This past summer my family’s beloved pet of 14 years passed away. She had been sick for awhile and it was time to let her go. Lulu, a Shar pei mix, was a loyal and loving dog. I can remember going with my Mom to help pick her out from her litter. I held her on my lap on the way home and was so excited to have such a cute and cuddly addition to the family.

In no time she grew up and loved to leap in the air, fetch sticks, give kisses and dance. I always felt safe when Lulu was around. She had a loud bark and could look very fierce if she wanted to. I think her favourite thing was just to be around her family. We never had to worry about her wandering off, she always came when called, and you could always find her taking a snooze wherever our family was gathered.

My sister and I never tired of trying to get her to wear hats and outfits, which she hated but tolerated up to a point. Earlier posts that featured Lulu are a video we made of her, Homage to keyboard cat, and the one summer we buried her in the sand, What I’m obsessed with today… 2 dogs and a cat.

Before Lulu passed away I got my Mom to get some modeling clay and make an impression of Lulu’s paw. I work for Peartree Impressions, a company that specializes in transforming delicate hand, foot, and pet impressions into stunning, one-of-a-kind keepsakes. They have a fantastic natural-clay kit to make the impressions in, but since I couldn’t get one to Lulu in time they were able to take a duplicate from the modeling clay. I had impressions made for me as well as my brother and sister. I choose to do mine in Aqua and have Lulu’s name written in script.

I wanted to figure out a way to display the impression with photos of Lulu and this was my solution. I got the frames and embroidery floss from Michaels and the twine from Target. My parents live beside a huge lake and Lulu loved the water so I incorporated the driftwood I collected there last summer. Hot glue helped to make sure everything stayed in place. I used a picture of her as a wrinkly puppy and another from her later years and I’m very pleased with the outcome!

Peartree Impressions is running a great spring giveaway until April 10, 2014. You can enter for a chance to win two of their impressions kits. Share with a friend or keep them both for yourself. They also make great gifts! Click to ENTER THE GIVEAWAY. Check out more examples of what Peartree offers on their website, Facebook and twitter pages.

CONCLUSION

Now every time I sit at my desk I’m reminded of all the good memories and fun times I had with Lulu. I feel like I have a little piece of her with me and that makes me smile.