"Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.” ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder
Christmas is only a few days as I type this blog, and whatever holiday you celebrate and however you celebrate it, I wish you a happy one that is filled with love of family and friends.
There is much to share with you, so let's get started!
First, most of my readers know that my husband, who is an award-winning playwright, recently turned his writing talents to novels. Two have been published; the third is currently with the publisher being edited; the fourth is being written. Recently we learned that Havana Brown was awarded the 2021 Royal Dragonfly Book Award Winner in the Mystery category! If you like mysteries and have not read it yet, you can get it on Amazon. Havana Brown by Lynn-Steven Johanson is book 2 in the Joe Erickson detective series. The first book in the series is Rose's Thorn.
Notes and Photos from Others
Many thanks to those who keep in touch and send photos of their Joyslyn's Lhasas. I appreciate getting the updates and photos so much!
Mary R wrote about her three Lhasas, two of them are Joyslyn's Lhasas. Here is part of what she wrote about them: "...Rafe turned 10 Nov. 27. He is doing well. He really has a soft personality compared to the girls. Moka is a bossy girl. Belle can be pushy, almost too happy, excites easy; Belle wants to keep everyone happy ...Moka is my tomboy and I think she thinks she is boss. All 3 get along, play together; I am lucky to have such good dogs..."
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| Belle |
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| Rafe |
Speaking of Rafe, Mary D. sent a photo of her Gabe, who happens to be Rafe's litter brother.
From Dennis and Marilyn: "Hi Joyce, I hope this Christmas season finds you, Lynn, your family, and the dogs, healthy and happy. I am including pictures of Maci who will be 7 on Dec. 30th, and Hunter who turned 4 in July. We purchased our first dog Abby from you in 2001, and it was one of the best things we have ever done. We love the breed, and we are are so glad we found someone who is committed to breeding, raising, and showing these beautiful dogs. Thank you! Hope you have lots of family around to make your Christmas Bright!"
Denise wrote, "Lily was 15, and one of the best little fur babies one could ask for. She was always quiet and sweet. Never any health issues just an all-around easy tenant (lol). I think Duncan kept her young at heart up in till the end. ♥️ which was so fun to watch the two of them. He tried to be the boss but in the end we all knew who ruled.. even though he tried to be a bully...Attached is a picture of Duncan meeting a little human for the first time this summer."
(Note from Joyce" I love that "Whoa! What's this?" expression on Duncan's face.)
Teresa did not send a photo. but wrote about Dora: "This is Teresa, Dora’s mamma. I wanted to wish you a very Merry Christmas and many blessings in the new year! I love my little baby Dora so much! Thank you for giving me my precious girl, she is a fiesty little baby but truly a blessing."
Michelle wrote, "...I must say the love we have for Sunny and now our grandson is just the best! Thank you again for all you do, for all the help you provide me! I am so happy to have found out about you and to meet you. I appreciate you! I hope to see you again at one of your travels to a dog show nearby. We will keep in touch!"
This is Kiara with her new friend Jake!
Kathy sent this sweet picture of Bandit sleeping on Tom's lap. Sweet baby Bandit!
From Bob and Jody about Bernie: "They [everyone who meets him] love him!... During our visit the vet asked if he could take Bernie in the back so staff could have some puppy love. The vet said he is healthy and sturdy unlike some puppies he has seen recently.
He has been on a zoom call with Bob’s law partners and a workout with me on Wed. He is going to read a book on Hanukkah on Tues. to first graders in Texas. He has a busy schedule! At first he followed me around everywhere, today he will go in the living room and nap or play for a short time on his own. He knows his pen and really likes to have someone next to him. Yesterday he went in there and used the piddle pad on his own. He is just too cute! Thanks for the gift of Bernie."
Kiara, Bandit, and Bernie are littermates from the recent Josh and Bekka litter.
Bernie is marked like his older brothers Gus and Ty.
Janet wrote, "Hello Joyce, Merry Christmas to you and your family, two legs and four.
Just wanted to send a couple pictures of Pebbles Grace. The first is her Christmas picture. It was a very stressful day, she was to get her picture after two Pitbulls who decided to get into a fight drawing blood on their owner who was trying to get them under control. Pebbles remained her well manned self. I think I was more nervous. I was holding her a little too tight as you can see by her hair not as smooth as usual. The second is of her being her very helpful self. She thinks I need help folding laundry.❤️😂❤️ There is something about a basket of towels that she can't help herself she has to get in them and stays until all are folded. She is an amazing and perfect girl. Mike and I always look forward to reading your blog. Can’t wait to see Rusty and Millie's puppy’s (when they come). 😊 All of your dogs have done so well this year at shows. Your heart must be filled with so much love and pride.
Again Merry Christmas and Happy New Year."
Just wanted to send a couple pictures of Pebbles Grace. The first is her Christmas picture. It was a very stressful day, she was to get her picture after two Pitbulls who decided to get into a fight drawing blood on their owner who was trying to get them under control. Pebbles remained her well manned self. I think I was more nervous. I was holding her a little too tight as you can see by her hair not as smooth as usual. The second is of her being her very helpful self. She thinks I need help folding laundry.❤️😂❤️ There is something about a basket of towels that she can't help herself she has to get in them and stays until all are folded. She is an amazing and perfect girl. Mike and I always look forward to reading your blog. Can’t wait to see Rusty and Millie's puppy’s (when they come). 😊 All of your dogs have done so well this year at shows. Your heart must be filled with so much love and pride.
Again Merry Christmas and Happy New Year."
From Melanie and Kevin: "Here is Harper’s Christmas picture. I finally got her to sit still. She loves to play with her toys and play fetch. We had some snow about a week ago and she had fun running around the yard and sticking her nose in the snow. When we play in the yard she will sometimes run as fast as she can(and she runs really fast)from one side of the yard to the other. I made her a little hurdle to jump over and she has to jump over it every time we go out. We are so thankful to have Harper. She is so much fun and makes us laugh at the silly things she does. Have a Merry Christmas!"
Shelly commented, "Tucker is getting in the Christmas spirit!
Jim wrote: "A couple of Daisy. She definitely understands ownership - she loves her stuff, including her travel backpack."
Tom and Penny wrote, "Joyce, Griffin recently celebrated his 10th birthday. He is a wonderful boy and has brought us great joy. We wish you a happy holiday season."
(Note:Their Griffin is also a litter brother to Rafe and Gabe)
Pat and Chris sent an update on Teddy, who is Archie's litter brother: "It's been a while since I've updated you on Teddy, so wanted to send you a few pictures, as well as wish you and Lynn a very happy holiday season! Teddy continues to be a ham and bring so much joy to both Chris and me. He loves going to work with his godmother where employees can take their pets to work. Since we work from home, it's a great outing for him. The workspace is a big warehouse, so he makes everyone laugh by running as fast as he can and then sliding across the floor to a stop. Recently he ran into his bigger "namesake" and from the picture, you can tell he just didn't know what to think or do. He loves stuffed animals, especially his totally destroyed "lamb chops" with the giraffe scarf featured in the other two pictures. But that overgrown stuffed teddy bear really puzzled him, notice his ears cocked back in deep reflection!
Again, we want to thank you for letting us adopt Teddy and we want you to know how much he is loved and spoiled! We've already made a list for Santa, he wants everything! Hope you both are doing well and Santa is good to you as well. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and very happy 2022!"
Again, we want to thank you for letting us adopt Teddy and we want you to know how much he is loved and spoiled! We've already made a list for Santa, he wants everything! Hope you both are doing well and Santa is good to you as well. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and very happy 2022!"
Mindy sent this photo of Milo, writing "Precious baby Milo."
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| Milo and his buddies |
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| Milo |
Debi sent an update: "Lacey is doing very well...She is growing so fast and is now 8lbs. She is full of energy! I don't know how you and Lynn do it. We just have ONE puppy and she tires us out. LOL. Her face hair is always covering her little eyes the way it is growing. It doesn't matter how much I comb and brush her face, I can't seem to keep it out of her eyes. I am taking her for her first grooming, (since we have had her), in a couple weeks. We have already had her nails trimmed. I tried to do them myself, but I could not get her to stay still enough. I need a grooming table.
She is in her terrible 2's, LOL. She's always trying to get into trouble. She is just curious about everything. Now that she can stand taller on her hind feet, she can reach things that she wasn't able to before. She likes to play the game, "catch me if you can", when she gets a hold of something she knows she isn't supposed to have, but after a few tries, we get it from her. She is learning to sit and stay. She has "sit "mostly mastered, and we are now working on "stay", she is doing pretty well with it.
She is happy and proud that she can now jump on the chair in the Living room. This old chair has been a favorite with every dog we have had. This is why we keep it, LOL. She is very smart and gets bored easily, so we have to come up with new things to keep her entertained. She has about 50 toys and is starting to get bored with all of them, so we put some away to take out again later. She loves to chase around water bottles, small gatorade ones work best because they don't crush easily or get sharp edges. She also loves to do this silly thing. She zooms around the house and then takes a flying leap and plops onto a standard bed pillow we have on the floor for her. She will do this over and over again until she gets tired. It cracks us up every time. Whenever we go to the vet or pet store, She becomes the star of the shop! Everyone loves to see her and pet her and she just loves it! She loves everyone and is so sweet. We love to cuddle with her when she gets tired out and settles down a bit. We just feel so blessed to have her in our lives. We are enjoying her so much! We and everyone in our family just love her! She isn't spoiled, LOL. I have a feeling she is going to get about 20 more toys from everyone for Christmas."
Ginny sent this picture of her Lhasas:
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| Maple, the Joyslyn's puppy on the left |
News From Here
Rusty was a year old on December 5. This is the most recent photo of him, taken after a bath.
My goal was to get his championship before the end of the year. You know what the poet said about "best laid plans..."! We'll hope to get that final point in 2022. He is looking great, don't ya think?
In Memory of Henri:
Of course we are known as long-time Lhasa breeders and exhibitors, but what many do not know is that we also, for the past 7.5 years, have had our granddog, Henri, in our home. Henri was a purebred Affenpincher, that originally belonged to our daughter. When her first child was born and it turned out Henri did not like him, she asked us to take him. He was a funny little fellow, always acting like he was a big dog. He did tricks, loved treats and going for walks, hanging out in the family room curled up in a dog bed, and bullying puppies (!), but he was also a love with his people (except kids!!). He passed away during the night last week. We miss him a lot.
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Baby Henri with Erikka |
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| Henri age 13.5, just a few days before he passed |
Once is a Habit!
Lhasas especially are pretty sure that once means always! Be careful what you let them get away with. LOL
Someone recently posted this cartoon on my Facebook page to remind me that I told her "once is a habit" when she came to get her puppy.
Peer Pressure
I recall a joke I heard years ago that went something like this:
A 110 year old woman was celebrating her birthday in a nursing home. A reporter from the local paper was on hand to interview her.
He asked, "What is the best thing about being 110?"
She responded, "No peer pressure."
Now I confess that, in spite of digging in my heels for years, I have bowed to peer pressure and have raised my puppy prices to come closer to matching what other Lhasa breeders in the midwest are charging. Some of that pressure has been delicate. The pressure I got during a phone call last night was pushy and (me being the rebel that I tend to be) I was totally irked and all but hung up on my caller. But, I slept on it and caved.
Lhasas in pet stores and Lhasas whose genes have been combined with heaven only knows what other dog breeds to make a -doodle or -poo or whatever other cutsie name someone comes up with to create a "designer dog"-- that is nothing more than a cross-breed, a mutt, etc.-- are being sold for prices that often exceed $3000 to $5000 dollars.
My rational mind tells me that my 49 years of owning, breeding and showing Lhasas should make my puppies worth at least that much money, if not more!
The irrational part of my brain is still in the "it's a free country" and "how dare those %^$*#@s (fill in your choice of word) dare tell me how to run my my life and dictate what I should/should not do with my dogs. I am becoming calmer as the hours go by, but may still hang up on the next person who dares to address the issue. I sincerely hope no one mentions it again. (hint hint)
The new price for 2022 is $2300 plus the 9% sales tax Illinois requires dog breeders to charge. Total cost is then $2516. I know I will lose some people on my waiting list. Also, if you have bought a puppy from me previously and want another, we'll work out a deal!
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Let there be peace on earth indeed!
Joyce
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