{"id":3321,"date":"2025-01-12T21:53:28","date_gmt":"2025-01-12T21:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/?p=3321"},"modified":"2025-01-12T21:53:31","modified_gmt":"2025-01-12T21:53:31","slug":"the-hardest-part-of-leaving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hardest Part of Leaving…"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If anything had a chance of stopping us from traveling, it\u2019s this girl right here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
\n

This is a tender subject among people\u2014and it should be. What happens to your pets when you leave? It was never on the table that we\u2019d give her up\u2014we committed to being her parents from the moment we spent $35 to bring her home from the Humane Society in February of 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we first started entertaining the idea of full-time travel, it was with the thought that Luna would travel with us. She\u2019s harness trained, does great in the car, and has gone on a fair few mini-adventures with us with reasonable success.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as we took the time to really consider the reality of full-time travel (particularly international workaway travel like we\u2019ll be doing) it just seemed more and more likely that we\u2019d be asking too much of her. We couldn\u2019t ask her to tolerate public transportation or risk losing her at a farmstay\u2026 we would not be able to control the stressors she\u2019d be exposed to and it wasn\u2019t going to be fair. The kind of travel we\u2019re going to be doing isn\u2019t glamourous: we\u2019re gonna be working, potentially sleeping outside… There might be other animals or bugs and we have no idea what border crossings are like with a pet.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\tNo Caption\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vanlife with Luna would be one thing: she\u2019d be in a contained and familiar space with her parents constantly present. But international budget travel\u2026 it just isn\u2019t worth the risk. But man, is it one of the most heartbreaking things we\u2019ve ever done, leaving her behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allow me to introduce you to CJ. CJ and I met in 2017 in a production of Hairspray in Greenville, SC. We kindled a friendship that has stood the test of time, multiple moves, and a pandemic. In the summer of 2021, CJ was hired at Sight and Sound and moved into the Mother-in-Law suite of our house downstairs. She shortly thereafter graduated from \u201cfriend\u201d to \u201cfamily\u201d and became Luna\u2019s defacto godmother; watching her for us whenever necessary and often looking forward to the opportunities to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\tNo Caption\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\tNo Caption\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At first, the thought was that my parents would take Luna while we were gone. But they had an elderly cat and aspirations for eventual long-term travel themselves\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So the choice was pretty clear: Luna should stay with her aunt CJ. She\u2019d be safe with a familiar person and well loved in a place she already knew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And as much as it was devastating to say goodbye to Luna this week, there wasn\u2019t any fear. Knowing as we drove away that she wouldn\u2019t only be cared for, but loved, happy\u2014that was a balm that eased the grief in such a way that we knew we\u2019d made the right decision. The right decisions can still be really hard, but Luna deserves a cozy home while her parents are away with a godmother who will love and care for her as much as we did ourselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\tour baby\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t#sunbeam\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\tCozy Christmas\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\tThe morning we left: she was curled up between Cat’s legs like this \ud83d\ude41\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\tWorking porch mornings\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\tCozy Christmas\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal is still to take her back. As soon as we can travel with her in such a way that we know she\u2019ll be safe and comfy, we will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in the meantime, we\u2019ll treasure every Marco Polo and photo CJ sends us on the daily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our sweet Luna McGonagall Valentine Blanchard <3<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If anything had a chance of stopping us from traveling, it\u2019s this girl right here. This is a tender subject among people\u2014and it should be. What happens to your pets when you leave? It was never on the table that we\u2019d give her up\u2014we committed to being her parents from the moment we spent $35 to bring her home from the Humane Society in February of 2021. When we first started entertaining the idea of full-time travel, it was with the thought that Luna would travel with us. She\u2019s harness trained, does great in the car, and has gone on a fair few mini-adventures with us with reasonable success. But as we took the time to really consider the reality of full-time travel (particularly international workaway travel like we\u2019ll be doing) it just seemed more and more likely that we\u2019d be asking too much of her. We couldn\u2019t ask her to tolerate public transportation or risk losing her at a farmstay\u2026 we would not be able to control the stressors she\u2019d be exposed to and it wasn\u2019t going to be fair. The kind of travel we\u2019re going to be doing isn\u2019t glamourous: we\u2019re gonna be working, potentially sleeping outside… There might be other animals or bugs and we have no idea what border crossings are like with a pet. Vanlife with Luna would be one thing: she\u2019d be in a contained and familiar space with her parents constantly present. But international budget travel\u2026 it just isn\u2019t worth the risk. But man, is it one of the most heartbreaking things we\u2019ve ever done, leaving her behind. Allow me to introduce you to CJ. CJ and I met in 2017 in a production of Hairspray in Greenville, SC. We kindled a friendship that has stood the test of time, multiple moves, and a pandemic. In the summer of 2021, CJ was hired at Sight and Sound and moved into the Mother-in-Law suite of our house downstairs. She shortly thereafter graduated from \u201cfriend\u201d to \u201cfamily\u201d and became Luna\u2019s defacto godmother; watching her for us whenever necessary and often looking forward to the opportunities to do so. At first, the thought was that my parents would take Luna while we were gone. But they had an elderly cat and aspirations for eventual long-term travel themselves\u2026 So the choice was pretty clear: Luna should stay with her aunt CJ. She\u2019d be safe with a familiar person and well loved in a place she already knew. And as much as it was devastating to say goodbye to Luna this week, there wasn\u2019t any fear. Knowing as we drove away that she wouldn\u2019t only be cared for, but loved, happy\u2014that was a balm that eased the grief in such a way that we knew we\u2019d made the right decision. The right decisions can still be really hard, but Luna deserves a cozy home while her parents are away with a godmother who will love and care for her as much as we did ourselves. The goal is still to take her back. As soon as we can travel with her in such a way that we know she\u2019ll be safe and comfy, we will. But in the meantime, we\u2019ll treasure every Marco Polo and photo CJ sends us on the daily. Our sweet Luna McGonagall Valentine Blanchard <3<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3324,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_surecart_dashboard_logo_width":"180px","_surecart_dashboard_show_logo":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_orders":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_invoices":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_subscriptions":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_downloads":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_billing":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_account":true,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[41,57,56],"class_list":["post-3321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-personalstories","tag-kylecaughtacat","tag-luna","tag-personal-stories"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Hardest Part of Leaving... - KyleCaughtaCat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Hardest Part of Leaving... - KyleCaughtaCat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If anything had a chance of stopping us from traveling, it\u2019s this girl right here. This is a tender subject among people\u2014and it should be. What happens to your pets when you leave? It was never on the table that we\u2019d give her up\u2014we committed to being her parents from the moment we spent $35 to bring her home from the Humane Society in February of 2021. When we first started entertaining the idea of full-time travel, it was with the thought that Luna would travel with us. She\u2019s harness trained, does great in the car, and has gone on a fair few mini-adventures with us with reasonable success. But as we took the time to really consider the reality of full-time travel (particularly international workaway travel like we\u2019ll be doing) it just seemed more and more likely that we\u2019d be asking too much of her. We couldn\u2019t ask her to tolerate public transportation or risk losing her at a farmstay\u2026 we would not be able to control the stressors she\u2019d be exposed to and it wasn\u2019t going to be fair. The kind of travel we\u2019re going to be doing isn\u2019t glamourous: we\u2019re gonna be working, potentially sleeping outside… There might be other animals or bugs and we have no idea what border crossings are like with a pet. Vanlife with Luna would be one thing: she\u2019d be in a contained and familiar space with her parents constantly present. But international budget travel\u2026 it just isn\u2019t worth the risk. But man, is it one of the most heartbreaking things we\u2019ve ever done, leaving her behind. Allow me to introduce you to CJ. CJ and I met in 2017 in a production of Hairspray in Greenville, SC. We kindled a friendship that has stood the test of time, multiple moves, and a pandemic. In the summer of 2021, CJ was hired at Sight and Sound and moved into the Mother-in-Law suite of our house downstairs. She shortly thereafter graduated from \u201cfriend\u201d to \u201cfamily\u201d and became Luna\u2019s defacto godmother; watching her for us whenever necessary and often looking forward to the opportunities to do so. At first, the thought was that my parents would take Luna while we were gone. But they had an elderly cat and aspirations for eventual long-term travel themselves\u2026 So the choice was pretty clear: Luna should stay with her aunt CJ. She\u2019d be safe with a familiar person and well loved in a place she already knew. And as much as it was devastating to say goodbye to Luna this week, there wasn\u2019t any fear. Knowing as we drove away that she wouldn\u2019t only be cared for, but loved, happy\u2014that was a balm that eased the grief in such a way that we knew we\u2019d made the right decision. The right decisions can still be really hard, but Luna deserves a cozy home while her parents are away with a godmother who will love and care for her as much as we did ourselves. The goal is still to take her back. As soon as we can travel with her in such a way that we know she\u2019ll be safe and comfy, we will. But in the meantime, we\u2019ll treasure every Marco Polo and photo CJ sends us on the daily. Our sweet Luna McGonagall Valentine Blanchard <3\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KyleCaughtaCat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-01-12T21:53:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-12T21:53:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/02ac0000-81b3-4d14-a705-63b7f1e0fcb9.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Cat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Cat\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Cat\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ec462ce42eb5af1bd57e415700aab08f\"},\"headline\":\"The Hardest Part of Leaving…\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-01-12T21:53:28+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-12T21:53:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\"},\"wordCount\":576,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/02ac0000-81b3-4d14-a705-63b7f1e0fcb9.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"kylecaughtacat\",\"luna\",\"personal stories\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Personal Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kylecaughtacat.com\/the-hardest-part-of-leaving\/\",\"name\":\"The Hardest Part of Leaving... - 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This is a tender subject among people\u2014and it should be. What happens to your pets when you leave? It was never on the table that we\u2019d give her up\u2014we committed to being her parents from the moment we spent $35 to bring her home from the Humane Society in February of 2021. When we first started entertaining the idea of full-time travel, it was with the thought that Luna would travel with us. She\u2019s harness trained, does great in the car, and has gone on a fair few mini-adventures with us with reasonable success. But as we took the time to really consider the reality of full-time travel (particularly international workaway travel like we\u2019ll be doing) it just seemed more and more likely that we\u2019d be asking too much of her. We couldn\u2019t ask her to tolerate public transportation or risk losing her at a farmstay\u2026 we would not be able to control the stressors she\u2019d be exposed to and it wasn\u2019t going to be fair. The kind of travel we\u2019re going to be doing isn\u2019t glamourous: we\u2019re gonna be working, potentially sleeping outside… There might be other animals or bugs and we have no idea what border crossings are like with a pet. Vanlife with Luna would be one thing: she\u2019d be in a contained and familiar space with her parents constantly present. But international budget travel\u2026 it just isn\u2019t worth the risk. But man, is it one of the most heartbreaking things we\u2019ve ever done, leaving her behind. Allow me to introduce you to CJ. CJ and I met in 2017 in a production of Hairspray in Greenville, SC. We kindled a friendship that has stood the test of time, multiple moves, and a pandemic. In the summer of 2021, CJ was hired at Sight and Sound and moved into the Mother-in-Law suite of our house downstairs. She shortly thereafter graduated from \u201cfriend\u201d to \u201cfamily\u201d and became Luna\u2019s defacto godmother; watching her for us whenever necessary and often looking forward to the opportunities to do so. At first, the thought was that my parents would take Luna while we were gone. But they had an elderly cat and aspirations for eventual long-term travel themselves\u2026 So the choice was pretty clear: Luna should stay with her aunt CJ. She\u2019d be safe with a familiar person and well loved in a place she already knew. And as much as it was devastating to say goodbye to Luna this week, there wasn\u2019t any fear. Knowing as we drove away that she wouldn\u2019t only be cared for, but loved, happy\u2014that was a balm that eased the grief in such a way that we knew we\u2019d made the right decision. The right decisions can still be really hard, but Luna deserves a cozy home while her parents are away with a godmother who will love and care for her as much as we did ourselves. The goal is still to take her back. As soon as we can travel with her in such a way that we know she\u2019ll be safe and comfy, we will. But in the meantime, we\u2019ll treasure every Marco Polo and photo CJ sends us on the daily. 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