His face lights up and he gurgles with evident pleasure whenever he sees this roughly 60-pound animal standing next to him happily wagging its tail. There’s not the slightest trace of intimidation on that tiny baby face, something I could certainly understand given the size of Bear.

It never ceases to amaze me that a dog that can be so clumsy at times, can be as gentle as the sun to a raindrop when it comes to ‘his’ baby. I was really glad I was around, carrying my camera with me and able to turn the moment into quiet truth.

Dogs and kids. Sometimes the combination is truly magical.