Back to Normal?

It has been a while since I talked about gardens. Mine is faring better since some major downpour quenched its thirst. I keep exotic potted plants near my kitchen entrance that enhance my approach and make an inviting view as you might agree. I have spent very little time gardening out of apathy, overwhelming heat or you tell me, but in truth I stopped counting how little time I was gardening. This was the year I finally walked through it more than worked in it.

My old training manual and the destruction evidence!

This said, the arrival of Limo in the garden has been more problematic for me than in the house. In the house he is my shadow and with the odd exception when he has run off to pee on my dining room carpet because I have let too much time lapse since his last draining. All in all, very few accidents and I think he is beginning to let me know that he has to go out. On his first morning home I fed him and figured I would have time to make coffee and have a toast – WRONG! When you feed a puppy it goes in one end and almost simultaneously comes out the other.

I trained Taxi to mostly use the garden for her business and did not avail myself of the wonderful parks around my house. For her part Taxi was very dainty and gentle dog everywhere. Limo is not, well maybe he will be. Limo will not be trained that way. Upon arrival he quickly created a new path through my glorious bed of Hosta plantaginea, a wonderful white flowering with a jasmine fragrance. Well, that will not do! Puppy or not, he will learn. Now a towering trash can sits guarding the entrance to his path to focus him away from there.

Having a puppy in your life takes a little getting used to. Whether you like it or not it is pretty much like a baby with the exception that this one likes to lick its butt. I surveyed my house prior to Limo’s arrival and really did not change much of anything. He has been incredible self disciplined and has only destroyed three baby basketball with a noise doodah in them, a soft baseball, another medium-size green ball, and a soccer ball within hours of receiving these tributes. Another neighbor gave me and a stuffed raccoon that managed to survive almost three days until he performed ear surgery and started eating out the brains stuffing. Only Taxi's Kong and a funny shaped football made out of steel hard rubber endure and keep him focused.

Newton Creek

My life has changed and for the better. I have a new routine that someone else is first. He has to be fed, walked, put to sleep in the middle of the day so he can grow while he sleeps. He gets walked three times a day, fed just as many and poop patrol just as many as well. By the way, he now weighs 25 pounds he has more than doubled in size since I posted the picture introducing him. I have also lost eight pounds since he arrived in my life. I have walked at least fifteen miles since he came on the scene.

Fortunately the Newton Creek is four blocks from my house. It is a small estuary to the Delaware River with fish, plants, turtles, Canada Geese and Limo loves it. I am actually enjoying my walks at 7AM. You may all think I am a wuss, but I have always been a night person reading and working into the wee hours of the morning and getting up later than most – no longer! Although I am training Limo to wake up later he is now getting up at 7AM instead of 5AM. With any luck I will train him into a bit more of my schedule and get up at 8AM. Taxi, was very well trained, she did not stir until I got up. With any luck Limo will learn my bad habits.

Strike a pose!

Water Lilies at Newton Creek

Pickerel Weed (Pontederia cordata)

Invasive Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

Invasive Mexican Bamboo or Japanese Knotweed in bloom (Polygonum cuspidatum)

So my life is back to normal. It is Limo, not Taxi anymore, although I have slipped calling him Taxi. We are walking everywhere. Last Saturday I took him to our farmer's market and he charmed everyone. Besides the shoppers, it was a parade of puppies and children. Who says that this economic crisis has slowed down baby production? Initially, he was apprehensive with the crowds, but in no time he adjusted just as long as I stayed tethered. One of the vendors is a baker specializing in Animal Crackers and Limo was treated to a sampling of liver, turkey and something else. Oh, to be a puppy!