New arrival, Chase, Becky

Victoria will go to the attending vet and get her new puppy this morning if all goes well. He is a mix of some sort and if he grows into his paws will be a big dog. Mama and Victoria are fixated on having a baby anything around. I suppose we could chalk it up to therapy for both of them. I do not think it has proven less expensive than saving the pup we recently lost, but I think this dog has a greater chance of proving useful to us in the future – providing his home is on the farm.


I found an ad yesterday out of Wichita Falls, TX offering Great Pyrenees pups for $125 each. Since the last breeder Mama spoke to was offering them at the bargain basement price of $600 I showed the ad to Mama. She immediately called and found out that there are sixteen puppies in the brood and the parents are on the premises. The owner has a small farm where he raises goats. The large dogs have been raised with his goat herd and they have proven very effective in discouraging predators. The man suggested Mama get two pups to increase the dog’s ability to watch the property, but with Victoria’s dog and one Great Pyrenees I think we should be fine.

One trick to keeping them vigilant is to never allow them inside the house. The year and a half old Great Pyrenees that we saw here in Amarillo has been totally spoiled by the foster owner. The lady at the adoption display told us that he sits by the back door and whines whenever he is let outside. That is not the outcome we are looking for. Whether or not Mama will allow that to happen is another question altogether.

Chase should be going to take his driving test this morning. He is going to do fine whether he passes or not this morning. I am of the opinion that failure often produces more profitable and lasting results than passing the first try. It may be humbling to have to retake a test but it will always solidify the answers in your memory – especially the ones you got wrong the first time.

I remember a test I took as a final exam in a College Prep chemistry course. The test was one hundred questions long and I missed only one. To this day is can tell you what the question asked and the answer I should have given. That happened in 1974. I am sure I missed questions on tests other than that, but that one really stuck with me even though I made the highest grade in the class. Chase blew his last driving test by exceeding the speed imit. Guess what he focuses on now? As far as I am concerned, it was a good failure.

Victoria will be going to the farm with us this coming Sunday afternoon. She has Monday off and she wants to help Mama select a pup from the Great Pyrenees brood. She will bring the pup back to Amarillo and Mama will keep it until Christmas, I expect. We are planning a longer time at the farm during Thanksgiving, but I do not know if we will station the pups there until Victoria is there to care for and train them. She is still wrestling with the timing of going to the farm. I, personally, am in favor or her going in the spring unless she can get a transfer to the Wal-mart there before that. She is weighing the options and fending off Grandma’s urgent requests and not so subtle guilt trips.

Becky is home now and seems to be enjoying it. I do not know if she has found work yet, but I know she is looking. Please keep her and Charles in your prayers.