DENVER -- June 17, 2010

We stopped at the post office to mail a box on our way to work yesterday.

"What's in the box?" I asked. "Since you're sending it away, I hope it's not treats." I eyed the box hungrily.

"No, selfish boy, it's not dog treats. It's a present for John's dad for Father's Day," said Marianne. I sat down and watched with interest as she set the box on a machine and touched a computer screen several times. A few seconds later a sticker came out of the machine and Marianne put it on the box. She put her credit card in a slot on the machine and a receipt came out. She picked up the box and put it in a big bin. "All done!" she exclaimed. "I do love the self-service machine."

As we walked back to the car I asked, "What's Father's Day? Oooh, should I send something to my dad, too? I bet Blaze would like a big box full of treats!" I bounced up and down in front of Marianne in excitement.

"Well, he probably would like that. Maybe we'll have time to stop at PetsMart tomorrow," said Marianne as she opened the car door for me. "Car!" she commanded and I jumped in.

"And Ross should get something shouldn't he?" I wondered. "Since he's a big shot CCI breeder boy now and this will be his first Father's Day, maybe we should send him something."

"Since we sent some toys recently I think we'll just send Ross a card. Congratulations are in order for him because his first litter was born earlier this week," Marianne sighed happily.

"Puppies? You didn't tell me that!" I exclaimed. "I want to see pictures!"

"I'll show you the link to the blog about them when we get home tonight," Marianne promised. "Because Dawna was also bred to a CCI breeder boy named Saris, we won't know which ones are Ross puppies until the fall when the results of the DNA testing are complete."

I stared at her for a minute. "OK, WAY too much information," I finally said. "Jeez, give a puppy a break."

Marianne laughed. "All right, I won't tell you any more. We'll just look at the photos and guess which ones look like Ross."

When we got to the station I settled in for my morning snooze while Marianne checked e-mail.

"Hey Mars, look at this," Marianne said, poking me gently with her foot. "The Colorado Promoting Responsible Fatherhood Initiative is honoring a man named Kevin Crumley as the 2010 Be There for Your Kids Father of the Year. How about that!"

I yawned and crawled out from under the desk. "Why, what did he do?" I wondered.

Marianne peered at the computer screen. "According to this press release, his wife Denise and kids nominated him. Denise's first husband was killed while serving in the US Army Special Forces in 2005. Kevin and Denise met and fell in love and were married in 2007. Kevin became an instant dad to Ashley, Jacob and Madison."

"Talk about on the job training," I yelped. "That sounds really hard."

"Truly," Marianne agreed. "The press release says that Kevin helped all three children work through the death of their biological father and keeps them connected to his memory. In 2008, Kevin and Denise welcomed another child, their daughter, Macy."

"Does he get a reward or a new toy or a box of treats for being Super Dad?" I lost focus and drooled slightly. Yum.....treats.

"Ewww, stop that!" Marianne scolded me as she wiped my chin with a tissue. "Drooling is not good service dog behavior." She turned back to the computer. "It says here that Kevin will be honored at several events this week, including a pre-game ceremony at Coors Field on Friday night."

"Well, I guess that sounds OK," I said doubtfully. "Especially if they let him chase balls on the field and give him treats afterward."

Marianne patted my head. "Um, yeah, it will be something like that. Go back to sleep."

I crawled back under the desk and fell asleep, dreaming of green fields, puppies, balls and treats. Lots of treats.

Marianne poked me with her foot. "You drool in your sleep, silly boy," she said. I smiled.

Chow for now!

Mars

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