Some families find their dog in one visit. This one needed a few trips to the shelter and one very determined little girl.

The family kept stopping by an animal center in Franklin, Tennessee, to spend time with a sweet brown and white dog named Wendy. Each trip was meant to be a quick hello. Each time they left it got a little harder. So the grownups made a quiet decision and brought Wendy home.

They did not tell their 7-and-a-half-year-old daughter Sage.

The dog she wanted most

When Sage walked through the front door she stopped cold. There was Wendy in her house. Sage asked if they had really gotten her. Then she said the line that has since melted the internet. This is the best time in my life, she said. This is the dog I've been wanting most at that shelter.

What surprised people was how she said it. There was no screaming and no jumping around. Sage stayed soft and gentle and let Wendy come to her. You could tell she was bursting inside. She had clearly practiced being calm with this dog over all those visits.

Two sister souls

Viewers noticed right away. One called her a wonderfully intuitive kid who let Wendy lead even though she had to be ready to burst. Another said it looked like two sister souls had found each other.

The rest of the video shows the new routine. Sage reads books out loud to Wendy. They share the couch. The whole vibe is cozy and quiet in the best way.

Wendy is around four and a half. Older shelter dogs often get passed over for puppies and November is a month when shelters push hard to get those dogs into homes. Wendy did not have to wait any longer.

Now instead of seeing her behind a kennel door Sage gets to see her every morning. Best time of her life indeed.