Are you kidding me?!

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. That’s a groundhog, woodchuck, varmint — whatever you want to call it. And it’s basking in this afternoon’s sunlight on my front garden bench! We’ve had over a week of rain. I’ll share the flood pictures and stories soon. Every critter in the area is soggy. When the sun finally showed up today, this critter decided to make the most of it. Apologies for the fuzzy photo. This was taken through my front kitchen window, which has a screen. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this critter so at ease in my front garden.

And then it got worse:

Look closely.

Again, it’s not a great shot, but if you look carefully, you’ll see TWO groundhogs. Apparently, they have moved in beneath the front walk, the walk that Wonder Spouse and I traverse many times daily. I have never missed my dear departed dogs any more than I did when I saw these critters settled so comfortably so close to my house.

But enough complaining on this FINALLY sunny Fourth of July. I had merely intended to share a spectacular photo of our daylily ‘Siloam Dan Tau’ that Wonder Spouse took this morning, and wish my fellow Americans a Happy Independence Day. So that is what I’ll do now:

So gorgeous, yes?

More garden updates soon, I promise.

Happy Independence Day, ya’ll!