Happy Holidays!

This is now the busy time of year for all of us. The furkids will be getting probably more than enough toys and food in the next week and visiting family which they love even more. And no, I won't make poor Dasher suffer with the antlers on all week!!! But notice how ADORABLE Isabelle looks in her photos. Belle always takes HORRIBLE photos. I was very happy with these ones. I thought someone stole my maltese and replaced her with a different one. She always looks so pissed off but I must have caught her on a really good day and maybe she was laughing at Dasher having to suffer with the antlers! The photo of them posed with Dasher jumping up, it finally took him to Dora's little shoot to realize the dog in the hot seat is the one who gets the cookies. Needless to say, suddenly he wanted his photo taken!

Calendar Time!

If you don't have a calendar yet or just want an adorable Havanese one, Dash and Dora are in this one so I might be VERY BIASED! It is a beautiful calendar created by Melissa Miller and is all Havanese. Dash is a very proud man and because he is so cute, he was included twice! He is with Dora in a Halloween photo dressed as giraffes and he is in a photo taken by Sally when we were at a San Francisco playdate where he looks so happy and adorable. The best part is I know a lot of the Havanese in this calendar and my kids have been able to play with them. They are adorable dogs but they are real dogs :) If you want to order the calendar, http://www.havaneseforum.com/cartplog.php

Isabelle's point of view

Isabelle can be a snob, there I have said it! She holds on to those royalty dog roots now and then. Including playing in the backyard! Dash and Dora are over double her size and sometimes when S's are involved, they bull doze her. So Belle will run out and look from the deck to see if it is really worth getting off and getting her princess toys wet and risk Dasher running her over. Also if we are outside and don't let her in this is what she does. To keep her loving chasing the animal life. Once in awhile I try to hold Dora and Dasher back (not an easy feat by any means) and let Belle be first to run. She blasts out the door screaming!

Daddy's boy in the making!

Dasher has been really bonded to me. He would love his Dad when Mom was busy or wasn't around but he would also use his dad to get to me! One day we were in the kitchen and I was cooking. Dash jumped and pawed Jim. He picked Dasher up and was saying that's right you love your Daddy. Dash was reaching over to get to me! But lately, Dasher has decided Dad can be fun even if Mom is around. He also doesn't toss and turn around in bed. You can also see your mommmy better if you are on Daddy's lap! When he is loving Jim I just try to ignore him but once in awhile maybe remind him who he loves the most. After all, I want to keep my Mommy's boy!

Happy First Birthday Dasher!!!

A look at Dasher's First Year

family cont!

Giving Thanks for Family

This year we stayed home and invited Jim's family down for the Turkey Day. We had a nice meal but more important we were able to be with family. Isabelle has always been nuts for her grandparents and her aunt. We were always told Dora was when we weren't around. But this year Dora decided to give thanks and a lot of love. I was so proud of her being a social butterfly. Aunt Missy also brought cousin TJ. Well it was so weird to see the dogs do well with Autumn but TJ is not a dog and an alien. They like to gang up and chase him and be mean too. Poor TJ was restricted to the leftover autumn rawhide. But he tried to redeem himself by slowly stealing all the toys. He couldn't believe the dogs would leave bones and toys in another room and tried to take everything home with him- clepto!

Mommy's Boy?

Dash is very much his mom's little man. He adores me and I adore him back almost as much. He does get a little upset when Mom is doing htings where he can't be with her. But he is willing to compromise and find another place to sit!

Some Autumn Action Clips

Here are some clips from the 2 weeks she was with us. You can see how Dash and her really developed into BFF's.

Autumn

We recently had a visitor at the Brown house. Jim went out early one Sunday morning and a puppy found him. She was cold and pretty scared and we decided to foster her. She was very happy but needed some TLC (gross worms!) and we ended up finding an amazing forever home for her. She turned out to be an Australian Cattle Dog who almost never left our house. We just knew in our hearts that she needed the proper home and Isabelle went out of her way to make sure it wasn’t ours! Dasher loved her and played with her non stop. I think he decided he was a cattle dog too cause boy did he run circles around this little girl to let her know who was boss. Unfortunately, she didn’t understand show coat so he spent most of his time playing with her with a tshirt on to try and keep her from eating his hair. I tried to keep the bitey face to a minimum but Dash wouldn’t trade his time wrestling with her for anything! We both were upset the day she left but when her forever family arrived and brought her new ACD sister, we were able to watch them play and knew she was going to have a great family.

Belle's Bday Cake!

Well not really what she ate for Bday Dinner but the cake her daddy had to buy cause it reminded him of his baby girl.

Icing on the cake!

I love when I get the AKC certificates in the mail for each dog- it makes all those entry fees worth the little gold certificate! Here is Dasher's first that just arrived! I just think it is so pretty and glad I remembered to use his full name, whatever you write down on CGC is what they print so if you use a nickname that is what you get! I have kept Belle and Dora's and wish I could display each one but DH wouldn't let it fly but I do love to have them :)

Isabelle's 6th Birthday

We took Belle up to the Cesar's head park and the Blue Ridge Mountains for her birthday party. Belle decided none of our family pets could go- only people (after all, she isn't a dog!). The morning was pretty chilly so we took her coat and a bag. She has a bit of pink residue from Halloween left but as you can see by her crazy leaf face, she got dirty enough to remove most of it. She is normally pretty clean but decided to stick her entire body into a giant hole! We did let Belle offleash where it wasn't busy and she had a blast. The second hike we went on was a lot more busy and Belle doesn't think there are strangers, just new people would like to love her given the chance so she had to be on leash. She really loves to be out hiking though. She eventually let me carry her in the bag and she didn't get sick (normally this is our sign Belle should be done running!) The next day, she barely moved and we were a bit nervous about her. Happy 6th Birthday Sweet Baby Belle!!!

Killer Bee!

Dashie struts his stuff at the Halloween Parade and then goes to his favorite place- the big hunting land. Belle and Dora have groomed Dashie from a young pup into a wild hunting machine. This is the only time he could care less about mommy and MUST FIND SQUIRRELS! Clemson has more than enough squirrels though! Unfortunately they are friendly and think a dog in a bee costume is harmless!

Pinky and the Brain!

Isabelle is 6 tomorrow!

Since she will be campaigning across the country for Obama, we went out to celebrate today. In true Belle fashion, we left the dogs home and only the humans (including the one with great hair) went out. We went hiking and out for bbq and smoked hot dogs. Since Belle is so cute, they gave her 3! We decided a half a hot dog was more than enough celebration. Belle has not moved since we got home.... I am sure she will be sore tomorrow! As you can see, she has a little pink left over on her but I knew she would need a full grooming after her hike, how dirty and crazy she would get, I had no clue! She sure hasn't slowed down for a six year old- my crazy little white monster.

Early morning photography

Dasher is an EARLY morning kind of dog. He wakes up loving life and the world. And sometimes this happens when we are still sleeping! So tagging along to do morning photography with Daddy at his FAVORITE squirrel hunting destination is fun... at least one of us is awake!

Happy Halloween!

Okay, Belle whispered in my ear she wanted to be a pink bunny. We couldnt find the right costume so we improvised! She is so cute pink and don't worry it comes out quite quickly!

Here Kitty Kitty Kitty!

Okay, we got a new toy- not sure if it is for the dogs or for me though! Dash is so cute with it but Dora is the hunter. Dasher's approach completely changes whether Dora is in the picture. In case you are wondering, it is a mouse with a remote control cheese!

Flash Back:Baby Boy Dash!

Here are some pics of Dasher as a mere baby pup! Look at that nice stack naturally! He really has amazing structure and stacks just standing there. Even when he is just sitting in the kitchen watching Daddy make a sandwich or watching for birds off the deck. Dash comes from an amazing breeder Kathy Patrick of Bellatak Havanese His structure I think is going to be even more awesome in the agility ring! We just have to do some more training and wait for him to grow up!