FORGIVENESS

Today I want to talk to you about forgiveness. Do you know what it means? When somebody does something to you that you don't like, sometimes you forgive them. Maybe they did something wrong but didn't mean to. I have some examples of forgiveness in my life.

Here is a picture of my friend Buddy. He's a lot bigger than me but we really like to play together. Sometimes he knocks me over and uses me as a bowling ball which is fun. But sometimes he steps on my toes and it hurts! I know he doesn't mean to do it. It's just an accident. So I forgive him and we go on playing.


There are other times when I get myself into trouble. I like to look in boxes and pull things out. I like to chew on things that I'm not supposed to chew on. When things like this happen, I may be scolded but I'm always forgiven.


When I used to live on the streets, the family that I kinda belonged to didn't take care of me well. I was covered in fleas and ticks, and had a bunch of diseases. I had to fight for my food with other dogs, and I never had my own toys or bed to sleep in. But you know what? I forgive those people. They just didn't know how to treat a little dog like me. And because of that, I live in the best house ever now. I have many cozy beds to sleep in and lots and lots of love. And I get to talk to you guys, too!
Forgiveness can be a good thing, but it's not always an easy thing to do. Right now I'm going to beg for a cookie and maybe I'll get one. If not, I'll forgive my mom and wait until next time....

Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy xo

Music and Games

I like to play games. My favorites are: chase the ball, eat the squeak out of a stuffed toy, and try to chase squirrels. I also know that some of the classes are playing all kinds of games. What do you like to play? I like outside games better than inside games, but sometimes inside games are fun, too.

I also heard that the YRE classes this year are learning songs once a month. That sounds like fun! I can't sing very well at all, but I like music. Can you guess my favorite songs? "Hound Dog" by Elvis Presley is pretty cool. How about some others?

You can always email me at: NeighborhoodDog@yahoo.com, especially if you have a family pet you'd like me to tell everyone about!

Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy

FAITH

This month Neighborhood Church is talking about FAITH. Do you know what faith means? I asked my mom and she told me that for her, faith is a feeling of something to believe in. Even if sometimes it isn't something you can touch or talk to or eat or smell. I thought about the things I have faith in, and it started to make sense.


For instance, I have faith that every day I will have water and good food in my bowl:


I also have faith that I will always have fun friends to play with:




I have faith that if I am left alone, someone will always come home for me:



And at night, I have faith that I will have a nice warm bed to sleep in:


Before I was rescued and brought into the home I have now, I didn't always have these things. I was not sure that I would have food every day but I would fight for it. I always dreamed about having a nice, soft bed to sleep in. Even though I didn't have that bed then, I had faith that someday I would.

There are many things to have faith in. Can you name some of yours? I'd love to know them.

Peace, Love, Happiness and FAITH,
Remy xo
email me at NeighborhoodDog@yahoo.com

Owies

I know that some of you YRE kids are learning about safety and medicine in your classes this year. A long time ago, when I was a kid (last year), I hurt myself. I got a little pebble stuck in my paw. It got really wedged in and my paw got infected. Ouch, it hurt! It's a good thing that there are animal doctors called veterinarians that can help when animals need medicine. I am so happy that when I get hurt I can go see a doctor for help. Sometimes when I get an owie that isn't that serious, I just go see an adult for a band-aid and a kiss. I might even get a cookie too! That's my favorite part.

Here is a picture of me with my paw in a bandage. Why do you think they wrapped my leg up? I had to keep it clean and dry for five days. Have any of you had to wear a bandage?Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy
Write me at: NeighborhoodDog@yahoo.com

I'm BAAACCCKKK!!!

Hi everyone! I took a long summer to enjoy things that dogs enjoy, like going to parks, going on little vacations, and spending time in the pool with my friend Ripley (see above). Now that it's the new school year, I am excited to learn more about what makes Neighborhood Church and our Unitarian Universalist principles so cool. Just like me in the pool.

Don't forget to send me photos of your family pets so I can put them up here- NeighborhoodDog@yahoo.com. I look forward to hearing from you and learning with you this year!

Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy the Dog

DOTTIE Is In Our Neighborhood!

This is Dottie, the newest member of the Hopper-Bellew family, along with her sister, Dixie who I introduced you to below. Dottie was lucky because she was rescued by such a loving family. She was taken to the doctor by her previous owners with a bone stuck in her throat. They didn't want to pay for her medical costs and asked that she be put to sleep. Good thing the vet decided to help her and found her a new home. She is very cute, I got to meet her in person at the dog park. She's a little shy around other dogs but really sweet. She (and Dixie) are named after Dorothea Dix, the famous UU woman who did a lot to help prisoners and the mentally ill. What a great ending to a very scary story, don't you think?

Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy

Remembering

This is a picture of my Big Sister, Emma. She died over a year ago and I never got to meet her, but my parents talk about her a lot. She lived in this house before I did. Now my mom keeps her ashes in a box. The box sits on a special little altar in our house.

I decided I would ask a few questions about Emma and what happened to her. I don't understand why she isn't here anymore, because I would really love to have another dog in the house to play with.

I learned that Emma was a rescue, like me, from the Humane Society. She was about 3 or 4 years old when she joined my family. Emma had a great time for about 12 more years. As she got older, her hair got more gray and she didn't move as fast as she used to. Finally she did not even get up to say hello when people came home, and could not lift her head up anymore. Emma was in a lot of pain.

Sometimes we can help pets stop hurting, if we know there is no way they will ever feel better. The veterinarian can give them something so they no longer feel the pain. But it also means that they die and can no longer be with us. Mom says that it was better for Emma to stop hurting. Even though she misses Emma very very much, it was a good thing to be able to help her.

It is sad to miss pets and people who have died. But in my house, we talk about Emma and tell funny stories about what she was like. This way, we never forget about her.

Why don't you ask your family about a pet, or even somebody they really cared about who died?
I bet you will hear lots of fun stories, too.

Peace, Love and Happiness,
Remy