Flashback Friday!!

So...I really like this Flashback Friday thing. I think it's because it's a good excuse for me to look through all of our old photos and reminisce about all of the memories Brandon and I (and now Parker and Andrew) have made together!! As I was thinking about memories, I just had to share this one with you all- because I know some of you were with us through this time, but I'm not sure you know the whole story about it (and, if you weren't....well, it's just a sweet story)!

This Flashback Friday is about the day we got our Bella Girl!

It was November 2004. In September of 2004, Brandon started a new job at the University...two weeks later, I interviewed for my position (still under the name of Brooke Davies, so no one even knew Brandon and I were soon-to-be husband and wife) and I was hired at the University. The next month, we were married (October 23, 2004), went on our honeymoon, and on November 5th I started my job....the next week we moved to Ottawa, and our lives started to slow down. As you can imagine- new jobs, a new marriage, and moving- this was one crazy time for us!

But....although it was crazy, we just had this feeling...a feeling that this was right.

About two weeks into this new life of ours, I saw an ad in the paper for lab puppies. Brandon and I both love dogs...we love the companionship, we love the sweet demeanor, we love the everlasting love of dogs. So, when I saw this, I shared it with Brandon. His response: "We can't get a dog now! We live in a duplex, we don't have a fenced in yard, we aren't ready for this!" I was devestated, but I knew he was right so I threw the paper in the trash and didn't think about it again.

The next week, I came home from work to find this.....



And, although everything that Brandon mentioned above seemed true, he was way off, because this was the PERFECT TIME for us to add Bella to our lives! We cleaned her up (she had been living on a farm and was covered in fleas...bleck!), we trained her to ring a bell hanging on the door handle when she needed to go potty, we took her with us to our family gatherings, to work, and we loved taking her to the dog park!

The thing is...Bella has helped us. She helped us learn how to be responsible together, she has taught us that you have to work at "raising" a dog, she taught us to relax...that things aren't always going to go as planned, she's been our best friend since that cold November day in 2004....and we've loved how she's adapted to our new family. First, she had Parker- and Parker is "Bella's boy"....they snuggle, play, watch movies, and even read books together before bed time. And, now she has Andrew....let me tell you....Bella thinks Andrew is her baby. Everytime he cries or makes any kind of a noise, Bella is right there to check on him.

This flashback is one that I'll always remember...walking into the house that night...



and all of the memories this night has brought us!