November 26, 2011
Dear Mama Jan—
Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving! Today is my birthday and I am 4 years old----I made it to 4, thanks to you and all the wonderful people in the group. Mommy says that Bammer and I will get a special treat later to celebrate. I can’t wait! Love to you, Unkie Bruce, all the humans, and of course the other pupsters. We pray every night that they will all find wonderful homes! Love—
Peace

November 23, 2011
Dear Mama Jan—
My mommy says that I’m totally potty trained! (Sometimes when someone comes, I get nervous and have an accident, but I think I’ll get over that too!) I even go out to the pen during the night. Sometimes Mommy likes to sleep late and I will be very quiet so she can get her rest (don’t know how she can sleep with Bammer snoring all the time!)
Thanks to you and Unkie Bruce and all the other wonderful people in the group, I will be putting my paws together in prayer to thank God for finding me my forever home!! The eye doctor I went to said that I “had hit the Lottery” by getting Mama Helen as my mommy. I didn’t understand what “lottery” meant, but I think he meant that it was a good thing.
Mommy says she will say a prayer of thanks for bring “Peace” to her after a year of turmoil. (I think she means me and some other kind of “Peace”?)
Special prayers and thanks to Aunt Marg and Unkie Jim for bringing me all the way from Michigan.
I miss you all---hugs and kisses to all the humans and of course to my fellow pupsters. Please tell them not to be discouraged, for their day with a forever home will come too and it will be so worth the wait! And in the meantime, they have you and everyone there to care for them and love them.
What a great Thanksgiving!!!
Your loving boy,
Peace

September 9, 2011 Jan,
Peace’s 1st night went well and he’s learning where his bed and doggie door are.
He’s settling in nicely and Bam hasn’t protested yet! (Bam probably thinks this is just a temporary thing.)
Peace follows me everywhere---he’s shy but very curious---hasn’t taken to the toys yet---does he want one with a squeaky in it?
Also, the doggie door---we have a platform when they get outside from the house and then a step down to the potty area.
He only stays on the platform and doesn’t “do” anything. However, when Bam went out, he followed him and went down to the potty area like Bam and did both!
Guess he’ll just follow Bam (thought Bam only goes out a few times a day---has the world’s biggest bladder!)---that’s basically how Toby learned. Is Peace afraid of steps?
He’s such a sweetie!! He’s eating and drinking fine and I’ve even gotten a few “tentative” kissies---can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.
I’m staying home all day so he can get used to Bam, me, the surroundings and our routine.
The first few times I leave, however, I will put him in an area by himself--- I don’t want to come home to a doggie fight! --- I’ll wait and see how they get along.
Love ya,
Helen
PS---Bam sends you, and of course, Unkie Bruce lots of kissies!!!

September 21, 2011 Jan,
Peace poops out in the pen, but almost never will pee there, but pees on the kitchen floor which isn’t a big problem.
He does pee on grass when walked on a leash. What do you have in your doggie pen there?
Is it real grass or is it the “imitation green grassy carpet” like people put on their patio floors?
If it’s real grass, I can get a few pieces of sod and lay them over the stones until he gets the idea. Or if you have the grassy carpeting, I can get a piece of that and lay it down.
I remember Toby also had quite a time of it getting used to the stones.
Peace stands on the little deck and won’t go onto the stone unless he has to poop.
He has no trouble getting up or down from the deck and if I go outside he will jump off the deck and run to where I’m standing outside the pen.
I only put the belly band on at night (don’t want him getting dependent on it) and most mornings it’s still dry.
First thing when I get up, I put him outside, he comes in and a few minutes later he pees in the kitchen (I’m puzzled!)
Otherwise, he is a wonderful little fella and I get all kinds of kissies!!
He and Bam seem to have a “neutrality pact” in effect---“you ignore me and I’ll ignore you”!
Love,
Helen

October 2, 2011 Jan,
Peace is doing so much better on his potty training!
You told me that when you originally got him, he was using the grassy carpeting to do his business in the pen.
With me, he would poop in the pen, but not pee in it. Instead he would pee in the house.
So I went to Home Depot and for $10 I bought some of the grassy carpeting, cut it in pieces
and put it over the stones in the pen, just where the dogs first go down to the ground!
It’s working!! He’s only had 2 “accidents” in the house in 5 days and he used to have 4 accidents per day before.
Since I cut the carpeting in pieces, I can gradually remove a piece at a time as he gets more used to the stones.
(I have some bricks around the edges of the carpeting to hold it down, since it’s only going to be a temporary thing).
He goes out even when he doesn’t have to go, just to hear me praise him and get extra lovies!
Thought I’d tell you about this in case another adoptive parent runs into a problem similar to mine.
Love,
Helen

October 12, 2011 Jan,
Thought you could use a laugh--
Peace, will sit and watch the big screen TV and if I put it on "mute", he looks at me like "what happened?"
Sometimes (as in the pic) he seems to want to climb into the picture to be with who's ever there!
Occasionally he gets frustrated that he can't get into the TV screen and will whimper---he's a riot!
Hope this brought a smile to your face!
Love ya,
Helen

October 14, 2011 Dear Mama Jan,
My new mommy told me that she sent you a picture of me watching the TV.
I just wanted to know if you are going to put it on the website so I can become world famous! (and also so the pupsters in the group can see how I’m doing).
Mom says all her friends she emailed the pic to liked the pic too.
The green carpeting in the dog pen was not enough to keep my attention and remind me where to pee.
So mommy got out some of her pupster books and one idea she found was to put my bed on the places in the house I pee on (after cleaning them up of course).
She puts the bed you sent with me there and it seems to be working.
The spot I was having “forgetfulnesses” on is real close to the doggie door and having a bed there now reminds me not to pee there,
cause as you know, pupsters don’t like to pee-pee where we sleep.
I wear a belly band only at night and most nights I don’t even soil them. Mom helps because she puts me outside right away when we get up.
I was really good yesterday---mommy was gone for 5 hours and she was so proud of me because she came home to a dry floor!
Mom has lots of nice friends and neighbors who come and spoil me---I love it!!!!
I’ve really settled in nicely here and love my new mom and my new home (Bam’s okay, I guess,
but very stand-offish!), but I still want to be world famous by being on the internet---thanks!
Whenever we go in the car, or new people visit, I get real quiet and start to worry.
I still worry that I’m being given away again. Mom tells me she’ll never give me up and to stop worrying. I guess that will just take time.
Love to you, Unkie Bruce and all the pupsters and people up there.
Peace