Please forgive the word count on this but I will be as brief as I can.
This forum is a fount of wisdom from experienced and knowledgeable people. I've come here to learn for several years now.
This thread however, has always been one of my favorites. My family and I are dog people and our dogs are family.
Four years ago we lost our yellow lab of 13 yrs. She was my constant companion and I was her loyal frisbee launcher. I thought I was ready for her departure but was sorely mistaken. Not only was she an awesome friend and companion, she was a direct link to the brother I never had growing up and my son's Godfather. We lost him in Afghanistan in 2005.
After two years my wife took the initiative to push me back on the horse and decreed that I should start looking.
I had read entry after entry in this thread about GSD's and what amazing animals they are. So, slowly at first, I began the research about them. All the while reading the comments regarding them written here by folks I considered to be both well informed and squared-away.
So, after a ton of OCD research, we brought home our first GSD. A tiny ball of furry attitude that instantly owned my heart. We just had her first birthday party tonight (my wife's insistence).
I can't say "thank you" enough to the people here who provided the insight that led me to have this amazing girl in our family. She is a high drive, working-line dog and all of her grand parents were either German or Czech. She runs me ragged and my body is bruised and broken from her enthusiasm. But I love her with every morsel of my being. Her personality is a mix of crazy, stubbornness, and affection. I can see her thinking when she looks at me and she is, by a large measure, the smartest dog I have ever known. She's 88 pounds now and built like a water buffalo. Most mornings, when the alarm clock goes off, she vaults into the bed with my wife and I and flops down between us. It's kind'a like getting mugged but she's so damned cute all I can do is hug her.
So, again; my family and I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the guidance and honesty that led us to her. We truly appreciate it.