Canada Day (a bit late)

(I found a draft post from the Canada Day weekend that I'd forgotten about. So we're temporarily going back to the pre-sod era.)

Last year, Duncan attended the Canada Day festivities in Spencer Smith Park. This year, it was too hot and humid to hang out in crowded places. So Duncan hung out in the shade of his transplanted grass instead.

Mud is pleasantly cool on a hot day:

Look at those paws!

And there's nothing quite like an ice cube to cool you down:

Flood Damage

It's been a week since the Great Burlington Flood. Our street was lucky, but Duncan and I pass many houses on our walks with dumpsters and piles of furniture, carpet, and drywall outside. To give you a bit more of an idea of how much rain we got, the park path was partially washed out, right at the bridge Duncan likes to take to meet his friends Watson, Ruby and Jasper:

And here's a shot of the damage from the other side of the stream, now back to normal levels. The water was running over the bridge at the height of the flood, not to mention over the path I stood on to take this photo and into the adjacent baseball diamond!

Playdate

Last week, Duncan had a playdate with Owen, Cerys, and Bryn. He had fun running around with them, but he did seem a bit taken aback at Bryn's size!

  

After the Deluge

Sunday Monday evening, Burlington got hit with a very impressive storm! Apparently we got more than 5 inches of rain – two months worth – within a few hours. We regained the pool for a few hours, and Duncan found it an excellent chance to wade a bit and grab a refreshing drink. (Water bowls are boring; he drinks from his only when he's desperate.)

Lamb Chop

Last week, Megan bought Duncan a big Lamb Chop toy. At first, he treated it like all his other toys, killing it and grabbing it when he needed something in his mouth to greet people with. But last night, tired after his excellent day, he discovered that Lamb Chop is also useful as a pillow, and for snuggling with while lying on the air conditioner vent.

Duncan's Most Excellent Day

What a great day! We started off well, lucking into a dog party in the park on our morning walk. There were at least 8 other dogs (it was hard to count!), including his friends Watson and Ruby, and they were able to play off-leash, though it was too hot for running around much.

Then – O Frabjous Day – we laid the sod!! The end of the long, long, pool project. We officially have a lawn. Duncan seems pleased, and was lying in the shade for a while enjoying the cool grass.

And – best of all – Aunt Marnie brought puppy Cerys for a playdate. She's 5 months old now, and already outweighs him by about 10 pounds. And more important, she mostly stands up to him and gives as good as she gets. They had a wonderful time playing together, and the new sod survived remarkably well:

Chewy Bamboo

So after moving 50+ cubic yards of fill and topsoil, we finally have a flat backyard. All it needs is a last-minute final smoothing, and it will be ready for sod next week.

Why does the smoothing have to be last-minute, you ask? Well, we raked and we rollered, and we ended up with a nice smooth surface. And then we let Duncan loose on it. It's no longer smooth!

He's having such a great time playing in the bigger space. We've played ball, tug, and frisbee (he prefers the purple one that Owen gave him to the blue one Santa gave him) as well as kill-the-bamboo.

Here are a couple more pictures from the last week or two. Look at those paws!

Wash? Why?

Duncan's grass provides convenient morning shade to supervise from.