Summer!

It is summer at our house- and we are so far loving every minute of it!

I had always wondered where the phrase "Dog days of Summer" came from- and I of course googled it.

So here you have it.

Back during the time of ancient Rome, people living around the Mediterranean Sea noticed that the brightest star in the sky, Sirius, rose and set with the Sun during mid-summer. Sirius is also known as the dog star and is part of the constellation called Canis Major, or the Big Dog.

Sirius is so bright, that it is believed ancient Romans thought it contributed to the heating of the Earth.

Because Sirius rose and set with the Sun, known as conjunction, the period of the year 20 days before the conjunction and 20 days after became known as the dog days of summer, when temperatures were usually very hot and crops got little rain.

Although real dogs tend to pant more during the summer because of the heat, they really don't have anything to do with the origination of the phrase "dog days of summer."

This is right by our house in Genola, and right on my hiking route, and if you plan it just right, it has just about the prettiest sunset ever!

Our neighbors raise hounds, and this is their newest addition, a little female named Lucky. She is so dang cute, and even little Brian thinks so too ;)