Thursday, May 5, 2011

A Boy And His Dog

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Of the Ode postings... last, but not least...
Aaron Jr and Ode.

This is a photo that Aaron took of Aaron Jr and Ode. I think it was taken on one of the occasions that Aaron took Aaron Jr with them to feed Shayla. So this photo was taken of the two of them in the back seat of Aaron's truck... probably on the way home from seeing the horse.

I took it off of Aaron's phone after he passed away. I love this photo.


Upper left: Aaron Jr and Ode stood looking at each other at that gate time after time after time. Bottom right: that blanket under the bed is what I would pull out for Ode to sleep on. Ode slept on that side of the bed every night when we lived in Lehi. Aaron's side of the bed... until Aaron passed away. It became my side of the bed after Aaron passed away. I just couldn't leave that side empty.


Aaron Jr was always trying to take over Ode's bed. Ode was so patient...

What a tease...

Going...

going...

gone... Aaron Jr wins.

Did I mention that Ode was patient?

Well, just in case... Ode was patient. :)


One day when we took a walk and Aaron Jr had to turn over the leash to his cousin to have a turn walking Ode, this bottom right hand photo is what happened. He was heartbroken... until he got the leash back.

When Aaron Jr was 6 months old, I took these photos of Ode with Aaron Jr so that I could take some photos of the two of them for Aaron for Father's Day. He is feeding Ode a dog bone here.

This one was just perfect. Not even planned.

Our Handsome Ode.

At the park just before Aaron passed away.


On the way home from the park...
Anyone who knew Ode knows what an obedient dog he was.
Aaron trained him so well. Sometimes Aaron would test Ode's obedience in different ways... in this photo, Aaron is testing Ode's obedience while we are walking home from the park. He told Ode to sit and stay and then the three of us continued walking down the sidewalk towards home. We got pretty far and Ode was still just sitting and staying and watching us get further and further away.
Once Aaron finally said 'Okay, come on'... Ode stood up and ran towards us.

It didn't even have to be Aaron talking to Ode for him to obey. He listened to anyone he trusted. It made it easy to take him places even without a leash. Aaron trained him so well.
What a good dog. We sure love and miss him.

This is Ode up on Steve and Sue's couch when they were out of town. He must have wanted a comfy place to sleep that day... he was not allowed to be on there. I had to laugh when I walked in that day, and I had to take photos, of course.

Best Friends.

Ode and Aaron Jr at the cemetery visiting Aaron's site.

kisses...

These are some photos I took around Halloween or Thanksgiving. I love these photos... if THESE don't show how patient Ode was, nothing will.

These photos show just how much Aaron Jr loved Ode. He wanted to do what he did, go where he did. I caught Aaron Jr out on the back patio several times after it rained or after the lawn was watered... when there were a few puddles left on the concrete. He would watch Ode drink from them, and then Aaron jr would follow suit. It made me laugh.

This is Ode just a couple of days before he died. What a sweet dog.


When Aaron Jr was born in December of 2005, Aaron bought this stuffed dog that looked just like Ode for Aaron Jr's first Christmas. The first time I went out of town with Aaron Jr to visit my sister's family, Aaron sent the stuffed Ode with us and asked me to have him sleep with it to watch over him. We bring it everywhere we go if we are driving. Aaron Jr is very attached to that stuffed Ode. He calls him Ode. The stuffed horse in the photo was given to Aaron Jr that same month that he was born. It looked just like Shayla, so its name is Shayla. Aaron Jr is very attached to both of these stuffed animals. They are his friends.

When Ode was still alive, Aaron Jr would try to play hide and seek with him. Aaron would go and hide and tell Ode to come and find him. Ode didn't know, so he never went to find him, but it didn't stop Aaron Jr from trying to play it with him. When Ode died, sadly we had left stuffed Ode up in Oregon on accident when we had just been there to visit. My brother came for my Uncle's funeral and brought stuffed Ode to give back to Aaron Jr. Aaron was SO excited to see him, he immediately began playing hide and seek with stuffed Ode. He asked me to hide stuffed Ode and then he came to find him. Then Aaron hid and wanted me to bring stuffed Ode to find him. Then he took him outside and played soccer with stuffed Ode. He was just so happy to have an Ode back. He misses Ode so much.

The clippers were struggling, so Ode's haircut here is looking a little sad, but he is still handsome.

I was always grateful to have Ode. When Aaron would go out of town, I was always so grateful that Ode was there because he made me feel more safe. After Aaron passed away, having Ode there gave me peace of mind.

If Aaron Jr managed to get out of the house and I couldn't find him, I always knew that he was chasing Ode around the neighborhood. I was always a little nervous about that, but knowing he was with Ode made me feel better. Ode would have watched out for him.

Wow, Ode sure is missed.

Aaron Jr has always called Ode his best friend.

He is missed.

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5 comments:

Kristi said...

What a nice dog. They truly were buddies. That one of Aaron and ode in that blue sweater are so cue and funny.

So, are you going to get another dog when you can?

John said...

very sweet memories. Everyone loved Ode.

Local Girl said...

That top photo of Ode is just the most adorable and bought a tear to my eye. I'm so sorry for your loss of Ode, he really was a special dog.

Jennifer Bowman said...

I am not sure how I found your blog but I follow it (you don't personally know me) however you are an ispiration.

This is such a touching post, animals especially dogs can truly be a mans best friend.

Think of what a joyful reunion Aaron and Ode are having in heaven, because I am certain they are.

Suzanne said...

loved this post...it brought many tears to my eyes. love you les, suzy