This is the second year someone has turned off the faucet. Rain was promised this week, but never came. I spent most of the week refilling birdbaths and moving the sprinkler around to soak as many plants as possible.

1. I decided my next project will be tackling the vinca on the slope below the walkway on the side of the house. The vinca is invading my neighbor’s lawn so the situation can’t be ignored any longer if I want to remain on speaking terms with them.

In the past few years I’ve added 3 dwarf fruit trees, a bush cherry, several liatris, a rhododendron and a hosta to the slope and they’re all being swallowed up by the vinca. It’s hard to take a picture of it because it’s such a mess.

2. I knew there was an oak seedling lurking in there, but didn’t know there was a Japanese barberry and a tree of heaven too.

3. On Thursday, all thoughts of gardening stopped.

Usually, you see bears early in the morning or toward evening, and then only briefly. They’re not interested in stopping by for a visit, they’re only interested in food.

So, I was shocked when a bear popped up around noon in the backyard with two tiny cubs. This is probably the same mom who raised the four cubs last year.

She went across the street to a neighbor’s yard where they crawled up into an oak tree and the cubs took a nap. Mom then roamed the neighborhood looking for food. She even drained my hummingbird feeder.

4. The picture below was taken by my neighbor through her window.

It must be just as hard getting two bear cubs to move in the same direction at the same time as it is with human twins. After a couple of hours, Mom finally got them back across the street. Just when I thought it was safe to go outside, they popped up on the hill in my backyard again.

5. I’m sure she couldn’t hear me screaming inside the house. “Noooooooo! My plants!! Not my plants!!”

Mom was thorough. She scoured every inch of the backyard looking for food. She even checked the blueberry plants.

6. Six long, anxious hours (anxious for me, not for her) after she first showed up, she finally got both cubs headed in the same direction and left.

Check out the lovely, carnivore-free garden created by The Propagator, the mastermind behind Six-On-Saturday. Then enjoy amazing gardens from around the world in the comments.