The pair would often cuddle for hours watching anime or Dove would sit on his lap while he played games. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt seemed like our special time,\u201d Gates said.<\/p>\n
Dove was two months shy of her second birthday when she died on October 20. <\/p>\n
He always looked forward to arriving home when Dove would run to him. <\/p>\n
\u201cWords cannot describe the absence in my soul I felt when I heard the news, taken from us too soon, taken from me too soon, my little friend,\u201d Gates said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour curious nature and your love is what made you, you, but it took you too close to the sun and now you are flying out of my reach.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dove, 22 months old, was described by her father as a curious girl who was full of love and light.<\/p>\n
Mother Annalese Nelder called her daughter the \u201csassiest little girl\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe had such a personality and was known for being a diva, she also knew how to love hard,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Nelder described how once her daughter warmed up to a person, she would sit on their lap, give countless snuggles and try to make them \u201cendlessly\u201d laugh. <\/p>\n
Dove has been described by her mother as the sassiest little girl who loved hard. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe was best friends with everyone she came across,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe miss her so much and she\u2019s missed by so many people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aunt Teegan Mays told Dove in a message written after she died that her niece was a part of her she would never see again. <\/p>\n
\u201cYour smile so bright, your curiosity so big and beautiful, too big for this beautiful earth.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll protect your brother and sister like I know you always would,\u201d she wrote. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll look for you everywhere I go and forever miss you my girl.\u201d <\/p>\n
Dove\u2019s nana, Anita Gates, said their bond was the most beautiful feeling in the world. <\/p>\n
\u201cHer eyes reminded me of my son. She made my heart feel like no one could come between us. I love her beyond measure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anita said the pair had plans together. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe is truly a treasure that will live in my heart forever, I can\u2019t believe she was taken too soon … I love her so much.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aunt Abigael Gates said her time with Dove had been too short.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe brought the type of light into our lives that will never be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n
To Abigael, Dove was a bright, bubbly and giggly little girl who she said always made people smile with her \u201csilly faces\u201d and \u201csoft squishy cheeks\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI will always remember her gorgeous self as a core memory in my heart, fly high our beautiful princess Dove.\u201d<\/p>\n
Uncle Craig Nelder said he would miss Dove. <\/p>\n
\u201cI could feel that trust in your look towards me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dove\u2019s other nan, Simone Clark, who lived on the family\u2019s property was visited by the youngster and her brother nearly every morning.<\/p>\n
\u201cDove and her brother would come down to say hello, she would look for my SodaStream bottle and bring it to me for a drink,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Dove would follow the chickens around, hang out in the doves\u2019 pen or bounce on the trampoline.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the last few months all her life became all animals, she would be wherever they were,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI so miss my little mate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dove leaves behind her 3-year-old brother and a 2-month-old sister. <\/p>\n