Ollie

Just sharing a picture of my little ball of fluff.  Turns out Ollie is a swimmer, like I was.  This little guy seeks out water whenever he can and jumps right in.  He found that my parents' Golden Retriever has a big water bowl just the right size for a tiny puppy to swim in.  So he does, everytime he is in their yard.  Ollie swims and runs and bounces with so much energy and silliness, that I think he may be part bunny. Then he usually collapses onto his back, feet in the air, in my lap, for a snuggly nap.  He is a fearless and goofy little fluffball.
The other thing I love about Ollie is that he gets me out of bed in the morning.  Ryan knew I was not a morning person and he used to help make sure I got up and going.  And I would look forward to spending time with Ryan before he left for work in the mornings, just us two of us.  In the midst of my grief, it is so easy to just stay in bed and not face the day ahead.  Most days I just don't wanna...  But Ollie wakes up, wants attention and snuggles, and gives me a reason to get going.  The other thing Ollie does is act silly when I seem to be down.  When I'm lying down, he will come over and roll on my hair and nuzzle my face with his nose, then jump up, trying to get me to play.  Ryan's way of getting me out of a funk was to get me to laugh.  He used to say he loved my laugh.  And sometimes when I was feeling particularly pouty, Ryan would say something silly or joke around and I would try really hard not to laugh. But Ryan usually won, got a smile out of me, and always made me feel better.  So I love Ollie in the ways he reminds me of Ryan, smart, caring, ready for hugs, and makes me smile, even when I just don't wanna.