Boundaries!

Although the days get very hot, we still have a few morning hours during which outdoor play is almost comfortable. That's the "Savannah Hour" around our house. She is the only one of the three Westies I have had who truly loves to be outside. So I give her every opportunity to go out and play.

This is a rare moment for Savannah - she has just had a bath and is clean! She will remain this way for another five minutes. And that is because her favorite spot these days is around the storage shed in the corner of the backyard. I had stapled a wire enclosure around the bottom of the exposed sides of the shed back when Treasure used to explore back there. It was easy to block off the two openings to the back of the shed as she was less curious than Savannah and, frankly, more obedient!

So last Sunday afternoon Murphy came by the house and called for Savannah to come inside. We looked for her and couldn't find her anywhere in the backyard. Finally, I got down on the ground and looked under the shed and found her right in the middle of all the dirt and leaves and {probably} lizards! It took several pieces of chicken treats to coax her out and then came the question of how to keep her from getting underneath again. I thought I had blocked the openings in the back, but my little scamp had moved some bricks out of her way and gained entrance!

This side is successfully blocked off, but she manages to put her little face up over the pilings,

looking for her lizards.

So Monday morning Graham went to Lowe's and bought some pointed stakes, stapled some wire fencing to them, and secured them into the ground to block off the back sides of the shed. I expected her to be frustrated, even determined to get over or around the fence, but she has taken it all in stride.

In fact, when she goes out the door she heads straight for this side of the shed. After checking both sides and seeing that the fences are still there, she will sit herself down right here and wait for the lizard to come out and crawl around the door to the shed. And with Westie concentration she will sit for nearly an hour just watching that ole lizard move from one side of the shed to the other!

And that's how we are spending our summer!

Dog Days

The Texas heat dropped in last month and seems to have taken up residence for the time being. By noon it is really too hot to do much of anything. Even the water in the pool is too warm! About the only things stirring are the lizards and the birds around the feeders. And thus, a new obsession is born in my Westie. She has spurned the pool and Mr. Polaris for the less taxing job of staring at lizards.

First, she discovered the lizard crawling along the brick outside the front door. So it was easy to just leave the door open and let her gaze through the glass. Nice and cool, and provided hours of uninterrupted obsessing!

Then, when she was in the backyard, she discovered the lizard crawling around on the storage shed. Now there's a new location for obsessing. Trouble is, it's so very hot outside and she doesn't mind hanging out in the dirt and leaves back there. So what I get when she comes in for a water break is a very stinky, dirty dog! Happy, but dirty! But that's okay, because, after all, these are the "dog days" of summer.

Meanwhile, I'm staying inside and trying to find activities that don't bring a sweat to my brow. I'm reading about my daughter and niece who are busily cooking and canning and thinking that I could be doing some of that myself. Years ago I cooked up a batch of bread and butter pickles that were pretty good, and we did have a pretty nice crop of small cucumbers this summer. So I googled up a recipe and sliced a bunch of cucumbers and, presto!, out came some beautiful pickles!

This is actually the second batch I've made. Most of these cukes came from the Farmer's Market as my plants have succumbed to the heat. Spurred on by Meredith's salsa and Barbaranne's jams, I think this could be a very productive summer after all.