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I recently attended the Krewe of Barkus in McKinney, Texas which is a Mardi Gras for the pet population. The downtown square was blocked off and there were booths, obedience demonstrations, a pet parade, and hundreds of dogs of all sizes. The floats and pet/owner costumes were hilarious—Elvis, Mae West, Clark Gable were present. There was a dachshund dressed like a hot dog, a greyhound adorned as a greyhound bus, and a bichon dressed as a Gucci bag! I walked in the pet parade with my silver buff cocker spaniel puppy, Gabe, whom I carried as he was slightly overwhelmed and not sure what to do. We were dressed in the festive Mardi Gras colors of gold, green, and purple.
 See side bar for information on Sharon's wonderful books for elementary-age children. There is a discounted price on the 5-book series that even includes a darling Nicholas puppet.
See "The Nicholas Collection" at www.hrdpress.com/SharonScott .
| Following the parade, I was sitting with friends holding Gabe. Two children, a girl age 7 and her brother age 5, rushed to pet him. They politely asked permission to pet him and I praised them for asking. While petting him the girl asked if he had won any prizes for best costume. I replied that he had not won. The little boy said, “So he lost?”
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Well, I didn’t want my sweet, gorgeous puppy to be called a loser so I said, “No, he didn’t lose.” The little boy then said, “Then he won?” And I said, “No, he didn’t win either.” The boy looked confused as he could only understand winner or loser. And I was having difficulty explaining that Gabe tried and enjoyed the day’s event so that was enough.
It’s not an either/or in my opinion. Let’s focus—and teach our children—to focus on the enjoyment of the process—not just the end result.
Copyright 2007, Sharon Scott.
P.S. Please see my other column, “The Counselor’s Corner,”about self-esteem and peer pressure.
Sharon Scott, LPC, LMFT, has been making a difference in peoples’ lives for 30 years though her international keynotes and workshops, her eight award-winning books, and her private counseling services. Five of her books are a charming series for elementary-age children that she “co-authored” with her savvy cocker spaniel Nicholas. Each beautifully illustrated book teaches a valuable living skill such as managing emotions in Life’s Not Always Fair, building character in Nicholas’ Values, and making wise choices in Too Smart for Trouble. Sharon’s best-seller for teens is How to Say No and Keep Your Friends, 2nd Ed. Her books are available from HRD Press, 800-822-2801 or www.hrdpress.com/SharonScott . For more information on Sharon’s many workshop topics that she can bring to your child’s school or community, please see her website at www.SharonScott.com.
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Books That Work! By Sharon Scott
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Family counselor Sharon Scott is the author of 8 books including this delightful series for children that is "co-authored" by her savvy cocker spaniel Nicholas who makes learning valuable life skills fun.
 Too Smart for Trouble, a best-selling, award-winning book, teaches children to think on their own and how to say no when asked to do something wrong.
 Not Better... Not Worse... Just Different is must reading for children to learn to be more sensitive to others, avoid bullying and know how to handle teasing.
 Life's Not Always Fair is a child's guide for managing emotions and learning to soothe oneself when mad, sad, scared or confused.
Nicholas' Values is a delightful guide helping children develop good character traits such as honesty, confidence, sharing and so much more!
Too Cool for Drugs helps children learn why and how to say no to drugs--drug education must begin in the home at an early age!
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