For anyone who has been dedicated and checked in now and again for updates, I apologize.  This last year has been incredibly hectic with raising the puppies and then planning a move.  Now, we are finally in the new house (although still a bit unsettled) and will find more opportunities to keep up with our webpage.

The last year has been very eventful.  We have shown Mollie as a special when the opportunity presented and with limited showings. Mollie and Marty accomplished the respectable feat of finishing the year as the Number 1 Owner-Handler Mastiff team in the country.  At the age of four, Mollie still loves the "spotlight" and likes to "strut her stuff''' in the ring.  Bevo earned enough points in his first year to need only a single point going into the National Specialty in Joplin to finish his championship.  Unfortunately, he didn't manage to win at Specialty, and with all the demands on our time with moving/remodeling, he didn't have another chance to go into the ring until this past October.  We entered one day only and walked away on Oct.13, 2013 with another Bred-By Champion.

Brady is still looking for her last major.  Unfortunately, the shows we have felt we were able to enter, haven't made majors and the ones that made majors, haven't been at a time when we could plan on entering.  So, Brady is still hunting that last win to earn her championship.  We are hopeful that the upcoming Christmas shows in Dallas will provide that opportunity.

McGee is our next project.  He is a beautiful boy out of Nancy Walker's Lazy D kennel, sired by her boy Rhett (Ch Lazy D's Southern Gentleman.)  McGee is only 3 months younger than Brady and Bevo but seems like such a pup since he hasn't had as many opportunities to get into the ring as the older two kids.  His time in now though.  We think he is primed to just cruise right on through the points gathering process and earn his championship handily over the first part of 2014.

All of the dogs seem to be settling into the new house well.  For now, we have one guest room set up as a crate room for some of the kids and it is very helpful in managing the traffic throughout the day.  Before too long, we hope to finish the remodeling of our breezeway/patio room between the garage and the kitchen.  When it is done, we will have a beautiful room with a kitchen counter and sink, a dishwasher, a refrigerator, built in kennels, and it''s own heating/cooling.  Then, the fur-kids can be kept comfortable, regardless of the weather, and the traffic and activity within the house can be managed around Dad's needs and visitors.  The best part is that the dogs will never be isolated like they would be if we built a separate kennel.  This was something that was very important to us as we searched for the right house to buy.

So, where are we now that 2013 is starting to wind to a close?  We are in a new home, ready to be settled here shortly.  We are looking forward to the holidays and being somewhere we can enjoy with the dogs.  We think 2014 looks like a much more relaxed year with more time and opportunity to get back into our dog show routine and time spent with our friends.  Of course, with a possible breeding for Mollie in late spring/early summer, the "relaxed" part might be just a wish for a few months.  Still, if puppies are in the cards, we will love having the sound of tiny paws around the house - and who can resist puppy breath?