Today our Kirby Girl turned 4 years old!

Kirby is a dog. There, I said it. With how much she feels like a member of our family (and the first born child at that), it's easy to get confused sometimes. She's packed with personality, and she is devoted to her people (as any good Golden should be).

Here are a few of Kirby's known aliases:

1. Kirbster

2. Kirbinater

3. Kirbunctious

4. Kirbastinker

5. Kirbessential

A few fun Kirby facts:

1. RE: Fetching

Goldens are supposed to love to fetch, but apparently no one told Kirby. She *might* bring the ball back a couple of times, but she'd rather chase the ball once, attack it, then lie down in the grass.

2. RE: Swimming

Goldens are well-known swimmers, but our Kirby hates the water. Nick got her in the river with him when she was just a few months old, and she was scarred for life. (Nick was literally scarred from all the scratching the panicked Kirby inflicted.)

3. RE: Showing Off

Kirby is proud of her toys. Anytime someone comes in the door, she grabs a toy to go show them. She wags her tail and trots around with the toy held high in her mouth.

4. RE: Commands

I think we did a pretty good job training Kirby. Although she gets a bit too excited when guests come over, she does not jump. She rarely barks. She knows sit, down, shake, stay, and high-five, and being a Golden, she is eager to please and complies quickly.

5. RE: Scaredy Cat

Kirby can be pretty timid. She's scared of the stroller running into her on walks, the vacuum cleaner freaks her out, and she's always worried I'm going to step on her. (OK, maybe that one's founded.) Also funny is her fear of walking through partially closed doors, even when there's plenty of room for her to pass. She'll just stand there and cry for someone to open it more. If I successfully coax her, she darts through it as if it were on fire. Crazy dog.

Here are a few pictures of The Kirbster to enjoy...

Kirby's Litter - She has on the pink collar.

The day we picked her out

My favorite Kirby puppy pic

This is hilarious - if you look closely, you see she has a fly on her nose, and she's cross-eyed trying to look at it!

The first (and last) swimming experience.

What a terror she was as a puppy! Those teeth were sharp, and she loved to use them.

Kirby adores Nick.

So pretty! We love her dark coat. In fact, that's one of the main reasons we picked her.

Putting up with a costume... I dressed her up and took pictures like this one to share with my students on occasion. Kirby was always a classroom celebrity!

Warming up to Kate... Kirby still doesn't know quite what to think of her. I tell her she's going to be like "Nana," the dog in Peter Pan who tucks the children in for bed. :)

Happy birthday, dear Kirby, happy birthday to you!