That Little Dog

Charlie has a job to do. Well, he thinks he has a job to do.

He is watching the trees for squirrels. The squirrels like to come and clean up any seed on the ground near the bird feeder that has seed in it. 

I put out a cup of seed each day in the feeder so hubby can enjoy his morning coffee and tell me which birds show up.

Charlie watches the yard for any squirrels. And ... he is diligent.

This is his new mission in life. It's so fun to see him so intent. The one tree is a hickory tree so squirrels climb it often and then dig in the yard and bury the nuts. Charlie is also on top of that. After all, it is good that he has a job.

I'm pretty sure he sees the squirrels this way:

On very hot days though, I have to be careful with him. His short snout makes it hard for him to cool off quickly. I went for a walk on our gravel road with him just to get out and move around. On our way back home Charlie sat down in the shade and stopped.

He was puffing and hot. Bad me! 

I picked him up and carried him most of the way back home. When he got inside, he laid on the cool floor and just stared at me with those big round eyes of his.

Eventually he got up on the couch and relaxed.

This Little Dog has a great life and we know our lives are enriched by having him with us.

Deer Stories

There was Homer, Jethro, and Zelda.

Oh but there were so many more, but those were the three out of about a dozen Sunday morning that caught my eye and the focus of my camera.

While sitting in a tiny blind in the dark and waiting for the deer to may---beee show up and maybe NOT show up can be boring.

However I listened to the birdsong and peeked out as the day went slowly from dark to dim, to sunrise. I heard and saw both Robins and Bluebirds along with the constant cry from the pack of Crows that live nearby. 

A rabbit slowly came out of the brush and nibbled on some plants not far from me. 

Slowly some young deer came out of the woods and entered the meadow. It was a surprise as I'd just looked and they were not there and...then they were.

Pretty quickly there were about 6 deer in the meadow. Some obviously still not yearlings and some does. A couple of young ones played chase and then settled in to nibble in the meadow.

They all turned when a spike buck walked out of the woods. He ignored them and walked over to the neighbor's fence line and jumped it to graze I suppose on the fallen apples.

Soon the another spike buck appeared. I've been seeing them with regularity so I named one Homer and one Jethro.

Homer thinks he is a real stud.

When he started chasing the girls around he did this....

So some gals watched and others just ran off.

Zelda said, NO Way!

Eventually Homer decided to follow.

All in the pursuit of love, right?

Monday morning was a bit of a dud, but I did get to watch a squirrel do some interesting things. We all know they bury nuts right? They do, but this guy did something different.

I know squirrels bury their nuts, but I didn't know that they hid them too!

Here he is burying his nut

and then covering it up with oak leaves.

Isn't nature just amazing?

Squirrels, seeds, and Charlie

Charlie's nemesis is back. The squirrel[s] are going 'nuts' under the hickory tree. Charlie believes that it is his duty to chase them away. 

I told Rich that we should build a ramp for Charlie next to the kitchen window so he can watch all the activity going on in the yard. The poor little guy is so short he can't see unless he is sitting on the porch.

Morris used to lay down on a step in the open stairway so he could view out the windows. Charlie hasn't mastered the stairs which are not carpeted any more, but are wooden. His long body and short legs make it hard for him to go up and down the stairs.

Charlie likes it even better if I put up the little hammock and let him sit in my lap so he can watch the tree above him. 
I have one of the old hammocks with the wooden ends that he will actually lay in on his own, but that is such a pain to put up and take down.

He is really quite happy on nice days to sit on the porch and watch the yard. I have a tie out for him that is a boat anchor. Everyone chuckles at that but in truth, it works so well for him!

He normally lays on the bench and watches the world go by.

As the zinnias start fading now, I am collecting seed heads for next year. However, the Marigolds that reseeded themselves by the porch along with the Nasturtiums are exploding in brilliant colors.

I will plant Nasturtiums for sure again next year, they really added mounds of beautiful greenery and flowers all around the porch. 

I should be able to collect a lot of seeds from these. I have a large board that sits on the old trunk in the kitchen with several bowls. Each bowl has different seeds that I have been collecting. I can recall my Grandmother doing the very same thing each fall. She'd put her seeds into envelopes that she'd saved from her received mail and then carefully label each envelope for her flower garden the next year. She repurposed before her time.

I would love to take out one of those old metal wagon wheels next year and add morning glories to my tiny side garden.

I think this coming winter I will really miss having a flower garden. Most of all, I'll miss the mini gardens I created this summer.

This morning it was cool enough to turn on our heat for a bit. 

Time to get moving with the rest of my day.