To all you Southerners

...who passed on this lovely little girl, in the words of Julie Roberts' Pretty Woman character, "mistake...huge." I'm guessing you passed her by and left her for last--for me--because she was the runt of her litter. Admittedly, she's smaller than the usual Black Lab female, only 51 pounds, but she is all heart, all love, all lab, and always willing to do whatever the moment offers. Call it spunk, heart, willingness to please, or just being a lab, she is the delight of our days, every day.

Allie is the companion of my long walks. She swims in the pond, jumps trampoline high, fetches frizzbees leaping lizards, lights up lives of senior citizens in nursing homes, waits patiently on a raft (in the shade, of course), flies off our dock to go fishing, understands the true value of stopping to smell the flowers, and I could go on and on. She has added a special dimension to our lives, has locked herself into our forever hearts, and life has never been the same since her arrival. If there's an easier dog to live with and love on this planet, then Allie has a double.

Point being so simple: you missed out on the dog of your lifetime and now she's mine, and we love everything about her, including her size because we know she has the biggest heart of all. Your loss.