Even though Christmas comes in December, along with many birthdays of friends and family members, it’s still a bittersweet month for us. We’ve lost people very close to us in December, so along with celebrating the birthdays and holiday festivities, we’re also reminded of the loved ones that aren’t with us to share in those moments.

Unfortunately, last December it happened again. On December 1st, 2009, we lost our boxer Gracie to heart failure. She’d not ever been a really healthy dog, but always bounced back from whatever was ailing her and cheated death at least two other times during the 5 1/2 years we had her. But this wasn’t something she could bounce back from. As sad as it was to lose her, it was comfort for me to still have Griffin. I don’t know that the rest of the family shares this sentiment with me, because he can be a bit of an idiot, but he’s still a sweet dog.

When we got Griffin (a Brazilian Bull Mastiff) in August, he was about 4 months old and weighed about 40 pounds. I took him to the vet with me a week or so ago to get more Frontline and they let me weigh him. The scales bounced between 96 pounds and 103, so we’ll just call it 100 pounds. And he’s not done yet!!! He’s only 9 months old. He’s still such a big baby and his favorite place to be is still on my lap in our recliner.

Griffin and his bone

Griffin's action shot