Mama Always ~ L.A. Brown, Author

It has definitely been a banner year for me, well, me, Chris and Andrea. We came off of 2011 with the loss of our beloved Aussie, Draco in November to foster a soldier's dog in January. Angel was not allowed to go home to Korea (where she was born) with her family who was being relocated there because she lacked a blood titer. We fostered her for two and a half months, getting her the necessary titer and shots; getting the proper sized kennel and finally getting the necessary passage and escort to get home. We could not have done it without the help of many friends and their friends and of course, United Airlines who waived the normal fees to get her home to her soldier and family. My many thanks to Sandra, Janet, Christopher, the Air Race family, James Bear Branch Animal Hospital and Home Again for getting her back to her family. I am sure that there were so many, many more who were in the background that helped with this endeavor, God knows who you are and I'm sure that He ...

...and since it's still not quite over, I don't doubt that there are still a few surprises waiting around the corner. I must admit, when we came into this year, all I was really expecting was my new baby granddaughter who was due in March, right around her sister's first birthday. Soooo, little Cutie Patootie made us wait an entire week for her arrival, which pretty much means that we have been suckered into being at her whim probably for the rest of our lives. All she has to do is bat those baby browns, turn up the side of her mouth ever so slightly and I'm giving away the farm. Sis has that ability, too, but she doesn't have it quite down pat as the Little One. I'm doomed to be a pauper. Of course, the first statement is just a bit misleading, because as some of you may know, we were also fostering a soldier's dog until we could get her home to Korea. With a lot of help from friends and United Airlines, Angel got home to her family in February. That wa...

I had to smile this morning as I looked outside at the pouring rain. At least I don't have to water today, or tomorrow, or possibly even the next day from the looks of things. Rain now, sends me a mixed bag of emotions. Sometimes I look out and I see a big old Australian Shepherd hunkered down on the couch or some remote corner of the house refusing to step foot outside. That boy was not afraid of anything, except getting his paws wet. We were convinced that he believed for all its worth that he would melt if he were to get his paws wet. On the off chance that it was one of those days that he chose to run from us instead of allowing gravity to assume the full brunt of his 45 pounds and sticking to the floor like Velcro, when he was caught, he would be dragged to the back door and unceremoniously tossed out into the rain where he gingerly tip-toed to the least wet place in the yard, did his business and high-tailed it back to the door and the safety of the step where he balanced him...

As usual a snag, snare, snafu, issue or whatever you want to call it had to appear. Its just the way this has gone from day one! As you know, Angel is now home in Korea with her family, but while she was in Tokyo, a snag came up. Praise God that it wasn't something that would delay her travel, but snafu it was. Apparently one of the rules that I was not told was that the kennels that animals travel in from Tokyo have to have ventilation on all four sides of the kennel. The one I got Angel only had ventilation on three sides. Sheesh! Again, Praise God that it was taken care of as soon as it was made known. The agents in Tokyo supplied a kennel that was within regulations for her to continue on to Korea, but getting her out of her kennel that we had purchased apparently was another matter. Our Agent called to let us know that a few things were in the works, a couple of them I hope to show you in a couple of paragraphs (if I can get it to upload). The other was to tell me about the ...