collections

I have mentioned it before, and for those of you who know me then you certainly know that the love of my life is an adorable, furry boy named Parker. No, my husband did not change his name from Adam to Parker. So I guess really what I should be saying is that I have two great loves! One just happens to walk upright and the other on all fours. The adjectives adorable and furry still hold true for both!

Here are both my loves together when Parker was just a baby.
See both are adorable, and furry!

Anyway, husband aside, I miss my dog. He did not come to Ireland with us, in favor of retiring to sunny Florida to live with my parents. So when packing up to move here I made sure to include my collection of boxer memorabilia so I would have a few little reminders of my beloved. 

I found this guy at Target of all places!

I painted this the first year we had Parker.

This belonged to my Great Aunt Elenor who also had a boxer. 

My mother found this heavy little brass figure at an antique mall.
Not exactly sure if it's a boxer, but close enough

This was a thank you gift from a friend who actually found it in an antique shop in Ireland
several years ago, long before we ever knew we would be moving there.

I picked this little guy up in a pet boutique in South Carolina
while visiting the in-laws.

This is another one my mother found in an antique store,
 and wrapped up for me for Christmas a few years back.

I am sharing this with you because I recently received a gift to add to my collection and I'm just so thrilled about it that I wanted to share it with you! I want to say a big thank you to Julie who surprised me with this fabulous, albeit quirky addition to my collection. I spied these boxers in the window of the Irish Cancer Society store (think Goodwill) and when I went back for them they were gone!  I was absolutely flabbergasted (yes, flabbergasted!) that something as oddball as this clock would sell so quickly! Little did I know Julie was behind it, and now this boxer memento has even more meaning!

That's the best part of having a collection of any kind.  Each item contains a memory. The memory may be of where you were when you found the item, who gave it to you, or perhaps it commemorates the day you received it like a holiday or anniversary.  So now I have this crazy clock that not only reminds me of my sweet sweet Parker, but also reminds me of my sweet friend Julie. Even though our time together was short (Julie has moved back to the USA) it won't be forgotten especially now that I have this little memento.

How about you? Anyone else have any special or silly collections?