My daughter brought a book for the dogs last weekend. Inside a Dog, What dogs see, smell and know.  Truth is our dogs aren’t getting along as well as we had hoped. Yesterday, was the first day they didn’t have a fist fight. This morning, they even woke up next to each other on our bed and no one was growling.

Sunny skies and 15 degrees predicted for the next two weeks. It is likely, the last of the good weather and we know we need to make the days count…

E started to stain the wood trim for the window exteriors and I went boldly up to face the garden.

Ughh.. what a mess… What isn’t dead is overgrown and messy and frankly I am unhappy with the whole thing. I started to prune back some of the shrubs and then went all George Washington on them and cut them right back. Three or four were dug out completely and thrown on the burn pile.. I broke my last two shovels getting rid of one of the trees.

If they don’t have scented flowers, and tolerate drought conditions I really don’t have time for them anymore.. It is just too disheartening.. Time to face the fact that this garden is not the garden I had in Ladner.

I need to accept and adapt.. The rhodos and azaleas I brought with me are long since dead. I should probably give up on my last hydrangea too.

The Mexican Orange, Mock Orange, Russian Sage and ornamental grasses survived. The roses and peonies are near death but can be saved. I’ll just keep cutting back and digging out til the dead is gone then decide what to keep.. sigh.. It’s sad….. If next summer’s garden is as sad after we have added all the water tanks we have added, I may let the deer have it as a playpen…

I’m hoping the psychology in the dog’s book will make all the difference to the peace and tranquility in our house. I’m not too confident though, as I feel the fact that neither dog can read is

a huge handicap