Baxter 3-31-98 to 4-17-2010

We lost a very dear member of our family this past weekend. Baxter has left this earthly life and has moved on to the doggy parks in the sky. Adam got Bax when he was just 8 weeks old. Bax turned 12 on March 31st. He lived a very full life and did a lot of things most people cannot say they have done. For instance, Baxter swam in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and in Redfish Lake in Redfish, Idaho. He hiked along the Appalachian Trial, Mt. Timpanogos, Millcreek Canyon, Grandaddy Lake in the Uintahs and countless trails throughout Virginia and Utah. I would swear that Baxter hiked three times as far as Adam and I. I am a very slow hiker and while Adam would be ahead of me, Baxter would be running up and down the trail in between the two of us to check and see where I was. Baxter would go off and blaze his own trails and then sure enough here in this cloud of dust would come Baxter running up the trail. That dog LOVED hiking.

Bax would dive for rocks thrown into the water and retrieve them in his mouth. This is at Redfish Lake.


On our trip to Grandaddy Lake in the Uintahs, he ate some "magic mushrooms" along the trail. We had to stop hiking at one point along the trip because it began to rain. While Adam and I and our friends, Jeff and Kelly, were under trees taking shelter, Baxter was running around so crazily even Adam hadn't seen him behave that way. By the time we made it to the Lake and made a fire, Bax was still running around. Shortly before going to sleep, he was OUT! He wouldn't move he was sound asleep - or so we thought. Baxter was allowed to sleep in our tent, on Adam's side of course, a decision I'm sure Adam regrets. It seems in the middle of the night, Baxter got sick from whatever he was eating along the trail that day and threw up IN THE TENT, on Adam's side of course. Looking back, I still get a chuckle out of that!

Bax flew in airplanes,traveled across the country in a moving truck from Virginia to Utah and then Utah to Arizona.

Bax with a Lincoln as a kitten.


Once the kids came along to our family, he became even more near and dear to my heart. Bax would let the kids sit on him, poke him, tug on him, have things tied to him, and on and on and on all without doing anything other than laying on the floor and allow it to happen. He was also a great protector of the kids. I never let the kids outside without letting Bax out with them. I knew that if something were to happen, Bax would start barking until I came out to see what the commotion was about.

These are probably 2 of my favorite pictures of Baxter with Owen as a newborn. Immediately he was Owen's friend and protector.


It was not uncommon to have Baxter asleep with the kiddos climbing all over him or even sitting on him.


There is nothing that dog wasn't willing to do. He loved life and loved new visitors at the door. There are so many stories of Bax and what he did or what happened to those in the story that this post would go on for many pages. There is definitely a hole left in this family without Baxter there to fill it. No, we won't get another dog for a long time, if ever. This hole is way too big and won't be filled with another dog or another pet. We will cherish Baxter forever.