Meet Cucumber!

This is Cucumber Pigeon Littlefield-Couvillion.  She is just about as precious as they come.  As you can obviously see from her photographs, she has it all -- looks, smarts, and attitude!  She thinks that she has her mommy's (Leslie's) nose and mouth  and her daddy's (Barrett's) eyes.  I definitely agree.

Cumber is SPOILED ROTTEN, and we have mostly her Poppy (Jim) to blame.  She and her sister Susan are staying with us, their grandparents, while their Mommy attends law school and their Daddy works in Maine.  Mind you, she came to us already spoiled, but her Poppy has taken it to unbelievable new levels.  Have you ever seen a puppy jump onto the sofa and flip in mid-air to land on her back -- ready for her tummy rubs?  It is quite a sight to see!

Waiting for a tummy rub

Little Cumber is the smallest of the Chins. She eats as much as her siblings, but her metabolism is incredible. If we could only bottle her enthusiam!  She finds house training quite boring, but we are working on making it more interesting for her.

Cucumber is also a thief.  When each of the puppies gets a chew stick, somehow Cucumber always manages to end up with all of them.  She gathers them near her, and then sits on top of them so no one else can get one.  She is quite bold about walking up to the others and taking theirs while they are watching.  Oh, Cumber!

Making Cucumber Salad!

Meet VooDoo!

This is our precious VooDoo Doll.  She is our little miss independent -- at least for a Chin, who generally like to be near someone all of the time. 

Voo is absolutely brilliant -- a regular Alberta Einstein!!!  She is the only Chin who has figured out that she gets more treats by sitting back and looking disinterested, unlike the others who love to crowd the hand that feeds them.  She was the easiest to house train. (We are still working on mastering that skill with Cucumber.)

Voo's lineage is a bit distressing.  A Lothario named Big Boy happens, through no fault of our little angel, to be both her father and her grandfather.  He was uber-brilliant, if a little "loose", therefore passing on his "smart" genes to her twice.  There is always a silver lining.  :-)

To complicate the family tree even more, Big Boy is also the father of Gumbo and Susan.  When you throw human adoptive families into the mix, Susan is Voo's aunt, her sister, and her niece.  I told you our family is complicated!

Our VooDoo Child is always smiling.  She is the least timid of the Chins, often running toward loud noises to see what is happening.  She loves to look out of the windows to see what is going on -- the ultimate nosy neighbor!  Some call her Mrs. Kravits because of this propensity.

Puppy Voo in her carrier

Meet Gumbo!

Take a gander at James Gumbo Dule' Segall-Couvillion.  He answers to Gumbo or Little G.  He is, by far, the largest of the Virginia Chins, although I think the boy Chins in Dallas might be a bit bigger.  He is quite long-legged, as you can see.

Gumbo is not exactly comfortable on a leash.  In fact, he is downright embarrassing!  He is so excited to be going for a walk that he does a very girly dance.  I can hardly stop laughing at him until he finally tires out a little and starts walking normally.

Little G is our pack leader -- gracing the girls with his gentle, loving spirit.  We have a saying -- "There is nothing Gumbo kisses can't fix!"

Gumbo has the sweetest disposition all of the Virginia Chins.  He never gets riled up, even when play-fighting over a toy.  He loves toys -- often spreading them all over the living room and kitchen.  He also loves to kiss and groom the other animals.

(I have not yet figured out how to rotate photos!)

Gumbo and Elise

Meet Susan!

Susan prances to the beat of her very own drum.  She is Gumbo's twin sister -- they were litter mates.  She was adopted by Leslie (my daugher) and Barrett, while Gumbo was adopted by me -- making her both Gumbo's twin sister and his niece.  Our family is complicated!

Susan is very sweet, but she does not like loud kisses.  She constantly makes "Susan Sounds" that are very adorable and endearing.  She is cold-natured and loves to be covered by a blanket.

Susan's full name is Susan Oa Ottavia Littlefield-Couvillion.  You can call her "Susan Oh-Oh!" for short.  Or, if you want her to react/respond to your voice, you must call her "Thusan".  For some reason, that is the name that resonates with her quirky personality.  For her middle names, her parents chose names of two of their closest friends.  Susan loves her middle names!

Notice her beauty mark!  Some have compared her to Cindy Crawford, but she gets embarrassed by the praise.  She is, though, quick to point out her perfectly symmetrical markings.

We all think she looks great in her pink puffy hat.  It brings out her eyes!