Happy fall y’all! Here to freshen up our fall are Mandy and Steve Shipman and their sweet family. They have 2 teenage children, Mary Margaret (15), Sam (13) and fur baby mini Golden-doodle Ace (2). Mandy and Steve met years ago when she was in college at Mississippi University for Women where she played basketball. She suffered several knee injuries and wound up in physical therapy where she met Steve who was working in sports medicine. They became friends and eventually dated. Mandy finished pharmacy school at Ole Miss and they married. They have been married for 18 years!
Both have always had pets in their families. Steve growing up in North Carolina had all types of dogs- Beagles, Eskimo Spitz and a boxer, and Mandy growing up in Senatobia and had mayn boxers. As a married couple, it was only natural for them to have a pet and they began with their beloved lab Cosmo. He was the children’s first pet and the whole family was devastated at his passing in 2016. After a year of loneliness without a furry family member, Mandy started mentioning mini goldendoodles and sending Steve instagram pictures of some cuties. He started looking too and found a great breeder from North Carolina. Steve surprised the family during Christmas of 2018 with a deposit he placed for a goldendoodle! Nine months later, a curly coated red gem came to the family.
Onto the Shipman scene, enters Ace! Mandy has a new baby boy and Mary Margaret and Sam have their new brother. The kids named him for their love of tennis. Both children play and are very involved with the sport and since Ace is rarely left behind he is involved too. He has grown up on the tennis courts and is well known there and at tournaments. He is always complimented and given lots of attention. All of their tennis friends know Ace! It is not a wonder why Ace loves loading up in the car for tennis events. Ace has even traveled with the family to hike the mountains in Chattanooga, Tennessee. What a lucky boy!
Ace is truly a family member and really doesn’t know he is a dog. He loves to taunt his siblings by stealing their socks and having his brother or sister chase him for them until they catch him. He loves to aggravate them and they do the same. They “fight” like regular siblings and they often say that Mandy loves Ace more than them. Honestly, Mandy does carry him like a baby on her hip and shoulder but they are one big happy family! Ace loves to wrestle with Sam and he sleeps in their shared room every night. The family all know better than to leave any food unattended. A hotdog and a Chick-fil-a sandwich, just to mention two, have gone missing from the table while backs were turned and not a crumb of evidence left!
The Shipmans recently hosted a “friend” as a house guest. She was a mini goldendoodle puppy named Gracie. She was crazy about Ace, but he did not reciprocate her feelings. She chased and followed him around and he was very inconvenienced. He didn’t understand at all that she was of the same species. He ignored her all week and was a bit off put with his family when they were fawning over her. He feels the same when he is at his Spaw appointments. He will sometimes be in reception and be totally confused by the other pups checking in. He does not seem to know that he is one of them and they are there for the same reasons. He took his time warm up to getting his hair trimmed and combing out the tangles from his curly locks but he has evolved into a Spaw pro. He walks himself in and joins in at reception but still seems uninterested in the other furry friends. He really does look confused when he sees the other pups especially if they are interested in greeting and befriending him. It is very funny to watch. He truly is a special boy!