Logan joined us when my boys were 9 and 10. I don't remember his early days that well anymore. He was a fluffy little thing and as you can well imagine he was an instant hit and was loved by the boys. Logan was the object of someone else's affection though.
My niece Tali was born about 2 weeks before Logan. Tali lives in Montreal and Logan lives in Ottawa, close enough that she could see Logan from time to time but far enough that it was infrequently. Tali's older brother and sister were mildly interested in Logan, but it was Tali who would wrap her arms around Logan like a teddy bear and smother him with kisses each time she saw him.
Tali loves animals in general and at four years old she decided she would grow up to be a veterinarian. It was about that time she also decided she HAD to have a dog of her own. She cried and whined and stomped her feet. My brother and sister-in-law told her she COULD have a dog but only when she was old enough to care for one properly. She cried "when, When, WHEN??". She was told "When you're ten years old!" "That's SO-O-O long", she whimpered.
Meanwhile Tali called my house every couple of weeks to speak to Logan. She would say hi to me but would quickly ask to speak to Logan. I told her I would get him and then I would bark into the phone while she would say, "Hi Logey, I love you, I love you, I LOVE you. I love you SO much that I ADORE you". Then she would blow kisses into the phone. I would get back on the line and ask Tali what she said to Logan because his tail is wagging and he had a big smile. She would then repeat her whole conversation to me.
That went on for a few years. Eventually she "suspected" that I was the voice of Logan, but it was okay, she still enjoyed the charade. She kept asking her parents for a dog and her parents still held firm and told her she had to wait until she was ten. Tali put pictures of Logan all around her room. She read books about dogs and studied the different breeds. Time dragged on!
Tali still loves Logan and still wants to veterinarian. Last week she made a special phone call to wish Logie a Happy Tenth Birthday!
Yesterday Logan and I came to Montreal to meet the newest addition to the family. Here's Tali with her new dog Molly!
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