Little Dog, Biggest Heart

Her favorite food was walnuts. From far away she could hear the snap of the lid and would rush over, sitting down quickly and looking up with an anticipating look in her big brown eyes.

Actually any time I snacked on anything she would do the same thing.

She really liked jumping on my bed at early hours and licking me all over my face. I would try to protect myself with my blanket but she would always find a way to burrow under and reach me.

Every time she jumped on my bed to take a nap she would go through a two-step process; first, roll around like crazy in my sheets, and then dig a nice little hole for herself under my blanket where she would stay comfortable, wrapped in a semi-U shape for hours.

Whenever she ate something hard she would crunch on it loudly with her mouth wide open. It was so cute.

She would jump up in a nanosecond when she heard the back door opening, either to say hello to the person who had just come home or to go outside. Whenever she dashed into the backyard she would find a little patch of sunlight and just lay there, looking around with pure content.

She loved playing tug of war with all her toys. She was always down to play fetch, no matter how far or quickly I threw her toy. I learned early on to only buy her toys that were made of rope and were durable--everything else she would tear apart. Vicious little thing.

Every time I got my car keys from the shelf she would know I was going out and would want to follow me to my car. She always knew when we were going to pick my brother up from school because all I had to say was, 'come on Nina,' and she would jump up from the bed.

She loved sitting in people's laps. Even when it was midnight, and she was sleepy, she would still rather stay in our lap than go to her own bed.

I loved when I would walk into the kitchen in the morning and see her peeking out from her bed. When she saw that it was me, she would run across the tile to greet me. She was always excited.

She would bark at something at least once a day, whether it was some insect or bird strolling around in the backyard or passing people and dogs in the front yard. She barked at stuffed animals. At ceramic turtles. At water sprinklers. We would yell at her to stop, without success. Fiercely loyal and really protective, not knowing her own miniature size.

She really liked being petted. When I would move my hand away she would try to stick her head under my hand again, demanding to be pet.

Whenever I would do sit-ups, she would think I was playing with her and try to bat at my face as I went up and down. It was very distracting. When I showed her I was serious about not playing around, she would settle down by sitting comfortably on my chest.

I loved coming home and seeing her scratch at the door, hearing her soft whines as I found my keys to get in. I loved picking her up with one arm, giving her kisses, and asking her if she had been a good dog while I was gone. I loved playing with her little paws, twirling her around and dancing because she was so agile on two feet. I loved sitting her down in my lap, hugging her like a baby, and gently petting her on the spot between her two big ears. I loved wrestling with her when she would bring her toys to me because she wanted to play. I loved her fearlessness, her excitement, her love for life, for food, and for her family.

I miss her so much.