About the Series
The Adventures of Gunner the Lab… Oh, and Tiger Too
This is a collection of short stories — mostly fictional, always fun, and definitely Gunner’s fault — set across homesteads, road trips, and the kind of chaos only a loyal black lab and a too-smart tabby cat can create.
Each story is a standalone chapter in the life of a family doing their best to raise three boys, keep the animals alive, and hold the homestead together — all while a certain black lab does his level best to “help.”
The Characters
Gunner
Breed: Black Labrador Retriever Distinguishing Feature: Hunter safety orange collar Role: Star of every story. Self-appointed farm manager. Professional chaos agent.
Gunner is loyal to the bone, enthusiastic beyond reason, and absolutely convinced that everything that happens on the property is his responsibility. He means well. He really does. But “meaning well” and “doing well” are two very different things when you’re 85 pounds of pure momentum aimed at a flock of startled chickens.
Tiger
Breed: Tabby cat — gray and brown stripes (not orange) Role: The brains of the operation. Reluctant sidekick. Quiet genius.
Tiger doesn’t run. Tiger doesn’t panic. Tiger sits on a fence post, watches the chaos unfold, and somehow fixes everything with one well-timed move. If Gunner is the unstoppable force, Tiger is the immovable object — and the immovable object usually wins.
The Family
Dad — A cloud architect by trade, homesteader by choice. He built the coops, fenced the pastures, and spends most of his time fixing whatever Gunner just broke. He tells the stories the way they should have happened — which is almost never the way they did.
Mom — The homeschool mom who keeps the whole operation running. She manages the garden, the curriculum, the boys, and the emotional well-being of every creature on the property — including the ones with four legs.
The Oldest Boy — The workhorse. If there’s a post to dig or a fence to mend, he’s already halfway done. Quiet, capable, and the only one Gunner actually listens to (sometimes).
The Middle Boy — The dreamer. He names every animal, talks to the goats, and once tried to teach Gunner to play chess. It didn’t work, but Tiger watched the whole thing with genuine interest.
The Youngest Boy — Two speeds: on and off. There is no in between. Either he’s running full tilt through the yard or he’s asleep on the couch with Gunner draped across his legs.
Those Who Came Before
Bear (a.k.a. “Grandpa Bear”) — The family’s old dog. He earned the nickname because he acted exactly like an old man yelling at kids to get off his lawn. Grumpy, opinionated, and utterly done with everyone’s nonsense. Bear has passed on, but he shows up in some of the earlier stories — usually sitting somewhere disapproving of whatever Gunner is about to do.
The Eras
The stories span several settings and seasons in the family’s life:
- East Texas Flashbacks — The Homestead Days on 15 acres. Where it all started. Chickens, mud, heat, and the kind of neighbors who show up with a casserole and a chainsaw.
- The Big Moves — Road trips and transition stories. A family, a dog, a cat, and everything they own packed into whatever will roll.
- The Virginia Homestead — The current setting. 40 acres in the Blue Ridge foothills. More land, more animals, more ways for Gunner to get into trouble.
- The Boys & Family Stories — Stories centered on the kids, the parents, and the kind of moments that stick with you.
- Seasonal & Holiday Stories — Thanksgiving turkeys, Christmas trees, summer storms, and the first snow of the year.
- Adventure Stories — When the family ventures beyond the fence line. National parks, fishing trips, and the occasional bear sighting.
- Heart Stories — The quieter ones. The ones that remind you why you started reading in the first place.
The Tone
Think Pinky and the Brain meets a family homestead. The stories are fun, warm, and funny — grounded enough to feel real, but with just enough exaggeration to keep things entertaining. Gunner is the heart. Tiger is the punchline. The family is the glue.
The Art
Stories are illustrated in two styles:
- Graphite pencil — For flashbacks and heart stories. Warm, textured, nostalgic.
- Colored pencil — For Virginia and adventure stories. Vivid, detailed, alive.
About the Author
These stories are written by Dad — a cloud architect by day and a storyteller by night. The characters are inspired by real animals, real kids, and a real homestead. The stories, however, are mostly fictional. Mostly.
The project started as a way to capture the spirit of the family’s life with Gunner and Tiger — the kind of stories you’d tell around a campfire or read to your kids before bed. Each one is meant to stand on its own, but together they paint a picture of a family figuring it out, one misadventure at a time.
