I mean no disrespect toward my amazing, handsome, smart, and wonderfully supportive husband, but this dog, oh goodness.

Has your heart ever just melted?  This kid speaks to my heart, soothes my soul, and is a better friend to me than most humans could ever fathom being (including myself!).  He's my sweet boy, my loyal protector, my snuggle buddy, and the best partner.

We weren't planning to get another puppy. We'd just had a beautiful litter of super-cute Ridgie pups in September, 2013 and kept our pick of the litter, sweet Sebastian.  That kid was our first dog together as a couple, and he walked me down the "aisle" at our wedding.  Mister Bas was only with us for a short while, though, and while we were on our honeymoon, he quietly left us, forever leaving his paw prints on our hearts.  We learned so much from him; we learned to grieve together, and so very early in our marriage.  We bred him, brought him into this world with our own hands, chose him as our own, and raised him as part of our little family.  A silly cardiac arrhythmia took him from us, and we'll always miss him.  Although I suspect, sometimes, that he's ringing the bell at the back door just to say hello…

We didn't expect to lose Mister Bas, but we sure didn't expect the big bundle of pure love that found us in the form of the Captain.  I formally met him around Christmas time, and although he was just 5 weeks old, I managed to sneak him over to our house to meet his prospective dad (our breeder, my friend, lived just 5 minutes away).  Rick wasn't ready to fall in love, but head over heels he went.  Just a few well-timed puppy kisses and that broken heart began to mend.

We brought him home to stay just a few weeks later.  He was the easiest puppy, an old soul with a sweet, pleasing demeanor.  Silly, gawky, handsome, and sometimes shy, he captured our hearts from the start.  We started competing in conformation shows when he was 4 months old, and he found that he loves the show ring!  He even "high-fived" the judge once!  He quickly outgrew me, though, and we've had to rely on friends with longer legs than mine to guide him 'round the ring.  We've been working on manners and obedience classes and are looking forward to working together as a team toward a few more titles in the next year.

Captain has taught me so much about myself in this last year, too.  He possesses such an amazing capacity for love, loyalty, and kindness, and wears his big noble heart on his sleeve.  Through one of the most emotionally devastating seasons of my life, he has remained a steadfast example of the kind of friend I want to be.  Kind, loyal, and true, exuberant and loving, strong and virtuous.  He is the Captain, Vyrtuous Captain's Noble Heart, JC.  And I'm lucky enough to be his human, his companion, his partner, his mom.