Finally It's Spring

Spring has finally come. The Bradford pear trees are all in bloom including the one in my front yard. It has more blooms than in any previous years I've spent the past few days tidying flower beds, trimming and planting bushes. Here are a few pictures of spring at our house.
Happy Spring!

Around the House

Today was a beautiful sunny almost warm Saturday. I spent today working around the house, inside and outside. This morning, I got caught up on some routine house work. Miss T helped out so the work went quickly.

After lunch I tackled a very neglected flower bed by weeding, weeding, and weeding! Did I mention there were a lot of weeds? I also removed some old posts and filled in the holes. As I worked, I thought about how nice it will look when the climbing roses (I planted last fall) cover the lattice screen my husband and I built. I'm going to fill in the area under the lattice with daylilies. I can get them from my mother in law. She grows prize winning dayliles. (Thanks Mom!) I was also thinking about putting a bench that we found in a neighbor's trash and fixed up to provide a nice shady place to sit on a summer afternoon.

My parents in law came over in late afternoon to check on my progress and to bring pizza. It was a nice visit. Mom always has good suggestions. Their yard is always so beautiful. They live on a busy highway and people frequently stop by in the spring to ask if they may take pictures. They always have some kind of gardening project going.

Tomorrow after church (if it's still warm & sunny), I hope to plant the basil and mint I bought at the feed store yesterday. If you want to get a real taste of spring, go to the feed store. The peeping of chicks and ducklings, and all the vegetable plants, seeds and flowers make you want to dig in the dirt and contemplate growing things. Right now in our small town , that's where the action is. There are not only farmers and gardeners, but parents bringing in their children to see the baby chickens and ducks.
Sometimes it is the simple places and things that bring the most pleasure.

Simple Inspirations

Here are some words to live by for today.

"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going."-Beverly Sills

"God made man, and then said 'I can do better than that' and made woman."- Adela Rogers St. John

"If you can't make it good, at least make it look good" - Bill Gates

"They may become harder to achieve, but your dreams can't stop because you've hit a certain age." - Dara Tores (I like this one best.)

"In our society, the women who break down barriers are those who ignore limits." - Arnold Schwarzenegger

'The trouble with talking nicely is that, unfortunately some people don't hear you until you scream." - Stefani Powers

"He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life." - Muhammad Ali

Waiting for Spring

It is a quiet morning at my house with the exception of Maddie the Lab's snoring. My husband worked night shift last night, so today calls for quiet activities while he sleeps. I woke up at 5am in order to have a quiet cup of coffee and Bible reading before my husband came home and my teenage granddaughter woke up and prepared for school. I love the quiet and calm of early morning.
This morning I've read some inspiring blogs that speak to the creative, home making person that I strive to be. They've also awakened a longing to sit in a sunny place this afternoon and wait for spring. While I wait, (You know me, always multi-tasking.) I want to stitch on a cross stitch blanket for my next grandchild due in September. When I'm sitting in the yard, I'll also visualize future projects like laying more brick pavers or adding more bushes that flower and attract the birds. I'll also watch the wren (who we call " Miss Priss") scrounge around for bugs while the yellow finches fight over the feeders. If I'm lucky, I'll hear the pair of cardinals chirping and waiting patiently for me to go inside so that they can have a turn at the feeders.
Supper will be simple tonight. I've promised Miss T that we'll have a breakfast for dinner. I'll use the eggs I bought at the Windmill Market from a nice couple who raise yard chickens. I'll make toast using the sourdough bread I made yesterday. Of course living in the South means a pot of grits. I'll fry some bacon, but alas I can only have one slice. High cholesterol is a problem for me. I have some apples so I could make an apple raisin salad. I don't think I've ever made it for Miss T.
But right now, I'm in the mood for a cup of tea. I think I'll also have a bowl of Cheerios to help gobble up some of that bad cholesterol in the bacon. In a while, Maddie the Lab will require one of her walks to stretch her legs (and mine). But first, I'm waiting for it to warm up and yes, I'm waiting for spring.

Small Things, Big Joy

As I sat on the patio reading my Bible and a daily devotional, I enjoyed the cool and quiet of early morning. That period of time after Miss T gets on the bus and before my house and pets call for me to get busy is my favorite time. I have had a feathered companion on the past few mornings. A very young and a little scraggly looking male cardinal has been nearby. When I sit with Miss T on the front porch waiting for the bus, he chirps his greetings from the tree in the front yard. When I gather my devotional materials and head for the backyard, he joins me. He chirps from the bushes and occasionally joins the other birds for a snack at the feeders. He doesn't seem to mind Maddie's company as long as she is sitting quietly by my side. I've really come to look forward to his morning visits. It makes me slow down for just a bit and feel pure joy, no matter how busy the day ahead looks or what trials I have to contend with.
I guess I entitled this entry small things because this small bird doesn't doesn't take up much physical space on this earth, but he creates a joy that is so big it can't be measured.

Weekly Favorites

Here it is the last Sunday in August. I had a devotional time early this morning on the patio. I'm currently going through My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers. As I enjoyed the peace of early morning, a flock of geese flew low over my house. I watch them fly over each morning, and sometimes I catch their evening fly over. It always fills me with joy. I started to think about things that bring me joy. Some days it is an easy thing to do. Some days the list is very long and other days I have to stretch my thinking to find it. Joy is always there, it's just that sometimes it is buried under the every day busyness and struggles. So in an effort to make myself uncover that joy that gets buried in life, I am going to post an occasional joy list. Perhaps everyone could think about their own joys and add to it. So here goes.
A Joyful Sunday
1. the sound of geese on a quiet morning.
2. a good cup of coffee. (My son Jim's is the best)
3. the smiles of my grandaughters
4. a fall sunset
5. a day when I've accomplished everything I've set out to do.

Garden Update

Maddie checks things out and gives me updates through out the day. I do sometimes detect a little "onion" breath.
The pole beans are putting out runners and climbing the wire. The bush peas seem a little slow, but we'll see.
We ate our first yellow squash a couple of days ago. We are going to be up to our eyeballs in them real soon. The zucchini should be ready to pick tomorrow. I like them grilled the best. The cucumbers are climbing the trellis and it won't be long before we'll see little cucumbers. Some of the tomato plants already have little tomatoes. I'm looking forward to "homegrown" tomatoes versus "store bought".
Maddie so far has only tasted the onion tops. She is more likely to just walk among the plants and sniff. However, I did fence off the beans and peas to protect them from her big feet!