Oh To Be a Salty Dog: Damp Fears and Brave Leaps

Hi!

     I fell into a tide pool today. I guess I should've seen it coming; those silly rocks were slippery with this gooey green stuff. Ruff! I was just so excited to see what Rachel was looking at down among the rocks of Beavertail (in Jamestown, RI) that *sliip-plunk*! My paws slid right into a slimy rock puddle, and I yelped in fear.

  I was scared of getting swept away by the big fierce Ocean. Had to get outtt!

      When I clawed and pawed myself out of the pool, I smelled like seaweed. Nudging Allison with a salty nose, I tried to shake dry. Dratted rocks. Grrruff! At first I didn't want to take any more chances near the tide pools, but my humans promised that they wouldn't let me drown - there was nothing to be scared about. So I spent the rest of the afternoon happily bouncing over and around the rocks (and even making friends with a funny animal called a tortoise). You can't let your fears stop you from doing fun things - be brave!

 Try not to let fear hold you back! There's lots to see and smell and taste and experience in this interesting world! Awoooooo!

     Anyway, I dedicate this post to a nice girl I met before we went to Jamestown. Allison and Rachel took me to this restaurant in Providence that let pups sit with their humans in the sidewalk cafe part - India it's called. The human lady who brought us our food (juicy hamburger and yummy rice for me and spicy-smelling plates of food for Allison and Rachel) was acting a little strange. She kept smiling nervously and making small shaky steps to stay away from my wagging tail. Then she told us...

     "I'm sorry, but I'm a-a-afraid of dogs. I have a-a phobia."

     Afraid of dogs? I panted, kind of surprised. Then I remembered how afraid I am of vacuums. No matter how silly it seems and no matter how many times my humans tell me that the vacuum won't hurt me, the dust-eating roar makes my legs run away on their own! This human girl can't control what she's afraid of anymore than I can control it. Even so, this nice human faced her fear and managed to smile at me. Very brave! You could say that she's one of the reasons I didn't run away from the dark, scary sea. I faced my fear - and had a great day!

     And here's a good bedtime story for any pup or human-pup with a fear:

   

Martin Waddell's Can't You Sleep, Little Bear?, with pictures by Barbara Firth, is a sweet, simple bedtime story that will comfort the littlest human-pups with its repetition and lovable bear characters. In this Pre-K level book, Little Bear tells Big Bear that he can't sleep. Why? He's afraid of the dark!

(I know how scary the dark can be. On some of my first nights with my humans, I was afraid and cried a bit when I had to go to bed. But now that I sleep in Allison's room, she's sure to put a small nightlight on - that way neither of us are scared! Woof!)

Everyone - even grown-ups - get afraid. 

Big Bear, who understands that everyone has fears, gives Little Bear a present to help: a tiny light! Guess what though? Little Bear still can't sleep. Big Bear continues to give Little Bear bigger and bigger lights - until he decides that Little Bear needs to see something outside...

With an ending that will encourage all little ones to face their fears and find bravery next to a friend, this book earns two paws up. The warm, fire-lit illustrations and obvious love between the big and little bears make this one of my favorites. Read it and remember that a bright friend (or mama or daddy or grandparent or sibling) can cheer up the darkest night and banish the worst fears.

Off to Allison's dark (but with a nightlight) room! Aroo!

Yours in Salty-Sea Bravery and Bedtime Stories,

Sam I Am

Homeward Bounds: Adventures and the Glories of HOME

Hi!

     After a few days without Allison - she left me to go on an adventure to someplace called New Hampshire - we're back together again. I was a little confused when I would go to sleep and she wasn't there, but now she has lots of stories to tell me! Allison visited her friend Amy, went to a Mexican restaurant in a big city, and saw a movie called Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. New places, new food, friends! Exciting! Woof!

     Of course, I reminded Allison that we still have a lot of territory to explore nearer home. There are those strange cooing pigeons to chase, friends like Holly and Chance to visit, and endless trees and shrubs to sniff. Laughing, Allison ruffled the fur around my ears and assured me that she wouldn't be adventuring without me again for awhile. At this, I let my tongue loll happily and started a game of chase-me-look-you-can't-catch-me-if-I-dive-under-the-couch. Minutes later, satisfied and panting hard, I settled in Allison's room for a bit of reading. This next book is about a dog - a little like me with his big paws and big curiosity - who loves to explore.  

  

Click me for more on the author.

Marjorie Flack's Angus and the Ducks details the adventures of a Scottish terrier named Angus. One day Angus decides to explore more of the world beyond his home and his couch - to eventually find that while adventures are grand, it's always great to have a house and family to come home to. Human-pups will love Angus' fiesty determination and all that he encounters on his day out (including ducks!). The old-fashioned illustrations are what Allison calls "elegant," and Angus' curiosity highlights the kinds of questions human-pups might have about their world. One paw up for this Prek-K read. Ruff! You may also want to check out Angus Lost and Angus and the Cat by this author!  

 Lots of questions and reflections; a curious pup wants answers!

Whew! I'm dog-tired from that game and that reading. I think I'll go curl up under Allison's night table. She's promised me a new adventure for tomorrow, so I'd better rest up! In any case, I'm glad she's home. Arooooooo!

Ever curious, but loving Home,

Sam I Am

To Sleep Perchance to Pant and Dream?

Hi!

     My humans recently decided that I need more exercise and adventure to help me go to sleep every night. A little pup like me has so much energy that when it gets to be bedtime, I can't help but howl and whimper in protest. So Allison, murmuring again and again "such a little baby," has been making sure I get to try new things every day. That'll give me lots of good things to think about so I can fall asleep.

    On Sunday my family brought me to a place called Colts State Park. I'd never seen so much sparkly blue water before! Nevermind the tangy, salty smell of the rocks, the many trees to wander through, and the yummy bit of hamburger I nipped up from a plate left behind by another family! I got to trot along the water (the "bay," Allison calls it), and I even made some new friends. A group of human-pups leaped around, petting me and lowering their faces for licks. Aroooooooooo! The sun was going down and making the water all glittery, and I was soooo happy to romp.

Gotta say hi to my fans. Woof!

Feeling wolf-like atop a rock looking at the pretty water.

View from the pier.

     Then after some lazy time yesterday in the backyard (my humans read books and planted vegetables and painted things, while I gnawed my rawhide and trotted around), today meant a new road trip. Allison, Rachel, and Suz brought me to a place named "Wickford." More water, lots more boats, and a chipmunk here and there. We had lunch outside on a great big stone table near the North Kingston Library (I even managed to coax Suz into giving me a piece of ham), and then walked around Wickford.

 I had to help Rachel decide which way to go. Pups like me are great with directions. Yip!

    It was just after a stroll down Main Street to sniff peoples' gardens that I saw the ghost....

      We were wandering through a grassy yard with tall, rounded stones sticking up everywhere. Allison called it a "graveyard," and Rachel occasionally shrieked at me to get off the stones because "YOU'RE STANDING ON A DEAD PERSON'S SPOT!" Apparently this was one of the places where humans put the bodies of those humans who have gone to heaven. The stones mark the spots and have names and designs on them. Like this:

 

       Anyway, I saw this wavery, shivery figure in the graveyard. Naturally I started growling. I yowled, I barked, I rawred. I let this strange being know it wasn't going to hurt my family. It just looked at me and then vanished. Harmless. Or maybe I imagined it? My humans were confused, their sight different from a dog's sight. They couldn't see the ghost. In any case the moment went by, and we headed off.

      Now that I'm home again, I'm still kind of anxious about bedtime. When I told Allison, she pulled out three new books. Two about bedtime and one about four friendly ghosts who have an adventure. Here they are:

Llama in Pajamas by Gisela Voss, illustrated by Melissa Sweet, is a simple but cute story about a baby llama (kind of like a horse and a sheep put together) who tries to avoid bedtime and his pajamas. This book for human pups has paper flaps for little paws to lift, following the baby llama's hiding spree. The ending will make human-pups giggle (though at last the llama does fall asleep), and the water color style pictures are sure to satisfy. Great for human pups from baby to kindergarten - and best for bedtime! Ruff! Two paws up.

This book, James Stevenson's We Can't Sleep, tells the story of a grandfather's adventures. Grandpa knows Louie and Mary Ann can't sleep; he remembers when he couldn't sleep when he was their age! So this funny human tells the human-pups his great tale of dragons and icebergs and flying chairs during his own sleepless night long ago. Until at last they fall asleep themselves. Two paws up for this comical book and its comic-strip-style pictures. A favorite of Allison's, this one! Best for human pups PreK-K.  

Jacques Duquennoy's The Ghosts' Trip to Loch Ness is my third recommended read. Four very friendly ghosts take a trip (like my trips with my humans!) to the Loch Ness (a big lake in a place called Scotland). In search of an equally friendly monster, the ghosts take pictures, go fishing, and sail around the lake - assisted by MacGhost (and his two Scottish terriers). But they keep missing the monster. Until they return home and look at their photos, that is! Another simple yet unique story with lovable characters. Two paws up and a tail wag for this one; human-pups of the littlest sort will love the ghosts. For more of their adventures, look for The Ghosts' Dinner, The Ghosts in the Cellar, and Operation Ghost.

There is certainly more to life than it seems at first. Ghosts and bays and bedtime stories. You just have to pay attention and see it all as part of life's adventure! Funnily enough, I'm beginning to feel kind of sleepy. *BIG PUPPY YAWN*

                   Good night and good dreams,

Sam I Am