I'm back...................................

Well, I notice that it's been almost a year since I've posted to this blog. What can I say? The boys and dogs have been keeping me quite busy........................
We had an unexpected litter of pups in October. Chester, our male stud, played escape artist by jumping through a garage window and into our open bedroom window while we were out one afternoon - hence 2 little beagle girls were conceived. They were lovely little things, although we were quite surprised that only 3 pups were conceived(one little boy was stillborn :( ). Apparently since they were conceived so early on in Tango's cycle there just weren't enough eggs to fertilize at the time. Anyways....................taking care of the 2 little ones was a breeze after the litter of 7, and we ended up finding lovely homes for them both. I love you Lily and Snoopy!
As far as the boys go, well........................................let's just say that as we near the age of 17, there are more and more challenges to meet. Last weekend I found myself with 3 teenage couples here for the day, and had a hard time determining what is and what is not appropriate for kids of this age - how much privacy should they be allowed? Should they be trusted until trust is broken, or can a group of 16 year olds be trusted in the dark while watching a movie? These are few among many questions that I ask myself on a regular basis. Fortunately my relationship with my son is good, and I'm pretty sure of where he's at and where he wants to go. I must say that the "serious relationship" at 16 stresses me out though. I can't say that I don't understand on a personal level.........................I myself went through the same kind of intense relationship at 16 that he's experiencing - unfortunately this doesn't make it easier. I only hope and pray that by the time we get to the fourth child's teenage years, we have it somewhat figured out.