the end of winter

We are down to a few islands of snow in the backyard! It's been buried under 6-8" since the first of the year, so I couldn't be happier! Especially with two cabin-fevery kids and two energetic dogs. I managed to get one snowman built this year, and he lasted a good couple of weeks. Then we had a few days of thawing weather, and one night as I returned from walking Daisy (in the pre-Rudy days), I noticed that the snowman looked downright depressed. Previously, he'd held his arms up high and his head tall, but I guess after the loss of his eyes, nose & mouth, not to mention much of his girth, he felt he had nothing left to live for. Sure enough, the next day when I came outside, he'd beheaded himself. Hopefully his snowman spirit lives on! Farewell, Frosty!

dogs in the snow

do I spoil my dog?

It snowed another six or so inches today. (I say another because we got about 4-5 inches on Saturday that hadn't yet melted off the lawns or the streets.) In addition to shoveling the driveway and the walkway this morning (which David was able to help with this time - hooray!), I shoveled off a large patch of grass for Daisy's bathroom needs. I've done this all winter. And really, it's probably more for me than for her. If she traipses out in the snow, she turns into a big snow-blob, which leads to severe tangling and matting, which takes me 2-3 times longer to comb out. Not to mention the puddles around the house as the chunks melt out of her fur. To avoid this, I shovel some potty spots AND put her in either her waterproof jacket or her snowsuit. I only pull out her snowboots when absolutely necessary, though, as she hates them so.

So, while to the uninformed observer it might look like I am spoiling my dog, really I'm just trying to minimize my work. Lazy, yes. Stupid, no.

(If my pictures & such were available and hooked up, I'd share a pic of Daisy in her snowsuit. It's pretty pathetic/hilarious!)