It is with a sad heart that I report the passing of our dear sweet Miss Molly, our faithful family dog of 13 years. This evening Molly finally succumb to the cancer that was taking over her body and we had to say our goodbyes.

Molly was a great - no the best ever family pet. She was an excellent companion, a scrounger of table scraps (some that may not have made it to the table, just like this morning when she stole a couple of mouthfuls of Laurel's cereal), a chaser of dog enemies (squirrels) and giver of a perpetual happy greeting.

We reminisced this evening about some of happy and sad times - mostly happy. I recall when we brought Rowan home from the hospital after she was born, and Molly promptly jumped up to see what new toy we had brought her. Unfortunately my reaction of protecting Rowan (with a yelp) stuck with Molly and she knew her world had changed. She had much the same reaction when Laurel came home from the hospital. Except Rowan and Molly got along much better than Laurel and Molly. Although in recent months, Laurel had come to see herself as responsible for giving out treats to Molly, reminding me of Molly's medicine and assisting during baths, they got along as they should.

But Molly really missed Rowan, as we all did, and we saw a dramatic downturn in her health after Rowan had passed. Molly often slept in Rowan's room, sometimes even herding me to Rowan. And Molly was always ready to snuggle with Rowan when she was on the floor.

Goodbye Miss Molly. We'll miss you!