Introducing Billy
FAMILY  COUNCIL
By Delbert Blickenstaff 

We got together for a family council. There’s another new word. We never did this before. It was Dad, Mom, Henry and me because Emily doesn’t talk yet except to say “mama” and “dada.” 

Dad said that we should put Nelly in a dog kennel for a short time so that we can get the house cleaned up real good. We need to remove all the dog hair and dander, another new word. Nelly won’t mind that because she’s been there before when we went on vacation. She likes to see the other dogs. 

The pediatrician gave Emily some medicine to take when she wheezes so she won’t get any worse. Mom said that we could give Nelly to the neighbors. That way we could see her as often as we wanted to but she wouldn’t be living in our house. I didn’t like that idea and I know Nelly wouldn’t like that either. 

Then Henry said something that none of us had thought of. He said we could build a dog house for Nelly so she would have her own house to live in. In the winter we could put her house in the garage so she could keep warm. Dad and Mom both said that was a good idea, and I thought so too. 

So, our family council was a success. We got to keep Nelly. Emily wouldn’t have to live with her. And Nelly would have her own house. Dad and Henry and I built the dog house in one weekend. When we brought Nelly home she seemed as excited about her new house as we were. I’m glad that we found a way to solve our problem so that everyone is happy. 

Billy