Thoughts For August

It's hard to believe how quickly this summer has gone.  I began the summer a bit giddy with the fact that I wasn't teaching until mid-July.  Now that class is over (I finished up last Friday), I am wishing for some of the time back! little j begins school in just 18 days and then I start a week later. 

They say that late July and August are the "dog days of summer."  For us this is literal.  We brought home our new labradoodle puppy, Cowboy, on July 28.  At just 9 weeks old he may be the smartest dog we've had.  He already knows "come" and "sit."  We're able to take him out into the yard without a leash and he sticks close to us; even when he gets a little far he comes right away when we call.  Really, we couldn't be happier with him. 

Our vegetable garden started off so promising.  But the weather has been incredibly hot and dry and I didn't keep up with it.  We still have peppers and some tomatoes, but the rest is pretty much gone. Next year I really need to come up with a new watering system.  I think a drip irrigation system is probably the best choice.  The problem is that we get major rain and then things get too wet.  I have a hard time guaging exactly how much water things need.

Also on the garden front, we have some major plans for the yard in terms of landscaping.  It's going to take a lot of work, but we are hoping to replace a major chunk of our front yard lawn with flower gardens.  Then on the side of the house we have plans for more shade gardens.  Plus, I know Big J really wants a shed, so hopefully we can make that happen in the next year.

We've only been camping once this year and I know it is something we want to do more of, but honestly the weather is just so not conducive to camping.  We'll have to wait until fall.