Dear Molly,

I remember the day we adopted you. I was only about seven-years-old. Mom and I drove to the kennel and were led into the barn where you and your other brothers and sisters were playing in the old horse stall. You were only six-weeks-old. Mom and I sat down in the chairs that were in the same stall. Some of your brothers and sisters would come up to us and try to bite our shoes or try to get us to play with them. Then there was you. You decided to stand up and walk up to us. You came right to my feet and sat down. You looked at me for forever. I told mom, "I want this one." She nodded and picked you up. You gave her a million puppy kisses.

We took you home a week later. You were so scared! You cried and whimpered the whole way home. We stopped at Petsmart and bought you a crate, a collar, a leash, food and all the other essentials. When we got home, I tried to pick you up, but you were so heavy! Dad was so surprised that we had adopted you while he was away. Now you two are best friends.

You liked to cause mischief, too. As you got a little older, you found a new hobby. You liked to chew holes in the wall of the mudroom. You were a strange puppy. You liked the taste of the Bitter Apple spray. You chewed on chair legs, window sills, walls and my Barbie doll's clothes. When we went to the river, you bolted for the water and would swim for hours and hours to catch the tennis balls we threw for you. You wrote me letters while I was away at summer camp and attached some of your yellow lab fur. I missed you the most.

I loved coming home after school, after a vacation, or even just coming home from running errands with mom or dad. You would get so excited and jump on us and try to make sure we never left again. When we did leave, you were good at and still are good at looking at us with an expression on your face that says, "Please don't leave me! Are you ever coming back?" When we got back, you liked to stand in front of the car so we couldn't pull in until we said hello.

When Grammie and Pop-pop came to visit, Pop-pop fed you so many treats, you weighed more than me at the time! However, you both enjoyed playing in the backyard with the Frisbees, balls and sticks. You would hold onto the toy like it was a piece of treasure. We loved bringing you up into my tree house, and let you slide down the slide. You were absolutely terrified, but it was so cute and a great photo op.

The way we could get your attention was to ask, "Molly, want to go for a walk?" and "Molly, want to go for a ride?" It still makes you perk up your ears and tilt your head. When we took you in the car, you sat like a human. It was so funny. We could put a seat belt across your chest and you would be just fine!

Squirrels and leaves were and are your enemies. You do not want anything to do with them. You would bark all night.

At night, you would either sleep with me or with mom and dad. I loved to have you sleep in my bed, but it wasn't big enough for the two of us. When mom and dad would talk or even just make eye contact, you would notice, and get very, very jealous. You would scoot your way in between them to make sure that your presence was known. When mom passed away, you had a whole side of the big king sized bed to yourself. You loved it!

You were and still very much are a huge foodie. But let's be honest. What dog isn't? On Christmas Eve, you ate all of Grammie's homemade candy canes and a dozen dinner rolls mom had bought for Christmas dinner. Mom made a lemon cake one evening for Grammie's birthday, and you ate a hole right in the middle of it. Grandma came to visit, and had made chicken gizzards. She left the room for two minutes, and you had eaten all of them, leaving the paper towel on the floor. You also scared all of us when you ate a whole container of hot chocolate mix. We had to take you to the emergency animal hospital where you were taken care of and very fortunately, lived! When dad built the pond in the backyard, you would stand in the waterfall part and drink the freshwater from it. You may have also been the cause of the multiple deaths of the goldfish that lived in there. Dad had made a pot roast for dinner one night, and we had accidentally left you inside while we ate outside. Dad opened the door, and you had the entire pot roast in your mouth and ran straight to the backyard where dad tried to chase you.

I could go on forever about memories I have with you, from dressing you up as a princess on Halloween to feeding you vanilla cupcakes on your first birthday.

Molly, you have been my best friend who has stayed by my side since you came into our lives. I love you so much. We have SO many memories together, it's crazy. Now you are twelve-years-old, and can't really jump up in the car or chase the Frisbees, but we still adore you.

Thank you for all of the memories we've had and the ones we will continue to share. I love you, Molly Mo!

Love,

Your human best friend

*All photos are mine.