A Sideline View: They call it puppy love ...

Spud and Pip relax in their happy place.

It could be called a mid-life crisis. Or maybe a reaction to the state of the world. Whatever the reason, I just got myself a couple of puppies. Why not! Well, probably several reasons.

First up was my purple-flowered pentstemon, a lush plant in its prime and now a shadow of its former self — it hardly even casts a shadow any more after undergoing a severe pruning.

If tearing at the outdoor potted plant wasn't enough, the four-legged friends headed indoors and attacked my husband's precious Eucharist lily, ripping its tender shiny leaves into shreds. Luckily for them, there were two lilies to keep them busy — both pots now sport one stalk and a straggling partial leaf each. Where there's a bit of green, there's hope.

Back outside again, small muddy holes have begun cropping up in the garden. Just the right size for an unsuspecting foot to twist into. Shame they couldn't aim their dig for the unpopular and abundant Japanese anemone instead of the recently well-tended fern bed.

A real sense of déjà-vu has set in as pint-sized puddles shine where they shouldn't and pointy piles of puppy poop pop up in unsuspecting places. Whoever sees it, cleans it.

Ripping into a good old peruse of the morning newspaper has taken on a new meaning. Claws and teeth pulling and shredding doesn't make for an easy read. Other pieces of household debris have also had to move north — power cords, handbags, couch throws, books, extraneous washing of any sort and, of course, shoes. Not to mention their all-time favourite, the humble pumpkin, which now resembles something from a horror movie.

And wandering out to greet two excitable puppies in the morning wearing a dressing gown is now out of bounds — the pair of furry little critters find the billowing hem enticing enough to leap under and chomp down on the bottom bits, dragging me along with them. Speaking of bounds, they have discovered theirs, bounding off down the path, a spring in their leap as they wriggle through the irises, battling now broken branches and leaving a trail of trampled maidenhair in their wake.

But on the plus side — and of course this far outweighs any possible negatives — as with any new parent, the camera/phone is being lunged for constantly, no time to aim as we try to capture each new photographable moment as they dart about, chase their tails, find new places to explore and burrow into, while trying out their new-found voices and generally being extremely gorgeous. Off to Puppy School tonight — bring it on.