Dog Days

Are you keeping cool?  It's tempting to just stay indoors in the AC but Cassie and I still venture down to the garden a couple of times a day to pull a few weeds, enjoy the view, and contemplate the miracle of a flower.  It's nice and shady down there early and late, although since we took down that huge oak in the spring, there's been several hours of direct sunlight in the afternoon, allowing for the waterlily and trumpet vine to finally produce some flowers.  Hooray!  All that hard work and expense paid off in blossoms.

Cassie likes to gaze into the pond for another reason too:  the frogs.  This week, there are two rather small ones, but they're fast.  She likes to watch them float up to the surface, then she puts her nose almost on top of them, and they zoom away.  Then the process starts all over again.  Can you see the little guy's head sticking up out of the water?

And aren't those waterlilies breathtaking?  I just love the layers of arrow-shaped petals tinged with pink and the bright yellow center - just gorgeous!

     You're probably wondering what else I've been doing for the past two months, besides admiring the flowers.  I have to admit, I have been doing a lot of gardening and other yard work, especially when the weather is not too hot.  Our yard has several huge challenges: the slope of the land, very poor clayey soil, and deep shade behind the house.  In the last few years, my DH has been driving his little ATV up and down the hill (it was a  huge help when we were putting in the garden three years ago) and that has eroded the soil on the sloping path from front to back.  Last summer he spent a lot of time and effort trying to dig "French" drains, but I'm not sure they're working as well as we hoped.  I'm furiously planting english ivy and spreading pachysandra in an effort to slow things down in the planted spaces, but the path has been quite an ongoing challenge.

Our front yard also has some challenges.  We had a trampoline here for a year or two (because it's almost the only somewhat flat spot) and that caused part of the grass to die off.  Rather than replace it, we decided to expand the front foundation garden, which was overcrowded anyway.  So late this spring, we defined the area with edging, and moved some of the smaller bushes out. I scattered some seeds that my daughter picked up and I put in some marigolds and salvia to help get us through the rest of the summer.  We'd eventually like to put in a small flagstone patio area, just enough for a small table and two chairs, so we can sit out here on in the sun on warmer afternoons in the spring and fall. And then I'd love to fill it with perennials, like an old fashioned country garden.  The front gets a good deal of sun so we can actually plant dahlias, hollyhocks, sunflowers, and all kinds of colorful, tall bloomers!  Next year...

And of course, the summer is also the busiest time of year for the Youth Services dept. of the library.  I worked four days a week for the last 6 weeks and when I got home, I often just wanted to sit and chill out with a cold drink and a good book.  And of course, my DH has been traveling again, which leaves me in charge of our 3 lovelies.  They're pretty self-sufficient at this point, but still need a parent around.  I've been doing quite a bit of reading as well, now that I'm leading one of the adult book discussion groups.  Among my favorites this summer were Clara and Mr.Tiffany by Susan Vreeland, The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian, and The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (which will be released in the movies in October).  Looking forward to that!

And yes, I have been puttering around my art table now and then, but not as much as I'd like.  Norma guessed correctly when she said my plan is to make a library.  All summer, I've been collecting discarded books and their jackets and cutting them up for collage.  I'm making progress, but it's slow, and I think I'll still need more.  Luckily, titles cannot be copyrighted, and I'm using mostly the book spines and trying to choose texts that are old enough to be in the public domain.  I'm considering adding some color with paint and stitch, after everything is glued down.  It's very slow going.  Our deadline is Sept. 8th, so I still have a few weeks.  Now that work isn't as hectic, I hope I'll have more energy to continue working in the evenings.

Cassie's Vacation

Unfortunately, Cassie doesn't get to go on most vacations with us, but when we stay at our family's vacation home in the Poconos of Pennsylvania, she always tags along.  This year we only stayed a few nights, and the first two were very wet, so we spent a lot of time meandering through the woods looking at the scenery.  Cassie always wanted to wander way up along this ridge behind the house but I was a little leery of bears, so we didn't wander too far.  We did see bears one evening, a mother with three cubs, but we watched them from the safety of the house (and unfortunately, weren't quick or close enough to snap any photos!).

Mostly, we enjoyed the little vignettes we saw along the way, like this little fairy house at the base of a tree trunk, below...

... this little toadstool growing next to a moss-covered rock,...

... and this lovely landscape of ferns and lichens growing on top of a large boulder.

We also both enjoyed relaxing on the screened-in porch, reading, napping, or just watching the scenery.  On rainy mornings, the girls slept in, but we did manage to have a few nice afternoons at the community's pool and beach, while Cassie kept cool here.

There's an abundance of flat pieces of shale in the area, and I couldn't resist collecting some along the way.  These rocks will make great edging for my pond back at home!  Now that I've had a few days of R&R, I can't wait to get back to work on it!

Winter Wonderland

It's been looking and feeling very wintry around here (after all, it is January).  Last night we got a light dusting of snow that was made up of fairly large, beautifully formed flakes.  I tried to photograph them here.  The camera's built-in macro isn't quite good enough to get a great shot, but at least you get a sense of the sparkle and shine everywhere this morning.  Here are some more shots of our winter wonderland.

The two below are from nearby Lake Mahopac, which finally has a good coating of ice.  Some winters it doesn't freeze up at all, and some winters it's completely frozen and people go ice boating and ice fishing.

Lake Casse finally froze over completely and we've been able to venture out onto it.  The dogs have a great time running around and slipping and sliding.

Our next door neighbors have a metal dock, so this afternoon my youngest and I hiked down there with our skates.  I cleared the snow from a small area so we could skate a bit.

It was still a bit bumpy and we only skated for about 15 minutes or so.  It always feels so good to take those stiff, heavy skates off and put comfortable, warm boots back on!  With all the hiking down there, clearing the snow, skating, and hiking back up, I've gotten my exercise for the day!

My skate tracks left a funny pattern in the snowy ice.

Here is the moon rising over the lake a few afternoons ago.  Tonight the moon is full:  I'll have to check out the winter wonderland at night!

A Dog's Life

 When we first got Cassie three years ago, it was a bit of an adjustment for me.  She required a lot of time and energy, and although the girls swore up and down that they would walk her and play with her, they were on the bus by 7 am and the morning routine fell to me.  At first it was difficult to give up the extra time, but now I've worked it into my routine.  Here's what our day is like:

 After the girls get on the bus, Cassie and I walk around to the backyard and enjoy the sunrise.  Sometimes she rolls down the slope and gets a nice back scratch on the way down.

 Then we sort of pootle around the yard a bit.  Sometimes I do some weeding or some exercise.  Cassie sniffs everything...

 and rolls a little more!

 Sometimes she finds a nice stick to chew...

 or we have a catch with a ball or a frisbee.

 Very often, Sophie and Sandy from next door are out sniffing about too.  Sandy is still a playful puppy and she always looks forlornly over the invisible fence to see if we'll come over to play.

I usually bring Cassie over there on the leash a couple of times a week so they can both blow off some extra energy.

 As you can see, they greet each other very enthusiastically.  No one says hello better than a dog!

 After hello, we all run around to the backyard.  Sandy loves to fetch so she usually brings me a ball.

 While she keeps me busy throwing, Cassie wanders around sniffing out chipmunks along the rock walls.  She usually makes her way all the way down to the water and can't resist a swim! (She can't do that at our house because of our Invisible Fence).

 After her swim, she smells like the lake!  Sandy doesn't mind.  They chase each other a bit...

 and then discover they can get up on the trampoline (a couple of trees came down on it last winter, so it's now pretty much defunct for jumping, but easier to climb on if you're a dog).

 As you can see, it's covered with leaves and still has a little lopsided bounce left in it.  They have a great time jumping and rolling around!

 I throw their balls up there and now it's a real dog playground!

That is one happy dog!

 Before we head home for breakfast, Cassie rolls a little bit more while I enjoy the scenery.  It's another beautiful fall morning.

Sometimes Cassie needs to be hosed off before we go in for breakfast, depending on how much dirt sticks to her fur after her swim.  Today she's pretty clean so I just towel her off and we head in.  In nice weather, I can leave her outside all day because of that invisible fence.  But if the weather is wet, she stays inside and naps...

We have one or two other short play sessions in the afternoon or evening.  She loves tug-o-war indoors or out.

Finally, it's dinner and bedtime.  What a life!

Cassie's 3rd Birthday

 Yesterday was Cassie's 3rd Birthday!  For a fun change of pace, I walked her to one of her favorite places early Friday morning:  Lake Casse beach.  The beach juts out into the water and is fenced off on one side, so it's pretty safe letting her off the leash to run and roam.  This time of year there are not a lot of people around and she's able to frolic, splash, and play.  (I always have some treats in my pocket to entice her to come if I need to get her back on the leash.) The morning was sunny and a bit crisp, just beautiful!  I didn't have my camera with me, but I had my phone and was able to snap these shots.

We found this beautiful spot off to one side where these irises are in bloom.  It was a perfect Spring morning.  Happy Birthday, Cassie!