Got to spend time at the beach with Violet, so special! Since Violet lives her retired life with family, we get to see her often! Gulf Shores, dog friendly beach, and family.....equals a very fun vacation!
Violet is retired, and living the best life with Chris and Diana who refer to her as their "Rock Star" :)
Violet produced some amazing babies here. This is just one example!
Meet Ben, from the April in Paris litter. There were only 4 puppies born, and all 4 were boys. Talk about amazing temperaments!!! Ben is a service dog, and visits an assisted living home, and he loves every minute of it! Thank you Jon for loving Ben and seeing him reach such a sweet goal!!!
Violet is now retired! She will be living the country club life at Aunt Diana and Uncle Chris's house with her cousin Caly :)
UKC Grand Champion
Kitsue's Crossbrook June Violet earned her title!
At the UKC Premier Dog Show in Kalamazoo, Michigan

Beautiful weather, beautiful dogs....what could be better?
She earned her Grand Championship title! Friday she won Best of Breed and went in to compete in the Gun Dog Group! She didn't place there, but it was very exciting!
TEST RESULTS ARE COMING IN!
vWD test is negative!!!
Thyroid is normal!!
Hips: GOOD PO-20115G24F-VPI
Elbows: NORMAL PO-EL1695F24-VPI
NEwS: NORMAL PO-NES565/26F-VPI
CERF eye exam: NORMAL
This means not only is she beautiful on the outside, she is beautiful on the inside!
She earned her Grand Championship title! Friday she won Best of Breed and went in to compete in the Gun Dog Group! She didn't place there, but it was very exciting!
TEST RESULTS ARE COMING IN!
vWD test is negative!!!
Thyroid is normal!!
Hips: GOOD PO-20115G24F-VPI
Elbows: NORMAL PO-EL1695F24-VPI
NEwS: NORMAL PO-NES565/26F-VPI
CERF eye exam: NORMAL
This means not only is she beautiful on the outside, she is beautiful on the inside!
Grand Champion Kitsue's Crossbrook June Violet
Winning Best of Breed at Gateway Classic 2011

In spite of being "spooked" by a certain Russian guard dog ringside, Violet recovered from the scare very well! She won her Champion's class twice, and went on to win Best of Breed. She represented the multi colored standard poodles by being named the BEST! I was so proud of her! We came home with three ribbons, made some new friends and spent time with old friends! It was a great weekend!
Atlanta Pet Fair 2012
Violet was invited to be a "hair model", and we brought the hair!

Violet was invited to participate in the standard poodle grooming event at the Atlanta Pet Fair! Competition groomer Su Eld-Weaver bathed, dried and groomed her! What a weekend! Set off for Atlanta on Thursday, passing through southern Illinois, where just the day before a tornado touched down. Onward through Kentucky and Tennessee just in time for Atlanta rush hour traffic, the fun sort of stopped for a few minutes :) There were a ton of beautiful standard poodles there, every size shape and color, I was in heaven! This picture is the "before" picture, taken at 2:44 in the morning, our bathing time was scheduled for midnight. Did I mention we are a little crazy :)
And after :)

Here she is being judged, they actually go over her with a fine tooth comb! They are looking for stray hairs :) We weren't allowed to take pictures during the competition, so I ran down front as soon as the scissors hit the tables! More pictures to come after I recover from the trip!
And here is where things get a little crazy!

My dear friend, Su Eld-Weaver is also a Creative Groomer in Europe, and she brought her white (no really) standard poodle, Dobbie, to compete. They flew from Heathrow, to Paris, to Miami to Atlanta! Did I mention we are a little crazy? After airbrushing, and glitter..........
Still looking good a few weeks after the Atlanta Pet Fair

I love to bathe and trim them, so I couldn't wait to give Violet a bath, blow her out and see if I could "keep" the pattern on her that Su Eld-Weaver put on her :) Not an easy task!
Poodles LOVE snow!

I have no idea why, but they all love the snow!
I made Violet a snowsuit, yeah I know that sounds rediculous, but she loves the snow so much that I hated keeping her inside. The snow sticks to their fur and makes snowballs so big it takes forever to thaw and dry out, then they just want back out again!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvbFT8AnFaI
Check it out, hilarious! And I am sure the neighbors could see it!
I made Violet a snowsuit, yeah I know that sounds rediculous, but she loves the snow so much that I hated keeping her inside. The snow sticks to their fur and makes snowballs so big it takes forever to thaw and dry out, then they just want back out again!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvbFT8AnFaI
Check it out, hilarious! And I am sure the neighbors could see it!
Kitsue's Crossbrook June Violet
Finishes #3 in the country!
Hard to imagine that on a warm June morning, in the heart of Oklahoma, this special pup set out on an amazing journey! It all happend so fast! It was a lot of work, countless baths, hundreds of miles on the road, and many circles in the show ring. Violet is 2 wins away from becoming a Grand Champion, which is very difficult to do logistically. You have to have 5 competition wins, which means there has to be at least 3 champions in the ring for the win to count. And it has to happen with different judges. Violet's next chance at a win will be in June at the UKC Premier Show in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Wish us luck :)
It has been such a fun journey as well, my grooming skills have greatly improved (lots of practice), I have made many friends and learned so much along the way!
Sue Abeln, at Kitsue's, has been such a resource of wisdom, support and friendship. Without a doubt, I could not have done any of this without her! The moment Violet was born, Sue called me and her exact words were, "Linda, your puppy was just born. She is going to be amazing!" I put my trust in her to know what I was looking for and for her to see it. The large box of ribbons and trophies with Violet's name on it is proof that those words were very true!
Thank you Sue!
It has been such a fun journey as well, my grooming skills have greatly improved (lots of practice), I have made many friends and learned so much along the way!
Sue Abeln, at Kitsue's, has been such a resource of wisdom, support and friendship. Without a doubt, I could not have done any of this without her! The moment Violet was born, Sue called me and her exact words were, "Linda, your puppy was just born. She is going to be amazing!" I put my trust in her to know what I was looking for and for her to see it. The large box of ribbons and trophies with Violet's name on it is proof that those words were very true!
Thank you Sue!
Look who is One Year Old!!!

June 1st is Violet'b birthday, I can't believe it has been a year!!
An exciting year for sure, road trips, playdates, lots and lots of grooming! We entered 2 shows, the first in Peoria, Illinois and the second in Norman, Oklahoma. After only 6 times in the ring, she became a champion! Pretty good for only being 11 months old! We are very proud of our Violet, and look forward to more shows!
An exciting year for sure, road trips, playdates, lots and lots of grooming! We entered 2 shows, the first in Peoria, Illinois and the second in Norman, Oklahoma. After only 6 times in the ring, she became a champion! Pretty good for only being 11 months old! We are very proud of our Violet, and look forward to more shows!
Norman, Oklahoma April 30th and May 1st!
Crossbrook Poodles has their first Champion!
Violet's first show! Peoria, Illinois
She did so good!! We are so very proud of her!
Can't wait to do it again!

The show was held in Peoria, Illinois. She was a little nervous, and wanted to play with the other dogs instead of standing still, good thing she is still in the Puppy Class, they all act like that! It was a great weekend, but she is glad to be home and allowed to play in the mud :)
Snow, glorious snow!
Once upon a time there was a puppy.......
From the moment I first saw her...
I could not wait to get her home. I drove the 7 hours to Luther, Oklahoma where Kitsue's Poodles whelped a beautiful litter of brindle and sable puppies in the wee hours of the morning on June 1st, 2010. Sue Abeln had been watching for the perfect puppy for over a year. I got the call the minute after Violet was born, and Sue's exact words were.."Linda, your puppy was just born!" Don't ask me how, but she can tell that soon when a puppy will be a "nice" puppy, a "awsome" puppy, or a "spectacular" puppy. I was waiting for spectacular!
In these pictures Violet is just 2 weeks old, eyes just open, walking like a drunken sailor, but the cutest thing you ever did see! And she was MINE!
In these pictures Violet is just 2 weeks old, eyes just open, walking like a drunken sailor, but the cutest thing you ever did see! And she was MINE!
Glory loves her!

I have to admit, I was worried that Glory was NOT going to be thrilled with the new baby in the house. At first she wasn't. After about 3 days, they are inseperable. Violet follows Glory everywhere, and Glory loves it!
First time in the ring!!!

Violet's first time in the ring! She did great! I, on the other hand, was a nervous wreck :) She is too young for it to actually "count" for anything, but she did really well! The ring was huge, and she looks so small! I was so proud of her, she had 3 of her siblings in the ring, her brother Pattenson from southern Texas, and sisters Penny and Fergie from Illinois. Penny took first place, and rightfully so, she is beautiful! It was a great weekend in Gray Summit, MO!