Kids and Dogs

Roxy's a cute one! She's not all wagging tails and puppy love, though. 

Whenever Shane (or myself) breaks something, I look at my wife and say "...and this is why we can't have nice things!"

If you can't have nice things with kids, the rule must be you can't have a nice yard with a dog! She LOVES to be outside. She LOVES to dig through mulch to find weed sheet treats underneath.

The dog is lucky that I find the irony of the situation amusing. 

I worked on the yard out of love for my wife.

My wife got the dog out of love for Shane and I.

Our dog loves to excavate.

You can't deny that is one happy dog causing mayhem. 

The weather hasn't helped. There has been more precipitation this winter than any I can remember. It rains and turns the backyard to soup. Then it freezes in the soup position when the temperature plummets. Snow comes and the temperatures rise only long enough for the snow to melt and return everything to the previous muddy state. Roxy tears great furrows sprinting around and then an arctic vortex moves in and freezes her ruts as a permanent part of the terrain.

Then there's me. I don't particularly like to go out and supervise when it's really cold or really wet. When I throw the dog out (and she loves to go out), I know that she's going to run outside of my view and whatever happens in the yard is partly my fault for not correcting her.

There are times when she has too much energy, though. Roxy's a puppy. It will happen. She'll need to run. It's what the yard is for!

I'm hoping that she'll grow out of the digging on her own. If not, I'll have to address it when the weather turns warmer. I wouldn't be surprised if Shane wanted to help her dig to China this summer. I can see it now! My dog and my son covered in dirt in a giant hole.

It'd be hilarious. A cute picture, too. You can bet that I'd record it and post it online. Oh, I'd grunt and grumble about the filling the hole back in and "Those rapscallions! Those rascals!" and all that. I'd tell Shane not to do it again, but I'd be laughing somewhere inside.

Spring and summer are still a ways off, so I'll have to leave the story at "Roxy's the reason why I can't have a pretty backyard!"

Do you think that excuse would get me out of mowing every now and then?