puppies to go in the mulch, they will continue. My dog knows exactly what the word 'pinestraw' means when she's in the yard. It's another one of those 'ounce of prevention' things. Good luck teaching those older dogs new tricks, though!

HUGE difference in a shady area. Douglas has some good ideas for you. I'm a big proponent of mixed Fern and Hosta beds using both native and exotic ferns for a wonderful mix of different sizes, colors and textures. Since you're in Atlanta, you may want to swing by Georgia Perimeter College and take a stroll through their fern garden. George Sanko up there has a world class collection of shade plants. I doubt you're going to get any ornamental grasses to grown in that location, most of those are full sun animals. Depending on the soil, you might get Daphne to grow (which is a little finicky but smells AMAZING). A good go-to shrub for shade is Japanese Pieris, which will bloom white in winter, and loves some good shade. You might also want to look at some of the newer cultivars of Aucuba such as 'Picturata' for a backdrop planting.

news all over the place. ANYTHING you do on top of it for the rest of time is going to be doomed from the start. If concrete is not mixed correctly, it will not be as strong as it should be. You paid for properly laid concrete. If you didn't get it, they still owe you a properly laid slab. If the concrete arrived in wrong proportions, that is their fight with the supplier, not your problem.