Goodness gracious! Check out this incredible watercolor portrait by Britt Bakke Studio. The commission, a wedding gift from our dear friends Michaela and Andy, features our two late rescue pups Miki and Mia (a.k.a. @american_chis).

We lost our senior girls back to back in 2022. Hard as it was to say goodbye, we’re forever grateful they had the chance to meet our son Julian and vice versa. It warms our hearts every time baby boy catches an eyeful of an old photo of them and just laughs and laughs. (In fairness, graying Chiweenies are pretty funny looking.🤪)

In case you’re unfamiliar with her work, Britt Bakke is a Minneapolis native who grew up in an artistic family; her mother was a master of Norwegian rosemaling. Bakke studied art and design at the University of Minnesota and now works out of a studio in Golden Valley. Her portfolio includes realist paintings of houses and landscapes, as well as these stunning pet portraits. Bakke doesn’t just paint dogs and cats either; her oeuvre also includes chickens, bunnies, horses, even iguanas.

Our girls left a hole in our soul the size of Lake Superior, but this tender portrait does an impressive job capturing their likeness. Eventually we’ll adopt another doggo (or two) that Julian can grow up with. In the meantime, we’re honored to have Miki and Mia watch over our family from their perch on the rainbow bridge above.