I also have a choc. lab named Mia. She is a darling. I just DO NOT like the hair, oh boy do labs shed. YUCK> Kind of a clean freak so its a job every every day. UGH!!! She is actually me 16 yr. olds dog...she is in LOVE. She longs to be a veternarian and begged to get her this last summer. So she is only 7 months old and FULL I mean FULL of energy. Please oh please tell me they do settle down...lol. We also have a 8 yr. old dashound. She simply tolertates Mia "sometimes." I cannot wait to show my daughter this post...she will LOVE. Thanks for sharing and I will be looking forward to more Lilly posts:) Dogs really do make a home!!!
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Lisa, yes, they do settle down—but not for about 3 years! My Quest was rambunctious but eventually became the calmest (except when someone came to visit) dog and now Sadie, nearing 4, is finally becoming a little calmer too. I think she is a little more hyper, though.
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Lily is just too cute and I have noticed her often in your pictures. You may not think that she has a major relationship with Simon and Anna but I bet she does. It is great that she is your "buddy" As a huge dog lover, my husband and I have had 3 so far. Right now we don't own a dog, but our kids each have 2 and I could not imagine loving them anymore if they lived at my house ( which they almost do). Enjoy Lily and thanks for sharing! By the way I have made 4 "dog" scrapbooks and they are definitely the favorites!
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Love your story about Lily! I got my uncle's black lab when I was little because he moved. She was amazing! Then when I was about 8 we got a yellow lab, Rollie, and he lived to be 15 years old. My parents have another black lab now and my fiance and I have a golden retriever. I love labs and retrievers...best dogs ever! Enjoy your four legged friend! They really are man's best friend!
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Well hello Miss Lily :) We have a chocolate lab named Maximus (his friends call him Max) The BEST dog ever for kids!
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Ali, reading your post and the other comments makes me smile. My big black lab, Quest, died just a year ago, right after his 14th birthday. We had a few months earlier purchased a female, Sadie. Quest was—according to our vet and anyone who knew him—absolutely the best dog ever. I started a scrapbook about him that I need to work on. I already had many photos organized, but had to hunt through a lot of years and was disappointed to not find more. Sadie is so different I can't believe it—very high energy. Maybe Q was but it's so long ago and the contrast with him, an old dog, was amazing. She is such a hoot, making us laugh all the time. And she's SO attached to my husband, who primarily picked her for hunting but has hardly taken her out. Can't imagine life without our pets!
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I remember seeing your very first layouts, which included Lily, in CK Magazine YEARS ago. I've been watching her, and your family, grow every since.
We are lab people too. Our yellow lab is named Cooper and he is my constant companion. Rescued from a shelter before I had a full-time job, before I was married, etc., Cooper has been at my side for years. He is always behind me, beside me, under my desk, tripping my feet, etc. He and my 2 boys co-exsist too. Not that he doesn't love the kids, he does. But, I know secretly he loves me best and would prefer to be the lone "baby" in the house. Back in those days he was still allowed to sleep in our bed and lounge on the couches. Now he only does that when he things we won't be home for awhile (too bad he leaves massive dog-divets in the middle of the bed and gives himself away every time!).
We love our Cooper dog and feel very grateful he's a part of our family. So much so that he has his own scrapbook album too! :)
Thanks for sharing and taking us down memory lane, Ali!
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Thanks Ali! Reading your blog is one of the first things I do every morning - I just love your take on everything about life. So many of your posts have made me laugh, made me cry, made me thing! As simple as this one is, its probably one of my favorite posts of yours!
Our "dog" story is much like yours. First the couple, then the lab, then the child. So many similarities in the pictures even! I can't imagine life without our chocolate lab. She's soon 14, and I know she won't be around forever. I see that I need to document our life with her a little more.
Thank you!
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I too have a black female lab names Chole (coal). She is my husbands hunting dog and loves it for sure. She is sweet and kind and our second lab in the last 20 years. My son now has move out and owns his own home, he too wants a lab. Funny how that goes.
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I truly had no idea you had a dog. Gee, my powers of perception are overwhelming. I've always had labs, too! My current is Fred (almost 11) and we lost Vince at 14 a couple of years ago. Maybe I never noticed her in your pictures because I am so used to Fred just being there.
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Awesome! She is gorgeous, and how cool that she has that special time with your parents. My mom and her dog used to live with my family. He was a German Shepherd named Wotan, and he was a force to be reckoned with! Very persistent with his ball, and he followed me around the house, too. My kids want a dog so badly...I've been trying to get up the nerve to get one.. Thanks for sharing, Ali!
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Sorry - it looks like I missed a comma between scary and smart (I didn't) I should have said awsomely smart.
Ha ha! I use that phrase "scary smart"... and I say awesome a lot, too. :) Our problem is we are in San Diego and have a very small back yard that already has a pool. I am not sure I am ready to have a big dog that I would need to walk everyday, and my husband doesn't want a small dog...here we sit on the fence! :)
Debbie - Sheps are easy to train. I recommend females. My husband and I both grew up with sheps, and we've had two together. They are scary smart,loving and protective.
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Our princess pup, Steffi, just turned 11 and she's definitely a people dog too. A very very very pampered people dog. I've had boarders tell me she doesn't think of herself as a dog, but a person. So, I totally get where Lily's coming from. Dogs are awesome companions.
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love the dog photos! I could wallpaper my house with photos of my collie Chloe.
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Love when a dog "wiggles"....when a dog wags his/her tail we call it the "FAN METER". The quicker the wag...the more the dog approves of that person!
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Great puppy post! Today, my dog Rufus turns 6, so the furry ones are on my mind. :)
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Dogs are masters at photobombing... ;-)
Happy week-end!
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Any tips/tricks on the shedding? We have 2 black labs. The shedding puts me in the looney bin on a daily basis.
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No tips or tricks. My sil and I have had lots of conversations about this before - they have a yellow/red lab and face the same issues. One thing I love for our hard-woords is a little swiffer vacuum. Super easy + quick to zoom around the kitchen/living/dining/entry areas. Other than that I just go with it :).
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