2025

1-1-25/1-14-25 Well hell! I did start my 2025 blog on January 1st but when looking at it today (1-14) and trying to make a minor wording change, a fat-finger mishap deleted all of my posts so far and even though I DID NOT publish any changes, everything was lost. So here I start again and will have to try and remember my topics so far this year. Good thing it's only the 14th day! I know I started off mentioning about our annual sibling Christmas party/gift exchange which was held on 12/31/24. It was a nice time hosted again by Jim and Duffy at their always beautifully decorated house. A Cure 81 spiral sliced ham was the main course for dinner served with a yummy array of side dishes and sweets brought and shared by each of us siblings. Gifts were shared playing a gift giving game; I received a very cushy blanket (from Virgie) and Jim ended up with a selection of different candies (from brother Jim). We were home by 10:30 and after a short playtime with the puppies, I rang in the new year asleep in bed.

1-3-25 Amber & Dolly had a vet appointment today for shots and we took Penny along as well for a wellness check up because of some illness going through the litter causing lack of appetite and just not being the rambunctious puppies they've always been. Nothing was found wrong with Penny and the vet attributed it to likely being just a little virus going through each of them. I asked for an appetite stimulant to hopefully get them eating again and though it helped, I wasn't completely comfortable with their progress until a few days to a week later when I could confidently say they were all back to their normal selves. Also at this vet visit I finally had the chance to have them check out the lump that was on Dolly's back. I was so relieved when the vet instantly recognized it as being a harmless cyst (don't remember the actual name of it). She drained some of the pus like liquid out of it and said the only way to totally get rid of it was surgery. Knowing it is nothing to worry about we decided to wait and possibly do that whenever she has a dental done. Other than that, she and Amber are doing well. It's hard to believe that in just a few short weeks the puppies (now at 8 weeks old) will be at the age that they could go to new homes. However, I haven't offered the girls to anyone yet hoping for a show prospect, and Bravo though he has a home won't be leaving until mid April, so it may be a while before any of them leave. My pick of the litter PIPER is still just under 2 lbs and I am beginning to doubt she will get to a good breeding/show adult size, but not giving up just yet. She is actually my worrisome pup, likely because I worry when I don't see her seeming to eat enough and her weight gain has been slim to none. She will likely stay here a while show pup or not, because of her small size. I want to be sure she is completely healthy and growing.

1-8-25 Happy BIRTH-day to my first great-grandchild!! Today was the day that Emily had her baby boy. Her water started "leaking" the day/night before (on the 7th) and she texted me that evening around 10pm that she thought she would be going to the hospital, letting me know because we had made plans earlier to visit her dad the next day. In the morning, her mom Beth called me to let me know that they were at the hospital, Emily was dilated to 3cm, so there would still be a bit of a wait. Being at home waiting was hard, so I texted Beth mid day to get an update. Dilated to 7, progress was slow and baby was getting stressed some so they were trying different things to move things along. Around 5:30, Beth called to let us know that because labor seemed to have stalled (still at 7cm) and because baby was stressed they decided a c-section was the best option at this point. Karsen Tyrell Nieman-Bennamon was born at 6:29 pm healthy, & weighing 7 lb 1 oz! First pictures showed us he was a beautiful baby with a head full of dark hair. Jim and I went to the hospital to see him and Emily the next day and I was thrilled that we were also able to get Montclair to transport Matt there as well so that he could see/meet his grandson. It was obvious how happy Matt was as I watched him holding and talking to Karsen. I loved holding Karsen as well; it has been at least 10 years since there's been a baby in the family (Gage). It was a very happy day for sure.

1/21/25 Puppy news mostly in this post. They are now 10 weeks old and all doing very well. I made the decision to let Phoebe go to a pet home and offered her to a lady in Florida that has a pup from Dolly's "N" litter (Nikki, now Gracie). She had emailed me last year about being ready for a playmate for Gracie. At first, hearing that Phoebe might get to be 7 or 8 lbs she thought maybe she would need a pup that would be closer to Gracie's size (5 lbs), but after I told her that I thought a couple of pounds wouldn't matter and that after checking Gracie's size at 12 weeks & seeing that she herself was charting 8 lbs, she decided to adopt Phoebe after all. So, a deposit was sent and Phoebe's Gotcha Day is set up for January 31st. With Bravo also sold (gotcha day to be determined) that leaves Penny and Piper. I'm still holding on to the hope that Piper will grow enough to hold on to for show & breeding. At 10 weeks old she was barely 2 lbs but she definitely seems to be filling out a bit and I see her eating more regularly now. I'm hoping that the little bug they all had a couple of weeks ago slowed her growth down a bit and she just needs to "catch up". Time will tell. Not sure why I'm still holding on to Penny. Truthfully I don't want to keep one myself this time, and certainly not two of them. I think my hesitation is whether or not I should offer her as a show prospect. Conformation-wise for now she looks okay, though a few weeks ago I wondered if she was going to be short-legged. Also the coloring on her face I think will stay darker and the tan she does have is closer to Winston's coloring so I'm not sure how well it will show. This is what's holding me back from offering her as a show prospect. I would like to find her a home soon either way and do have people waiting that may want her.

1-28 The pups went in for the 2nd set of shots this morning; all are healthy & doing well. After talking with Sharon Paggi (Phoebe's buyer) about Phoebe's ears giving me a bit of trouble keeping them up; I decided to ask the vet to check for a possible ear infection as being the reason. She did find that she had some yeast build up and prescribed drops for her ears. I'm hoping this will help and/or that her ears won't give Sharon any trouble once she is there. Sharon mentioned that she hated sounding picky but did want erect ears; talking with her I explained that I didn't see any reason why Phoebe's ears wouldn't stand, that they may just need some extra TLC in training them to stay that way, but that I couldn't guarantee anything. I did offer to bring Penny along to the airport so that if she was too concerned she could choose between the two girls after seeing them in person. It seems she does prefer Phoebe's lighter coloring . . . IMO in choosing Penny she would have a pup that looks very similar to Gracie. After the vet appointment today I am more confident that Phoebe's ears will be okay; fingers crossed. I also spoke with Bravo's new mom, Jolie and it looks like they will be driving here on Sunday to pick him up. I am very happy to know that two of the four will be leaving this weekend. Two down, and what to do with the other two. Well, really one since Piper will probably stay until she turns 6 months old at least, holding out hope that she will get to a good size for show AND breeding. Penny I am ready to find a home for so it's just a matter of who.

2/2 And we're down to two . . . . . puppies that is. Bravo and Phoebe went to their forever homes this past weekend. I met Sharon Paggi at the airport on Friday with Phoebe; she was instantly smitten with her and was excited to get her home to Florida to meet her older sister Gracie (Nikki from Dolly's N litter). Have not heard anything from her yet but will check in with them after the weekend giving them time to get acclimated. Yesterday (Saturday), Bravo's new mommy (Jolie Graybill) and her husband drove in from Horace, ND to pick him up. They too seemed to love him right away (as well as the rest of our furry crew). After their 6 hour drive back home, I got a text from Jolie letting me know that they got home and that Bravo was doing well. With both Phoebe and Bravo settled it is time to think about Penny and Piper. I was happy to see when I took their 12 week weights that Piper was up to 2 lb, 11 oz and charting to be near 6 lbs as an adult. I'm hoping that holds true and with that she will be staying with us for the time being. Penny will be going to a pet home; I do have at least one application that I can contact the person to see if they might be interested, so hopefully she will be in her forever home before too long.

Being February, we are into the start of dog shows with the first one coming up Feb 15-16 in Des Moines. There are 8 Biewers entered; myself with 2, Christine with 1, Victoria with 1, and I am guessing the other 4 might be Valerie (and Kathy), and possibly Daryl Martin. I'm still a little bummed about the whole show thing since the last show with the politics of Daryl, a professional handler seeming to win every time she's there, and the crappy looking male winning over Oscar. That, and the fact that Amber still does not walk well makes it stressful to show her. That is at least partially on me for not working with her. The long drives and expense of going to shows seems just not worth it when stuff like that happens. The show coming up may be just as disappointing so we'll see if my feelings about dog showing perks up. I hope so.

On a family note, that darn Emily . . . . I just don't understand why she is so distant. Loving and friendly when we do see or talk with her, but communication (especially) and visits are extremely lacking. I just don't get it; maybe if I did understand it wouldn't make me so mad, sad, worried; basically don't know what to think or feel. The old saying "actions speak louder than words" certainly holds true here. 2/3 I talked with Matt yesterday, the same lack of communication from Emily for him is even more disappointing with him being the Grandpa of that sweet baby of hers. No excuse IMO for her not to call, text, and/or send pictures of Karsen. It only takes a minute and easy to do with the phones these days.. I bought and took Matt a t-shirt that has "Grandpa, EST 2025" on it and he liked it a lot; I'm glad he at least has that. He did say that he has talked with Beth and she has seen and talked with Emily (going to her apartment to visit). She says Karsen is "so cute, and she loves him", and that Emily is very tired with Karsen's sleep schedule not being a good one. Yes, being a first time mom to a new baby is hard and sleep deprivation is real but still no reason for the lack of communication with her dad and completely ignoring text messages from me. I'm not asking for a long conversation, just a reply. OH, and when I mentioned something about Emily editing her post on FB about the baby shower getting a different date though none was mentioned, Matt told me that Beth said something about the 23rd???? Again, I have heard nothing about it; who's hosting, will invites go out, heck am I even invited?????, and guess it is not to be extended to Karsen's great, great aunts. Okay, I'm getting a little bitchy, but that's what lack of communication and the unknown does to a person. Done venting for now . . . . . . . .

2-7 Keeping my fingers crossed that Penny has a new home to go to. Jolie (Bravo's new mom) took him to work with her the other day and after others there seeing him, one of her co-workers fell in love enough to express interest in adopting Penny. She sent the application from my website and in communication back and forth said that she and her husband wanted to move forward with the adoption process. Yay! I asked her to then give me a call to talk, get to know another a bit more and ask/answer any question either of us has. When she called, on speaker with her husband, and my first words were "so you want to adopt Penny", they but the brakes on a bit and said this conversation was for the questions and that they wanted to then discuss it some more after getting information, feeling the decision to adopt came up very quick, so they just want to make sure it is the right decision, the right time, etc. Ugh, I get it but to go from "ready to move forward" to let us discuss it some more, it's just a little disappointing. Like I said, I'm hoping and praying they come back wanting to definitely move forward in adopting her. Penny (and I) are so forward to getting her into a new home . . . . .her age, it's time. At this point I have no other interested parties (except MAYBE the lady that wanted me to hold her until April). I suppose if this doesn't work out I will check back with her even though that is two months away.

2-9 Well heck, the young couple initially interested in Penny changed their minds and decided it was not the right time (financially) to get a new puppy, so we're back to square one. I had one other person message me on FB, but so far they have not proceeded further after our initial conversation. Getting close to going back to the people that emailed me back in November wanting a puppy in the spring to see if they are still interested. Even though they didn't want to take possession until April, at least I'd have her sold.

We visited with Matt yesterday and he told us that Emily and Karsen visited him the day before and supposedly will be coming back again this morning; from what I could gather it sounded like maybe she had a job interview today; on a Sunday????? I asked Matt to let me know if/when they came; so that I could come see them, so we'll see.

The Des Moines dog show is next weekend; hoping to get there. Snow is in the forecast two days this week, one being on Friday when we would be leaving for Des Moines

2-12 It's a Snow Day today; our first major snow of the season! 3-5 inches predicted of the light fluffy snow. It started overnight; not sure how much is on the ground or what we will end up with. The snow falling is very light, not big flakes at all, so it doesn't look like much but there is plenty on the ground so it certainly has been accumulating. Trying to decide if we will venture out to visit with Matt today or not. We did see him on Monday; I actually got a text from Emily; and she said that she was at the facility for a job interview and visiting with Matt, so off we went a bit earlier for our usual visit. OMG, that little Karsen is soooo cute and it was so good to see him and Emily again. He is doing well and at a month old, for this visit he was awake a bit more than before. Both Penny and Piper are doing very well and I'm happy/optimistic to say that Piper is growing steadily. I also saw when looking at the records I kept on Dolly recently, that she wasn't much bigger than Piper at this age giving me even more hope that she will grow to a good show/breeding size.

The dog show in Des Moines is coming up this weekend; I think the weather will cooperate with a break on the snow for travel. It will be a cold weekend though. I'm kind of looking forward to it and kind of not. Looking forward to getting away for a bit and not looking forward because I'm being pessimistic about it being worthwhile. I am not confident that Oscar will win over Christine's boy, nor am I confident about Amber. With so much breakage to the hair on her head/face and not sure she will walk "like a champion", I do wonder if she has much of a chance beating what I assume will be Valerie/Kathy's girls and/or Daryl Martin. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

2-16 Well hell, here it is Sunday of the Des Moines show weekend . . . . . and I'm NOT there! :( Forecast was for plenty of snow both here and even more so in Des Moines so I decided to stay home, but as it turns out there is next to nothing and I could've/should've gone. Dang it!!! Even with the uncertainty that Amber or Oscar would have done well enough to win any placement, it would have been interesting to see how Oscar especially would have done against Rocket, a puppy from Christine's breeding's. He is a couple of months younger than Oscar and cute enough, but does have the dark face like Skye does. That in my opinion would be his major downfall. I saw a video of him in the ring; he walked nice but did not do very well for the table exam. He's young so that's understandable. Anyway, with missing this show and looking at upcoming possibilities, it could be April or May before we have any to go to. This at least would give me time to work on my two and for Amber's head hair to grow out some more. Still have Penny here; haven't really sent out any "feelers" from previous applications I've gotten. I also thought about contacting Debbie Frye in Lincoln as she expressed interest in another female at some point when she and her daughter were here for Otie. I do need to get going as at 14 weeks, Penny does need her forever home. Piper will be kept and co-owned with Connie and I so that Connie has a Biewer to show. I hesitate with the idea of her going to her house to live because she definitely is my "pick of the litter", but with 4 others in the house I don't want or need another here right now. I'm also iffy on how well Connie will work with her as a show pup, not wanting her to treat her and coddle her as if she were a pet. I noticed that with how she dealt with Finn and even when I tried to "mentor" her about it she didn't seem very responsive. Even Connie needs some training on how to walk in the ring, holding the lead correctly, and how to stack and present the dog while it is on the table. All of this will need to be discussed before she takes Piper home. A few days ago, Kristen talked with me about taking charge of the planning of a baby shower for Emily and Karsen having called for information about a venue to have it at. She asked me to contact Emily for a firm date that she would like to have it so she could book the reservation. I called; no answer and then texted and STILL no reply! Once again, I JUST DON'T GET IT!!! When we visited with Matt yesterday he did get a text from Emily the day before on Valentines day with a few pictures of Karsen dressed for the holiday, so at least there's that for him.

Though we didn't get as much snow as they predicted, we are in for a few days of frigid temperatures this coming week. Middle of February so I'm holding on to the fact that spring is on the way.

3/3 Hooray, spring is just around the corner!! I've been hearing the springtime birds chirping in the early morning as I am starting to wake up and the weather the past few days have given us a hint of warmer weather to come. Tomorrow is supposed to be a nasty cold, wet day, but . . . . we will be leaving for our short trip to Arizona with Jenny & Brandon (and Jesse) to visit Allie for a few days. I hope it will be a fun-filled few days even though the weather won't be "Arizona-like"; aka: not swim weather. Connie will be spending most of her time here with the furry crew while we're gone and when we return will be taking Piper home (across the street) with her since she will be the one showing Piper when she is old enough. That leaves us with just one extra, Penny. Still waiting on her forever family to find her. . . .

In other news, it seems that Matt will need to have his second toe removed due to infection in the bone. He spent the weekend in the hospital getting IV antibiotics; this morning I saw something on his "My Chart" about a toe removal, so I am assuming they made that decision since I saw him yesterday. I will be going up to see him this morning for more information; last I heard they would likely be sending him back to Montclair sometime today.

The other day Beth texted me a few pictures and a short video of Karsen. Almost two months old and from the photos/video, I could see that he is getting much more expressive and adorable. I've been wanting to talk with Beth (about Emily's lack of communication), so I asked her to give me a call. From that conversation, it seems that Emily has depression and anxiety much like her dad, and shockingly Beth said that Emily mentioned thinking I was racist and didn't like Karsen's dad, Lamonte. I have no clue where that is coming from except maybe an excuse for her in not communicating. There is no truth to that so it doesn't make any sense. Beth totally nixed any truth to that to Emily, telling her that I was NOT racist in any way, shape or form. The next day we saw Emily and Karsen when we went to visit with Matt. I felt I needed to tread lightly for a little while, not sure how Emily felt, but after a bit everything seemed to be okay. I did notice though that when a staff member that was holding Karsen asked "who wanted him", Emily was quick to say "Grandpa" even though I was ready to take him. Right away I thought "was this her not wanting me to hold him?", but later assumed it was her wanting Matt to hold him as much as he wanted. Luckily Matt said no he did not want to right then, so I did get to take him. And OMG, right away I noticed how much heavier he had gotten!!! He is such a beautiful, adorable baby boy; the love was just flowing. I felt there were little hearts all around my head as I held him. Emily mentioned while we were there about agreeing to a baby shower soon, so hopefully plans for that will get underway soon. She did not know at this point that Beth and I had discussed that the other day when I talked to her.

3/8 We have been gone and are back home now from our short trip to Arizona to visit Allie. It was a good time even without weather warm enough for swimming. Our Airbnb was nice and gave us the opportunity to eat a couple of dinners at "home". When not there we were . . . at a NBA basketball game (Phoenix Suns - Jesse's fav team), grocery run to stock up on food, snacks, and drinks, hiking in rock hills???/mountains??? at Papago Park/Desert Botanical Garden, a visit to Arizona Boardwalk where we went through an aquarium and Illusion exhibit and candy shoppe, and on our last day went to a spring training baseball game, then on to Old Town Scottsdale for sights and dinner. It was a fun-filled trip in which one of my favorite highlights was seeing and being with a more "alive" Jesse. In all of our years together, Jesse has always been a quiet kid, keeping to himself most often, so seeing him up and about, going places with him, and having him play games with us at the Airbnb was a bonus in this trip. Texts with Connie all the while we were gone kept me in the loop with how things were going with the dogs at home; all went well so no worries there. She did ask if it was odd that one or either of the boys peed on the sofa as it happened a few times while she was here; I told her that a few times seemed unusual and also tipped me off that maybe one of the girls was getting ready to come into heat as I had already been suspecting.

When we got home, all of the dogs seemed glad to see us and I checked the girls right away. I didn't see any sign of impending heat with Dolly even though Oscar was constantly following her around, but definitely it seemed that Amber was starting to swell some, though no sign of bleeding. From what I was seeing the boys were so far showing little to no interest in her. With such interest in Dolly, I am assuming that Amber's heat might once again bring her in earlier than expected; time will tell as I continue to watch both of the girls (AND THE BOYS!) We do NOT want another litter of puppies this time.

Matt has been in the hospital all the while we were gone after having his toe removed last week. He likely would have gotten released sooner but was having nausea issues from the antibiotics he was on post surgery, so had to stay until antibiotics were done and his appetite returned. When talking with him today it seems that NO ONE checked on him while we were gone!!! Before I left I spoke with Beth and she assured me that she would make a point to visit him and if that was not possible, to at least call/facetime with him, as well as trying to get Emily to do the same. I am SO disappointed in them for not doing a darn thing, again especially Emily. There truly is no excuse for her lack of communication with him, and especially nothing while he was in the hospital. It's ridiculous!! Matt is finally getting discharged from the hospital today and I will be happy to see him later. I have no intention to let either Emily or Beth know that he was discharged since they just don't seem to care enough to check on things themselves. UGH!

3/9 Just a quick note that yes, Amber is definitely in heat as I did see the slight tinge of color when checking her this morning. I'm sure that her "day 1" was while we were gone so I will have to use a "guesstimate" date for the start of her second cycle. Again, no puppies this time as we all need a break, but I am looking forward to her next cycle when we will hopefully be having some Amber/Winston OR Oscar puppies!

3/13 Now Oscar has been following Amber around 24/7, poor guy. Winston on the other hand hasn't shown much interest in her. Not sure why that is except maybe being experienced he knows that she is not yet ready to be bred??? I'm using March 6th as her "day 1" guesstimate since we were out of town when she started. This would only put her at day 8 which I assume is still a little early for ovulation. The boys are being kept in belly bands with a close eye on them as well since we do NOT want puppies this time around. So far it doesn't seem that Amber being in heat is bringing Dolly in this time. The boys have shown only a little interest in her, but she is showing no signs of coming in. Good on one point not having the girls cycle together (pregnancy-wise/having two litters together in the future), but it will mean we have to go through two heat cycles & dealing with the boys. Oh well, such is the life of a breeder. Emily started her job working for the housekeeping people at Montclair this week and we got to see her yesterday, but no of course with her working, no seeing Karsen. She stopped over our house later in the evening to "borrow" $$ and we had a nice chance to catch up, but again not the chance to see Karsen. She did mention that she was bringing him to work on Friday, having Matt watch him for her, along with the many residents/workers there to help when needed. That is a day that we will be visiting Matt so we will get to see him then. I went to water aerobics with Jenny again on Tuesday and will again today (Thursday), likely to be a regular routine. Visited with Barb on Monday while I finally gave Camie her much needed bath and groom. Today I have a person coming to visit and meet Penny and the other dogs . . . and me. She messaged me inquiring about Penny; in our conversations she ended up saying she wasn't sure she was quite ready yet and/or that realistically she needed to save up for one of these dogs. The invitation to come visit was in hoping seeing Penny "live" might be a way to have her fall in love with her enough to adopt her but, I'm not holding my breath. She's already filled out the application and from the information there, our conversations via messenger, and looking at her Facebook page, I already feel very comfortable with her as a prospective buyer. I would love for it to work out as Penny is so overly ready for her forever home and needs that one on one attention and training. So, fingers crossed it might work out.

3-15 Well darn, for now the visit from the person inquiring about Penny seems to not have worked. Though she and her mom LOVED Penny and all of the dogs, so far her consensus is that she is maybe not quite ready or not financially able to bring a new puppy home. She has not come right out and said "no", but instead leads me to believe the possibility is still there stating that "she will keep me posted on where she is at with a final decision on Penny". So we are still waiting for now to find her a forever home.

We saw Emily and Karson yesterday and gosh is he ever growing! Not just in weight, but taller/longer too; I think he is going to be a tall boy! So cute and I even got a sleeping smile out of him. Love every chance we have to see and hold him.

Keeping Oscar & Winston away from Amber; she has got to be at the start of her prime time in her heat cycle about now; she has started to flag and flirt with the boys through the gate separating them. Seeing the boys around Dolly is keeping me wondering if she's in heat. She is no where near as swollen as Amber is, but seeing their interest and maybe even a bit of fagging got me thinking that maybe I do remember with her past cycles that she does not swell as much???, so I'm more convinced now that she is in heat. Guess we'd better watch them close as well, because we don't want puppies this time around.

3/21 Happy 22nd Anniversary to Jim and me today and woohoo, first day of spring was yesterday! Winter ended with thunderstorms followed by a blizzard the day before (typical Nebraska weather), but yesterday and today has sunshine and warmer weather melting most of the snow quickly.

Calgon, take me away . . . . please! With Amber and Dolly now in standing heat the last few days it has been almost non stop whining from the two boys and the girls aren't helping by standing at the gates that separate them flagging their rear ends at them. Jim and I are about at our wits end and counting the days for their cycles to be done. By my guess hopefully, maybe this weekend give or take a day or two. I am thankful that the boys are for the most part getting along with just a short squabble or two and the girls, though we keep them mostly separated from each other are fairly okay when together under my watchful eye. They seem more interested in sniffing and flagging even for each other. Continued email conversations with Alyssa Edie, the girl that came to meet Penny leaves me hanging on to a bit of hope, but still . . . . hanging. She has a trip coming up the first week of April and will hopefully let me know after having time to think while she's away. Her heart (especially) and finances seem to be what is holding her back for the most part. I will probably post Penny on Facebook again this weekend to see if I can spark interest from anyone else. At almost 19 weeks old she really needs a home.

3/23 Just saying; the constant whining from the boys is still going strong, for the most part for Dolly though when I let the boys outside with Amber, they (mostly Winston) do still show interest in her, but again mostly worried where Dolly is. It is driving me/us nuts and seems to have been going on for so long!!! According to my guess for their "day 1", the girls are around days 16-18 so probably still have a few days to go before things start to settle down. Then to top things off the other day I was hit with a head cold and have been stuffy, sneezy, and generally feeling like crap. Also, the shingles that showed up on me shortly after returning home from Arizona is MUCH better, but still has lingering stinging/burning pain off and on in the area where the rash broke out (left leg area front & back). The rash is almost gone only with a little lingering scabbing that still needs to clear up. But with all this crap I've been dealing with I just don't have the energy or gumption to do anything, yet still would love to get out of the house just to get away from the dogs for a while. Instead, I spend part of the time in the bedroom with Dolly for a little peace and quiet (at least quieter than if we were out with the boys).

Not sure what's going on in my mind these days, could be my mood with how I've been feeling, but I find myself not very excited about upcoming dog shows. Seward, Ne show is already planned and entered and originally I was telling Connie that it would be nice to get to one or two others before that one for practice for Amber & Oscar since it's been 5 months since they've shown last. We finally decided to go to one in Mason City IA, though I dragged my feet entering just not feeling like bothering with it. Why?, I've been asking myself . . . . My mood with the craziness in the house is certainly not helping and still having that extra pup here (Penny) is not helping either. Other thoughts going through my head; wanting to get Oscar to his Champion title so that I can find him a new home. Though I would like to use him on Amber for her first litter I really don't need or want two males here. Truthfully, I've also been thinking the end of all of this is imminent; not so much close, but just finishing up with the dogs I have and then calling it a day. As of now, this would mean showing Amber to her GCH title, Oscar to his CH title, and not to forget Piper, now living across the street with Connie. The plan is to show her to her CH and maybe GCH title and breed her as well. We will have to see how that goes as so far I am still wondering if she will get to a good breeding size. After CH/GCH titles are earned, then breed Amber (and possibly Piper) until they reach retirement, or sooner if I find myself having had enough. We will see. Maybe it's the girls in heat and the boys going nuts getting to me and having more dogs in the house than I'd like that is making me think all of this, OR maybe 15 years of living my dream is getting close to enough. Time will tell.

3/26 Thank goodness, we finally have relief!! On this what would be my estimated day 18-ish of Dolly's heat cycle the interest from the boys has let up and we are back to some normalcy. Thank the Lord!!!

4/2/25 Another new month already, the month when dog shows for the year will begin. Connie and I will be heading to Mason City Ia the weekend of April 19-20. Entries close today so will soon find out if we're the only ones being there or if maybe Valerie might also be there with one or two of Kathy's dogs. It is Easter weekend so that might be keeping people home. There were 3 Biewers there last year which I assume was Valerie. I'm going mostly just to give Amber and Oscar a practice run before the shows in May closer to home with more competition. I am wondering though if Oscar will have the same issue as Connie had with Finn, being the only male showing offering little to no points for automatic placements. Piper has been living with Connie since the beginning of March, which is/was the plan but I sure do miss having feeding and weight management control as well as regular show-like pictures with her. Knowing Connie I feel that Piper is not being primped & primed for show life likely spending most of their time lying around at home. Yesterday we both went with Piper and Amber to get their rabies shots and Connie came over with Piper wearing a harness vest and leash! WTH!??!! I told her if anything she should have put her on a lead to seemingly no avail. At the vet, Piper weighed in at just 4 lbs (possibly a tad more as the scale was fluctuating), but in any case less than I would have hoped. (Proving again my wish of more control of her diet). Piper did seem maybe a bit taller so hopefully she is growing up and will fill out later.

Connie and I will be heading to Mason City IA Easter weekend (April 18-20) for our first dog show of the year. I look forward to it mostly just to get out of this house for a while. 5 dogs is too much for me anymore, especially with Dolly constantly trying to show dominance over Amber and once in a while even Winston & Oscar will have a scuffle. I again really think that

having a puppy (Penny) around being feisty keeps everyone on edge. And yes, Penny is still here. I've had a few inquiries on her but no takers just yet. I'm still hoping to hear back from Alysen Edie (the girl from Lincoln) when she gets back from New York after the first week of April and hoping she will adopt her. But if not I do also have one other possible option in a lead from a lady that messaged me on Facebook. I'm pretty sure she lives here in Omaha and seems very interested but cash is tight for her. But in our last conversation she told me to get back with her after I speak with Alysen if she does not adopt Penny, so hopefully one of these two ladies will be Penny's forever family. In family news, nothing much and/or more of the same. Jim and I do nothing but sit home . . . . BORING! We visit with Matt every other day; he is doing okay but on more than one occasion he's mentioned being not happy. . . . with the place, with his issues . . . but otherwise deals with life as best he can. We get to see Emily when we visit which is nice, but she looks SO tired. She's said that Karsen has started teething which keeps her up at night a bit and I hope that's all it is. I talk with Kristen often enough; she and Gage are doing good. We most often see Jenny & Brandon; this past weekend was Brandon's 41st birthday and after giving Skye a spa day treatment on Saturday, we then met them at Ralston Keno for dinner. Yes, I DO have another son, but gosh I never hear from John unless it's me that calls or texts. It's been about another month now (I texted him to let him when we left for Arizona), with not a word from him since. It hurts/bothers me that he doesn't at least check in with me once or twice a month. He does remind me of myself, how I didn't call my mom as often as I could/should have, but it was only because my life is boring and I had nothing much to say. I did talk to her more often than John does to me though. I believe that is the case with John and I; he is on the quiet side and work and family is his life. But still as I always remind him, a text or call just to say hi, how are you, what's new, just to let me know he's thinking of me is all I need.

4/5/25 Just a quickie post; first and foremost poor Matt is in the hospital again. This past week he's had two episodes of hypoglycemia (that I know of) and the one yesterday morning required a call to 911. They ended up admitting him to try and figure out why the lows are happening so often. He also has another infection starting in his third toe, so hopefully getting antibiotics while being in the hospital will take care of that so he doesn't have to lose another toe. Yesterday afternoon when I saw him he said the nurse said he might also have a UTI. Both that and the infection could be affecting his blood sugar levels some. Not sure how long they will keep him there but certainly through the weekend. We will visit with him today before having to go to a family wedding (Gina Marchio) later on. The numbers are up for the dog show in Mason City, IA. Looks like there will be just one other Biewer there with Oscar and Amber. Amber is the only Champion so no chance of "beating a CH" as needed 3X for a GCH title, Oscar is the only male so no points for his automatic BOS, and the other entry is a class bitch. Assuming Amber gets BOB, she will at least gain 2 points each day if I'm not mistaken.

4/11 Matt was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday. So far so good and we have a meeting set up at Montclair on the 16th with the rep from Beta Bionics to give the staff there some official training on how the insulin pump works to hopefully ward off so many extreme lows. Yesterday we (finally) had the pleasure of babysitting for KARSEN while Emily was at work. Just a bit nervous about it as it's been a LONG time since we've had a baby around for any length of time, but the day went way smoother than I thought it might be. Karsen was such a good baby all day long and it was such a joy to see him smile and hear him cooing his little baby noises. There was not once that he was cranky; even when he was tired . . . . he just fell asleep. We had his car seat so took him up to Montclair to visit with Grandpa Matt (and mommy too). We had Gage with us all day too, and he was very helpful as he loves babies! No doubt not every day with Karsen is as smooth and cranky baby free as yesterday, but I would be happy to watch him from time to time. UGH: still no forever family for Penny. A few nibbles but no takers. It's obvious that 5 dogs is too many for us in this house; one of the reasons that I wish Penny's forever family would find her. As things are I'm not even really able to enjoy the dogs much; their barking is getting to me and is ridiculous. At this point I'm even looking forward to finishing Oscar and finding another home for him. However, with impending shows coming up I'm also wondering about how fast . . . or more so, slow he will attain his AKC Champion title. The problem will be either no competition for him OR that any competition will beat him. IDK, he can look nice when I get him stacked nice on the table, but I'm iffy about how his movement looks; tail set, topline, etc. Right now I'm not very optimistic about either him or Amber. Most all of the shows we go to will have the same dogs showing and for whatever reason I'm leery about them doing well against the others. I hope it's just my insecurity getting the best of me, but I don't know; I guess we'll find out next month. We will be going to Mason City, IA this weekend for a practice run. There is only one other class bitch entered with Amber and Oscar (if she shows up) so no points for Oscar and IF Amber is BOB, maybe 2 pts each day for her. But again, this is more of just a practice run to see how they both perform after no shows for the last 5-6 months.

4/22 Our first weekend of shows for 2025 is in the books and proved my suspicion that both Amber and especially Oscar still need much improvement. Amber showed her normal way of wanting to walk to fast and not holding her tail up as it should be; I wish I could figure out what I need to do to get her to hold it up. She carries it well over her back at home so obviously something about the show ring atmosphere is causing it. She has such a spunky personality it surprises me that the show atmosphere makes her act this way. It always seems that she calms down and improves a little bit on the second day, but still not what she could be. Oscar performed awful!!! The first day I had Connie take him in and with her not feeling the greatest which no doubt affected Oscar's performance and maybe partially to Oscar more comfortable with me on the other end of the lead, he did not walk well at all and was even worse for standing on the table. So on Sunday I decided to take him in and though he did walk fine around the ring, even for me he absolutely would not stand on the table and was not wanting anything to do with the judges examination! This took me totally by surprise; I did not expect that from him at all! I can get him to stand on the grooming table at home and from his past few shows I only remember him leaning away when being examined. He totally wasn't feeling it and I can only assume something was spooking him. Even standing outside the ring waiting to go in, when I bent down to brush his hair he jumped away like he was startled/afraid. The only thing I could think of (after the fact) was that outside the ring was very crowded with ALOT of people, trolleys, and dogs around us waiting for their turn. Other than that, I just don't get it. Hoping he does better in two weeks at the Seward shows. In the end with only 3 Biewers showing, Amber did manage to win BOB/BOBOH placements both days for a total of 4 points. Being the only male there Oscar got BOS for 0 points and acting the way he did, lost the Winners placement to the class bitch that was there. Other than that the trip was just okay. Connie was not feeling well (as often usual for her) which made having her there little to no help and not fun to be around especially on Saturday. Sometimes with her and all of her issues I wonder . . . . . . .

Penny is STILL here and once again with no forever family in sight. All 3 or 4 recent inquiries have fallen through so we're back at square one again. Will try yet another post on Facebook later this week after her bath with new pictures and another video. Coming up on 6 months old I'm about ready to cut her hair shorter and possibly get her spayed. But if I do that I will also have to get her rabies shot done which in turn will mean I have to get her licensed, which I'd rather not do if I don't have to.

I missed seeing any family for Easter, not that the holiday has been anything that our family has gathered for, for quite a few years, which in turn is why I felt it okay to go to the dog show. But I did put a little easter basket together for Karsen and Jim took it to Montclair when he visited Matt with Emily and Karsen visiting as well. Yesterday (Monday) we got to babysit for Karsen and again he was such a good baby. Only a bit fussy one time in the late in the afternoon seeming that maybe he had a gassy stomach. This second time watching him tells me that I definitely need to get a baby seat of some kind for him to sit in as he is getting pretty heavy, not to mention I only have two hands and dogs and other things to tend to during the day. But I love getting to spend time with him now and then.

5/2 Here we are into the month of May, my birthday month! The good old Nebraska weather is still cool with lots of dreary, cloudy and sometimes rainy days. I did finally get one day that I was able to spray paint some of the outdoor furniture and decor and also put up a decorative fence surrounding the patio. It turned out just as I had hoped; perfect height (24 inches) and a bit more decorative and much nicer looking than the wire dog pens we were temporarily using. I'm very happy with it. I will be out of town for the weekend and hope to get my garden planted and hopefully some flowers next week weather permitting. The vegetable seeds I started indoors are definitely ready to go outside!

Dog show in Seward, NE this weekend with a total of 8 Biewers. Amber is the only Champion showing and I'm hoping she will show like one and not be beat by one of the other class dogs/bitches showing. Oscar has one other class male for competition; we'll see how he does . . . . . praying that his very poor showing in Mason City was a just a fluke. I KNOW he did not do that in the shows last year. Connie and I will be leaving for Seward today; this will also be Piper's first time showing in a 4-6 month Beginner puppy show. There will also be a sanctioned B match she can take part in for added practice. I hope both Piper and Connie do well.

5/5 The show in Seward was not what I hoped, but was as I expected. With 7-8 Biewers showing there was 5 point majors to be won for BOB, but Amber had to settle for Select placement both days, losing to class bitches both days as well. I could say the only highlight for her win on the second day was that I believe she achieved one of the 3 "champion defeats" she needs for a GCH title, however at this point I'm not sure I want and more possibly will be able to show her any longer. The "not wanting to" is due to the fact that she just does not show well, and certainly not like a Champion dog should be. With that I only see possible Select placements for her and defeating other Champions difficult. Not to mention that it is just not fun showing her. And then we have Oscar . . . . I am about through showing him as well. He did have one other male competing this weekend and did beat him both days, taking the WD win but lost the BOW to the WB both days. He walks what I will call "okay" though skittish with the sounds around him, but his table manners are atrocious!! He will not stand for the judges examination and I've even heard a low growl coming from him as the judge approached on Sunday. Like Amber, it is not fun showing him either, so what's the point. We're supposed to be having fun, right? Well, I'm not. And then there's Connie . . . . OMG! This was Piper's debut into the show scene showing in the 4-6 month Beginner Puppy show on Saturday. Seeing how Piper is maturing I would have high hopes for her doing well. Her topline is as straight as can be, her coloring is good, her tail almost always carried curled over her back as it should be. For her first time in the ring I think she did okay, BUT . . . . . . . Connie needs work, Connie needs confidence, and Connie needs emotional help. My corrections on what she needs to remember to do, what she should work on seem only to be heard, but not taken to heart. She coddles Piper too much and yes treats her more like a pet than training her for show. So, sure enough, the first 2/3 of the weekend were okay, but by midday on Sunday as we waited for our turn to go into NOHS Toy group, I saw her mood change. At one point when she started to walk Piper, and as I saw her "just walking her" I told her to walk her like a show dog (keeping her head up, lead taut). Instead, she turned around and came back and as I continued explaining how to hold the lead, she put Piper back in the trolly and said, "I'm just not going to walk her at all", and then headed outside (I assume to pout). The ride home was quiet for the most part with some conversation half way home. She was depressed I think, and I was frustrated with her. About an hour after getting settled at home I noticed a text from her telling me she thinks Piper needs to come back to me, she didn't think she should show, she was going to wreck Pipers chances at doing well, she is better at being a pet mom. Truthfully . . . . . I think she is right, but still I tried to convince her to keep trying but it doesn't sound like she will. I did tell her that I can't take Piper back until I find a home for Penny and that she needs to fulfill her obligation to show Piper in Lincoln in two weeks, which she said yes to. But thinking about it all again this morning, I'm contemplating coming up with an excuse not to go at all. I'm not looking forward to spending another weekend with her in her moods, nor as mentioned do I enjoy showing Amber or Oscar. There will be plenty of Biewers there that even without us, I believe major wins will be attainable for those that are there. We'll see what I end up doing. To sum in up, all of this is yet another sign that my show/breeding career is nearing it's end. At this point my thoughts are to be done showing for now, and find a home for Penny and Oscar for sure. Assuming Piper comes back home maybe I will keep her, show her(?), and breed her when the time comes. Contemplating this morning on being done breeding Dolly rather than letting her have one more litter, and finding her a home (with Jenny & Brandon?). I prefer not to have 3 females in the house; the two now always have to be watched for fights. Even if I'm not showing I will keep Amber and possibly Piper for breeding until they or I have had enough.

5/6 Another day and the story continues with a twist. Not unexpected, I got a text from Connie last night changing her tune, saying her mood is better now and would like to come over and talk later today. I pretty much assumed this would happen as this is what she does going back and forth about what she wants to do, etc, blah, blah, blah. . . . . So we'll see later what she has to say.

I was so focused on how the dogs did at the show on my last post that I forgot to mention that I played the good guy and broke the silence between Kathy and I. Our grooming spot was right next to Kathy's and with both Connie and Christine making conversation with her (as well as with past shows) I was feeling as usual uncomfortable being around her as well as feeling a bit left out. So, when her class bitch got BOB over Amber on Saturday, I broke the ice and congratulated her in the ring while waiting for the judge to hand out the ribbons, to which she nicely replied "thank you". After that the wall started to come down and we continued to have little conversations throughout the rest of the weekend. I was very surprised that even after I was home she messaged me on Facebook telling me that she thought Oscar may have gotten a 3 pt major for his BOS wins, though unfortunately that was not the case. But at least now I can go to shows and not feel so tense or uncomfortable around her, which will be a big relief."

My fingers are crossed once again in hopes of having a home for Penny. A past Heartland family member (Brenda Stairt) messaged me about her neighbor looking for a puppy and she had shown pics and videos of Penny to her. The issue may be is that the lady has allergies, so they would like to have a test overnight stay with Penny to see if she has allergic reactions to her. If it goes well, Brenda thinks it would be a good match. A family of 3 with a 4 yr old girl that lives right across the street from Brenda. The lady (Katie Troutman) messaged me to which I sent a reply this morning; waiting for her to get back to me to set up a trial run. Fingers crossed tightly and prayers for this to be the one!!!

5/14 Once again, still no home for Penny. The overnight trial run proved futile; the lady said she did have a small allergic reaction having Penny there but said she thought a breed like this was probably her best option. Supposedly she is going to start a series of shots that is supposed to control her allergies and "maybe sometime she would be back for a pup in the future". We'll see. After that disappointment I once again posted Penny on my Facebook page. The usual "so cute, I wish" comments came through and a few friends shared my post. I did get a couple of inquiries but one was a no thank you and the other lady can't afford higher than $1,200. I told her to give me a while longer to let my post ride for a bit then as a last resort I MIGHT let her go at that ridiculous price. Meanwhile I got an emailed application for a male and after replying that I only had Penny, the person did ask about her. I have replied to that and am currently waiting on her answer. So the wait continues . . . . . . . My Mother's Day was a good one! A nice visit between just Matt and I at the facility in the morning/lunchtime where I was able to get a nice picture of the two of us. When I got home from there, the rest of the family was already arriving for a cook out. Even Emily and Karsen came so John & Crisler and Jenny and Brandon finally got to meet him. It was a fun day and the first big family get together like that in a long time which made it even better.

5/19 Good news coming back from the dog show weekend in Lincoln, NE. Placing Select Bitch over two other specials both Saturday and Sunday along with 5 point majors both days, Amber earned her AKC Grand Champion title!!! Thank the Lord!!! It's not just the title that is exciting, but also what a relief for me to know that I don't need to show her anymore if I choose not to. This girl has been so challenging and frustrating to show because of how she just would not walk like she should in the ring. I really believe the reason for this is because of her overly active personality; that and I didn't really know how to train her to slow down her walk and/or to hold her tail up as she does so beautifully at home. So, I am definitely leaning strongly that her show career will be finished, but also wondering if she will be needed to add points for Oscar and/or Piper at shows. I would really just prefer to leave her home. Showing her is stressful, so just not very fun. Oscar did much better with his table manners, improving but still not as he should be. I'm hoping the more shows he goes to the more relaxed he will get about the table exam. I work with him at home, but home is not the same as being in the ring. There were 2 other males there this weekend; he lost the BOS win the first day, but did get it on Sunday, earning him I think 1 or 2 points. Piper is doing well learning what it takes to be a show dog and I still believe she has MUCH potential. Connie is learning right along with her and also improved this week in showing her. With time, growth/maturity in Piper, and patience I think they should do well. There were a total of 11 Biewers showing; my 3, 2 with Christine, and the remaining were Kathy's dogs with herself, Valerie, and a new girl Autumn that bought a boy from her. Christine's two girls got BOB both days leaving Kathy's dogs no points for the weekend. Alyson Edie and her mom (the people from Lincoln that came to see Penny in April) did come watch the Biewers show both days this weekend, but my hopes that Alyson would change her mind about Penny since she was still available were to no avail. She still says she's not quite ready and uncertain. I have a feeling that she may be debating on getting another Chinese Crested sometime rather than a Biewer or other breed.

5/21 Today is the day; Penny is finally leaving for her forever home!! With no other interest in Penny since last week I decided it was time to let her go at a greatly reduced price. So I messaged the lady I spoke with last week (a friend of Lisa Dawn-Miller) that lives here in town and told her that I would let her adopt Penny for half the cost of the average fee. Lisa gave her rave reviews of being a good person and dog mom. She has an older cockapoo as well as a younger Shi-chon mix, so Penny will have a friend to play with. She says she enjoys having two dogs and with the cockapoo getting older she thought it was time to get another. I am relieved that Penny finally has a place to go and think this new home will be a good fit for her. 5/22 Oh my gosh, I am so happy with Penny's new mom! I only knew her from our messages on Facebook and her adoption application, and with Lisa Miller's recommendation of her I just figured she would make a good home for Penny. But after sitting with her for a while when she came to pick Penny up yesterday there's no doubt that Penny is in a loving home and will be loved and well cared for. Julie (Kramer is her name) was instantly smitten with her which . . . . how can anyone not be with any Biewer puppy. She is going to change Penny's name to Bella, because all of the dogs in her family have always had names starting with "B", and to hopefully make the transition to her new name easier she said she was going to start with calling her Bella-Penny and then gradually drop off the penny. Great idea!!! Julie described her life, how she takes care of her dogs, her yard, vet visits, past dogs she's owned; everything was just what I hope for in finding forever homes. When she got home she sent me a photo and note that both of her other dogs were already getting to know Penny and all was going well. What more could I ask for . . . . . . . . .

5/23 Lordy!!! I have been checking the AKC website since last week (at least) to see proof that Amber did get credit for a "champion defeated" at the show in Seward on May 4th. I was hoping to see it before the show in Lincoln last weekend, but on that Friday they were only up to April 30th. So I though surely on Monday this week I would see what I was waiting for. But no; it wasn't until Wednesday that they finally updated to May2nd, yesterday the 3rd finally showed up which at least brought us to the Saturday show in Seward, but this morning it has not changed to the day I've been waiting for!!! They are so, SO slow updating their records! I'm hoping that the date will change later today to reflect on May 4th because if not, it being Friday I'm going to have to wait until Monday. Both excited and a bit nervous to see the points because I'm not 100% sure on if a Select placement (winning over another special) is actually a CH defeated. It makes sense to me that it is and others have said so as well, but I need to see in in print to relax and know that Amber really does have her GCH title and that I don't have to show her anymore.

5/25 Thankfully at the last minute on Friday AKC got their website updated and the points for the show in Seward on Sunday (5/4) were posted. NOW I can rest easy waiting for the Lincoln points to be posted after proof that yes, earning a Select placement over another "special" does indeed give you credit for a champion defeated. Even with just the Seward shows counted, Amber already has the 25 points and 3 major wins (she has 4) needed for her GCH title, so we are only waiting for the two CH defeats she achieved in Lincoln to see her GCH title added to her name on AKC's website to make it truly official. Weird how just a couple of months ago I was fretting over thinking that with the way Amber was not walking like a Champion that she may never get her GCH title. Ha ha; proof in point that I do over react a bit and get stressed out, but the frustration about the way she was showing was also getting the best of me. I have definitely decided not to show her any more but am in no hurry right now to cut her hair; it is silky enough that it's not hard to maintain for the time being. Next up for Amber will be her first litter of pups hopefully on her next heat cycle which could be as soon as sometime in September if she continues her 6-ish month cycles. It is Memorial Day weekend and we've got really crappy weather making outdoor plans difficult with chances of rain forecasted every day, cloudy skies and temps in the 60's!!! Certainly not swimming weather either. What a bummer for anyone hoping to have sunny skies and/or outings that would normally include water fun. Penny (now Bella) has been in her new home for a few days now and I hear things are going great. Both of her new "brothers" are easily bonding with her and she with them, and her new mommy adores her. She posted the announcement of getting a new puppy on Facebook with her good news and pictures. Since Penny left a new calm was almost immediately obvious in the house having that one less dog/puppy around. No doubt the calm is at least partially the sense of relief in me that she finally has a new home. But also noticeably a lot more quiet without her and Oscar's wrestling and I do believe also a few less "accidents" found around the house. More often than not they use the potty pads well; it's only the boys lifting their legs to anything in where we find the "accidents".

5/30 The pasts few days or so I have been feeling like I needed a "Piper fix" as I put it, I think due mostly because I had been updating the records I keep on my dogs this past week, and with Piper not living here with me that is not easy to do with her. I had been updating their binders with the photos to go with the ribbons from our most recent shows which got me to realize that almost 7 months old I had no idea what Piper's weight was at this point. The last weight I had known her to be was almost 2 months ago at a vet visit for her rabies shot and she was right around 4 lbs. I texted Connie asking if she could stop by with Piper to visit and so that I could get a weight on her. I was happy to find out that at almost 7 months old Piper is just shy of 5 pounds weighing 4 lb 14 oz. This made me confident that by the time she is able to be bred she will likely be in the perfect breeding weight window of 6 lbs. Hooray & fingers crossed this holds true!

6/2 New month, new (older) me. 71 years old as of May 31st; my birthday was a good one. Had Godfathers lunch at the facility with Matt; John & DK joined us as well. After that, Jim and I met up with Jenny & Brandon at Westgate pool for swimming in the afternoon (yes, the weather was finally cooperating), followed by a cook out at their house after, where all of a sudden it got quite chilly. Of course I also did hear from Kristen earlier in the day; with so many other things already planned, we decided to celebrate together on Sunday. She picked me up around 9am on Sunday and we went to breakfast at a place called Saddle Creek Breakfast Club (on Pacific St) and then walked around the Farmers Market at Aksarben where she bought me a new key chain that I was planning to buy myself. Later in the day on Sunday, we went to John & Crisler's for dinner. One more birthday celebration planned with my sisters this week on Wednesday; dinner at Blue Sushi and then on to Andrea's for dessert, gifts & games. Side note; after seeing Westgate pool up close we decided to go ahead and get a membership. I'm thinking we will get lots of use out of it.

6/6 After a yummy and fun night with my sisters two nights ago, my birthday celebrations are done. Celebrating for both mine and Dodie's birthdays, we started out with dinner at Baby Blue Sushi, which was delicious and different than we've ever done., then on to Andrea's home for gifts, more food and dessert, and fun. This years' birthday was a fun one, maybe even better than last year when I turned the big 7-0.

FINALLY, AKC has their records up to the dates including the show in Lincoln 3 weeks ago and Amber is now listed with her GCH CH title before her name. With that I assume her certificate should be coming in the mail before too long. Big sigh of relief not having to show her anymore as it was more work than it was fun. I think I got really spoiled with the ease and success showing Winston. I know without a doubt that Amber would have had her title(s) much faster if she would have just slowed down, relaxed, and walked in the ring like she was supposed to, because she is otherwise beautiful and a good representation of the breed. Now she can stay home while we wait for her next heat cycle and hopefully have her first litter of pups with Winston, and hopefully give me my next show pup! Meanwhile I will continue to show Oscar, hoping it will not take too long. He has 9 of the 15 points needed, but none of the 3 major wins. Not totally his fault at this point, as his competition has been slim to none. However, as beautiful as he is, he doesn't show very well either, so I'm afraid that he may not win when he does have competition. Even when he did earn winners dog placements, he was always beat out for Best of Winners by the winners bitch. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

We've got a weekend of graduation parties coming up; one for a great nephew and the other for Kayleigh. Emily and I have discussed ways to get Matt to Kayleigh's party, so hopefully he will is able to be there.

6/17 Not a lot going on lately except for a whole lot of swimming! The weather has finally warmed up with more summer-like temps and between swim days with the sisters at Mark & Karen's pool and swimming at our neighborhood Westgate pool, it's a surprise I haven't turned into a fish. Both pools are heated so even days when the temps are lower or cloudier than I prefer, the water still feels good. We used Z-Trip to get Matt to and from Kayleigh's graduation party and he was definitely happy to be able to be there. We will use them again this coming weekend to get him to Emily's baby shower. Beth, Jenny, Kristen, and I met up at DJ's Dugout to finalize plans for the shower last week; even still I am starting to get a bit stressed as I always have as the party gets closer . . . . do we have everything, is it enough, will we have a good turn out.. . . . ??? I'm sure it will be fine.

With the shower this weekend I will be missing the dog show in West Burlington, IA, but Connie is going and will show Piper. Tammy R will be there with her two "special" girls and there will be one other class female as competition for Piper. I hope Piper and Connie do well. The next show after that is in Ottumwa, IA the weekend of the 27th of June. I had entered Oscar and intended to go to this one BUT, as it turns out niece Julie invited the "aunts" to a day at her lake house on the 27th. No question about it, even with show entries already paid for, a day at Julie's lake house wins over going to a dog show. Connie is going to the Ottumwa show and has agreed to take Oscar with her in return for Jim and I to watch Finn & Lexie while she's gone.

6-23 This past weekend was a busy one. We finally celebrated the arrival of almost 6 month old Karsen with his baby shower yesterday. After all of the preparations and my usual bit of fretting over it all as the day drew near, the shower went great; hall decor up and ready before the guests started arriving, food was good and plenty of it, and a great turn out of family & friends. Once again we used Z-trip so that Matt could be there and I know he appreciates being able to finally join some family festivities and just to get away from the facility for a while.

The weekend was also a dog show weekend for Connie, with Piper. At almost 8 months old Piper is maturing as nicely as I thought she would and currently weighs just over 5 lbs. with plenty of room to fill out a bit more. I am confident that she will top out at least at 6 lbs as a grown adult. With only a handful of shows under her belt, Piper is still learning. I was told that she walked beautifully both days but being on the table needs more work. In fact, on the first day (Saturday) the judge dismissed her from the ring because of her table manners. After hearing the full account of how it went from Connie, I believe it was more a matter of an impatient, grumpy judge, almost seeming that he may have even been a bit fearful. . . . of Piper??? Certainly impatient for sure; with a 7 1/2 month old puppy that has had very little ring experience kindness and patience is needed and expected in my opinion. Even Tammy Ryker who was also at this show told me the judge was a crabby old man. Connie said Piper was a little better on Sunday and that judge was kind, talking to Piper as she did the table examination. Night and day in judges personalities for sure.

The rest of this previous week was continued with almost daily swimming, either at Mark & Karen's pool or Westgate pool. This coming Friday is our day at Julie's lake house and all of us sisters are looking forward to it, praying that any chances of rain move out before the day gets here.

Today (Monday) I went with Terri and got my very first (and not last) shellac manicure. I plan to continue regularly with them as I've always thought my nails were ugly and I am not good at giving myself manicures.

A little side note that within the past few weeks serious talk about getting a date set for Jenny & Brandon's wedding! With Allie in town for the summer this is the perfect time to get it all done and as it happens, Amanda a friend of Jenny's that joins us at the pool regularly is a great "take charge" kind of person and is raring to go, already having contacted a venue for pricing, catering, etc. Latest date choice is sometime in September . . . . . . . more info to come.

6-30 Well, what a difference a week makes; different dog show, different judges, whatever the case may be. This past weekend Connie was again at a dog show (without me) with Piper and Oscar. It turned out that there were only 3 Biewers showing, Piper, Oscar, and Rocket a Biewer bred by my friend Christine. He just turned 1yr and with Piper being younger and having seen him before & comparing him with Oscar, I totally expected him to be the top winner out of the three. What an unexpected surprise when it was PIPER that won best of breed both Saturday and Sunday!! Connie was so excited and I was thrilled. Unfortunately (but as I expected) Rocket did beat Oscar both days for WD and best of opposite. Oscar definitely has prettier head coloring than Rocket does, (Rocket's face not very pretty at all IMO), but I still say that Rocket does has better structure and movement. Hopefully I can get Oscar to improve and get his CH title; we will see. His next show is mid July in St Joe, MO.

OMG, what a treat we sisters/aunts had at Julie's lake house (as we always do)! After a off and on rainy week, Friday (lake day) was warm & sunny, perfect for the lake. All of the usual yummy snacks, floaties, boat ride, a delicious dinner and desserts were there for us, even games and prizes! Julie is so sweet to share her home with us each year; we are truly blessed. It's the end of June already; coming up this week is more swimming at Mark & Karen's and/or Westgate pool, 4th of July fun at the Westgate pool with cookout & fireworks at Jenny & Brandon's in the evening, a couple of sister's birthday dinners, belated for Andrea and Barb's upcoming, and who knows what else. With all of these seemingly almost non stop swimming days, I can almost say I need a break! What . . . . . did I just say that!!??!

7/4 Happy 4th of July! Plans today including first visiting with Matt, then later fun at the pool and on to Jenny & Brandon's for fireworks in the evening. Should be a fun day. Yesterday morning Emily texted me asking if I could take her to the ER; again she was having sharp stomach pains and vomiting which had been going on, this time since 4 am. They ended up admitting her for more definitive tests as the ultra sound tests they did in the ER was inconclusive about it being the gall bladder. I hope and pray that today brings an answer and easy, definite fix for her. After leaving the hospital when Beth got there I decided to be brave and go for another manicure all by myself at the place that Mary Jane goes to after hearing her describe how hers were done. Thankfully they were able to take me as a walk-in, something they don't usually do, and I got my nails done by the same lady that MJ does. What a difference in quality of work and an explanation as to why my shellac manicure had started chipping so early after I had gotten it done . . . . . I have thin nails and was advised that for the manicure to last longer I needed acrylic nails. I like them but am still getting used to the look of longer, manicured nails since I'm used to my plain, short, ugly nails. I think it is something that I will continue. . .

We are watching Levy for a few days for Kristen while she and Gage are visiting friends in Texas. The dogs are so far handling the fireworks going off outside without to much stress though they do spend almost all the time inside. It's been too hot to spend much time outside lately anyway.

We sisters went out to REFS sports bar for Andrea's belated birthday dinner then on to Duffy's house for games, gifts, and dessert. It was a good time.

7/7 Oh boy; so Emily ended up not staying at the hospital as she should have the other day blaming the nurses/staff of being uncaring and rude. I believe it was more to the fact that she did not want to be there and maybe at the time was feeling "okay" to go. But sure enough, yesterday she texted me again asking if I could take her to the ER with the same pain and vomiting. I ended up staying with her as Beth was busy with working on her move to a new home. Little did I know I would end up being at the ER until almost 9pm! Even though throughout most of the day we were hearing the same "not convinced" the issues were totally her gallbladder, and with that Emily's hopes/plan was to work with GI doctors out-patient, when it was finally almost time to be discharged a doctor came in and told her/us that some of the tests did show chances of things going worse and said that it would be wiser to be admitted and have her gallbladder removed in the morning. Hallelujah, finally!!! So yes, that will happen this morning at 11am.