Saying Goodbye To Our Darla Girl

The day finally came. We said "see you later" to the sweet little furball who turned us into a family of four. For anyone that doesn't know, we were watching a dog, Darla, for a friend while she was on deployment. Darla is the little miracle pup who showed up on our doorstep almost 3 years ago after being hit by a car and abandoned. We rescued her and gave her to our friend, Tiffany, and the two of them quickly became a match made in pupper heaven!
When Tiffany asked us to watch Darla while she was on deployment, I was apprehensive. Of course we said yes because we love Tiffany and we love Darla, but that didn't mean I wasn't super nervous about adding another dog to our family. Life with just Parker and Jenny was so easy, and I knew going from one dog to two would be an adjustment. The unknowns that came with adding Darla to our family for a year just sent me into a tailspin. 
It took some adjusting, but Darla became the dog that none of us ever wanted to say goodbye to! She was with us almost a year to the day, and she felt just as much a part of the family as Jenny. It's funny, because I anticipated a slew of different emotions when we added Darla to our family, but it never crossed my mind how hard it would be to say goodbye. She became my little buddy and could usually be found right next to me. We called her my shadow because she followed me everywhere and always wanted to be as close as possible. 

I had known the day we were going to have to say goodbye for weeks, and I was dreading it like none other. I couldn't bare the thought of Darla being ripped away from us. I can honestly say that seeing she and Tiffany reunited completely changed that. Darla has been with us, so I only knew how happy she was with us. When she ran to her mama for the first time in over a year and whimpered while she tried to climb all over her, it made me realize how happy she was going to be living with her again. Those two are completely perfect for each other!

Reunion Day!

I can't thank Tiffany enough for entrusting us with her baby while she was away. I know we did her a favor, but Darla was a blessing and brought us so much joy. It's the end of a chapter for us but the beginning of one for them. I loved being her stand in mama while her real mama was away. Darla is a pretty lucky girl to have two moms who love her so much!

We took one last picture as a family of four before they drove off to their new home. It was a tough goodbye, and I may have shed a few little tears after they left, but the whole thing was a blessing. Darla girl taught me a lot in her year with us, and hopefully one day soon she and Jenny will be reunited for a sister playdate!