a girl and her dog

kimbo was the first dog i ever adopted on my own and if i had to choose one picture to sum up our relationship, it would be the one below that my boyfriend took of us this past new year's eve just as he entered his 18th year... 

this is how i will always remember kimbo. 

our story started with my visit to best friends animal sanctuary in 2009...

9 months later kimbo showed up at my doorstep...

a few months later, best friends called to do a story on us and i found out kimbo had a following...a facebook page with close to 500 followers. i decided to continue his story to share his happy ending. many people reached out to me with their stories about meeting kimbo, or how his story inspired them to adopt a senior dog... he even had two friends come to visit him!

adopting a 15 year old dog is a lot of work. it's not for everyone, but for those of us who've taken in senior animals, we are greatly rewarded with a special kind of love. you don't take a minute for granted. kimbo and i packed in a lot of outings and memories in our 971 days together...

the ballpark for a fundraiser...

several trips to the beach...

a family trip to the outer banks. this shot will always crack me up. it's just how we roll. 

his smile is ridiculous in this picture...

kimbo loved his exercise. if we weren't taking walks outside, he was doing his kimbo 500 in the house. 

and i spent a lot of time hugging and kissing him...

and of course...he loved his naps...

if i thought i had ever felt adored before in my life, i was wrong. kimbo took adoration to a whole new level. anyone that spent time with kimbo and i would quickly see our bond. he was an old dog and couldn't see or hear very well and as time went on his sight and hearing only got worse, but that dog could find me...

wherever i was...

 so he could be by my side...

i often grabbed iphone shots of his dedication to being near me...

if he could have gotten in the tub with me, he would have. instead he just waited patiently for me...

i spent a lot of time lying with kimbo and cuddling him. you could often find me on the floor lying right next to him, looking in his eyes and telling him how he was the best dog in the world...

and in his last days when he'd done his last kimbo 500 and his strength had dwindled...

i went to him...

i stayed by his side for days. i barely slept or ate. i skipped showers and workouts so i wouldn't have to leave his side. nothing else mattered to me, but being with him the way he had always been there for me. 

and when i knew he was done, i pulled him in close to me and cradled him like a baby and looked in his eyes and told him how much i loved him and that he had proven his strength and it was ok to go... and while it brought me solace to know it was his time and he was so peaceful, it still tore my heart apart to let him go.

i miss him dearly.

we were strangers when he showed up at my doorstep, but i told him he would be my forever dog. forever mine. kimbo and shelly, forever and always. 

and somehow... 

without even realizing it...

 we went from being strangers to sharing a piece of our hearts with one another and forever began sounding like it wasn't long enough...

and that is how you know it is love... 

when forever isn't long enough.