On Wednesday night, we said goodbye to our Little Lady Leila, just a few weeks shy of her 16th birthday. 😭😭😭 While she had become deaf and mostly blind, we joked that she was like a cat with nine lives, and yet we still weren't prepared to say goodbye. We are thankful she passed away peacefully and while we were home with her. Our first baby and loyal companion, she was the sweetest puppy. The girls do not know life without her, and Alex and I are struggling to remember. She welcomed all of our babies home and as I looked through pictures, I quickly realized she was always near. She was with us when the girls took their first steps, learned to write their names, or rode a bike without training wheels. She has slept at the foot of our bed for almost 16 years, gone on countless camping trips, and allowed the girls to dress her up and lug her around everywhere.
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| Alex surprised me with 9-week-old Leila in my stocking for Christmas 2003. |
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| Introducing Braylee to Leila ~ 2004 |
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| She might have been a little jealous of the new baby at first. 😊 |
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| But soon, they were best friends. Leila would bring her alligator to us and beg to play. |
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| Braylee's 1st steps |
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| Braylee's 1st Birthday 💗 |
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| Leila tolerated all kinds of loving from the girls. 😆 |
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| Bringing Brynna home from the hospital on Braylee's 2nd Birthday |
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| Braylee got a baby Leila for Christmas. |
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| Watching over a sick little Braylee |
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| All 3 girls begging for cheese |
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| Waiting on Brynna's scraps 😊 |
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| Telling Leila not to eat Santa's cookies |
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| The day she learned to ride a bike. |
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| One of many camping trips |
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| Leila's 6th Birthday |
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| Brynna's 1st time writing her name |
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| Building our new house |
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| The day we were matched with Brielle |
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| Brielle's 1st morning at home |
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| The little girls loved snuggling her on the ottoman, Leila's favorite place to nap when she could still jump. |
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| I love how happy she was in these snow pictures. |
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| Leila's 10th Birthday |
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| Beilyn's 1st day at home |
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| Family walk on Beilyn's 1st day at home |
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| Thankful for Leila ❤️ |
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| So worried when she was ran over and we thought we would lose her. |
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| BellaMei's 1st day at home |
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| Leila was scared of storms. Beilyn wrapped her up to comfort her during a storm. 💗 |
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| She also let Leila wear her beloved necklace- a true sign of love from Beilyn. |
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| Her 15th birthday, October 2018. |
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| Saying goodbye to our Leila. 😭 |
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| We woke the big girls up to let them tell her goodbye. |
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The next day, we told the little girls.
We buried her under the trees by their playset. |
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Beilyn going with her daddy to tell Leila goodbye.
Leila was a form of healing for our Beilyn who probably said it best... "Our family will never be the same. Our home will never be the same." |
💗 Leila 💗
10.14.03 - 8.14.19
We miss her more than we ever expected.
