Lazy days of spring?

I love the smell of fresh-cut grass. The problem is that we have to actually cut the grass to get it.

We have about an acre lot. I seriously don’t mind pushing the mower around the front and side yards. I actually volunteer on sunny days so I can multi-task: mowing, tanning and walking all at the same time.

The backyard is another story. Thanks to some friendly moles, it’s like a dozen land mines went off back there. It is very lumpy mowing and hard to push. I am still recovering from mowing three days ago. (Cue the violins, please.)

With my chronic back problems, I usually just leave the backyard to my big, strong husband. But I was trying to be nice this weekend since he was suffering from allergies. I never did finish and now I’m sitting here at the computer, avoiding the physical labor and, essentially, watching the grass grow.

Short-term solution: I gave Jim some allergy medicine so he can finish. I realize, though, this is my responsibility, so I am hoping it will be sunny after work tomorrow so I can tackle it before I need a scythe.

Long-term solution: I’m hoping our friendly woodchuck will chase away the moles so we can have our yard back!

It also would be nice if someone invented a candle with the fresh-cut grass smell. (Heck, they’ve got them for everything else!) That way I can burn the candle while relaxing in the hot tub and feel like I’ve accomplished something without moving one lazy bone in my lazy body. Ahhh …

How much wood ...

Talk about a WILD birthday party.

We had a little get-together today with Jim's family for Carter's upcoming birthday. It was a summer-like day with temps in the 80s so we spent some time outside, enjoying the sunshine.

At one point I hear Jim yell, "Robyn, get your camera! Hurry!" So I get out near the side yard and everyone's talking about some animal they saw. Was it a beaver? Was it a woodchuck? Where did it go?

The scary part is that this wild thing is allegedly living under our steps that cut through our landscaping area in the back yard. So we decide to camp out on the back deck (with camera in hand, of course) until it makes another appearance.

We didn't have to wait long. Out comes this woodchuck that really looks like an obese gopher that ate a squirrel or something fluffy. It just meanders about, eating some dandelions while I snapped pictures and recalled the only other time I saw a woodchuck.

I was probably 10 or 11 and our dog Boomer discovered a woodchuck in our woodpile (go figure). He had that thing cornered but it made a run for it and Boomer ended up chasing it in circles around the tree.

Dad had a brilliant idea that he would whack that woodchuck on the head with a baseball bat. It was literally like watching the "whack-a-mole" game where you wait for the right moment to bop a varmint on the head.

So around and round Boomer and the woodchuck go. Dad readies the bat for a swing, and unfortunately his timing was off. He saw the woodchuck, but by the time the bat came down, it was Boomer's head that took the blow. That was the only case I've heard of a dog getting a concussion.

I had to call Dad tonight to ask him how he ever did get rid of the woodchuck -- in case we need to try something. Did he shoot it or what? "No, he got away," Dad said, "while we were driving Boomer to the vet!"

Hmm... I think we'll look for another solution.