My husband gave me this sweet puppy for my birthday right after we got married. She was supposed to be a shih tzu but the vet says she's too big that she's really a llaso apso. Whatever she is, she's sweet as can be. Not the brightest bulb, but so sweet and loving.

When we lived in our first house, we had a pool and thought it important that she learn to swim. She swam like a little turtle, her legs moving very slowly. She loved to lie on a floaty in the pool like a queen.

This little spot she's squeezed herself into in the picture above is under the kitchen table at my folks' house. It's the spot all puppies have found to be secure and safe and yet right in the middle of everything. Most of our puppies outgrew this spot. But even after Belle did, she would squeeze her fat little rump into it and then get stuck and not be able to get out without help.