mixed bag

tulips, hyacinth, daffodils, even my christmas cactus is blooming!! we've had rain - my gauge had 2 1/2 inches in it this morning. but today was cold. cold and windy. i planted a columbine a couple days ago when it was soooo warm and they predict frost in some areas tonight so i have to decide if it should be covered...and the plants i ordered came today!! i'm excited to get them in the ground. unfortunately i have to dig some sod first because these are for new beds. beds that don't yet exist. i did dig the outline of one the other day. the other one keeps shifting in my mind. maybe once i actually get behind the shovel it will all become clear. so if the weather cooperates this weekend should see a lot of changes in the local landscape. we need to mow. some spots in the yard need to be pulled up and reseeded. my bike has no front brakes. repairing it is also on 'the list' for this weekend. i would normally be riding to work by now, but it just hasn't fit into the schedule yet. and lets just make a brief mention of the bathroom waiting to be reassembled.....

end of a long week

well the convention is over and our club came home with several awards. unfortunately, my personal favorite was lost!! it was mailed with the others but apparently never arrived. the chair to whom it was sent will take another look - maybe it got buried under a pile of ....so that was a disappointment. and possibly my fault - i should have had delivery confirmation or something? a long day.

and yesterday i did get out in the yard and did some major clean-up. for whatever reason this year i seem to be so much more aware of how things are growing. it is just so fun to see the sprouting and the overnight spurts and measurable changes in how things look. i was amazed at how my peonies had shot up with 2 warm days in a row but i remember, as a child, going to this particular house and getting bunches of peonies and iris to take to the cemetery for memorial day. so i guess they're right on track...

had a call from jacob yesterday - sounds like they're doing well. kate has about a month left before finals. they've been able to enjoy the park/waterfront with good weather out there.

productivity

how do you measure productivity?? we had a lovely spring day. there is work and plenty waiting for me in the gardens. but i had a call from 2 old lady friends - was i free for lunch?? 'lunch' for these 2 usually means a good 4 to 5 hours. the afternoon gone. was it really a choice?? we did lunch. and i saw several changes in both of them. slower, less steady gait. pauses in conversation - made light of with a cheerful "i'm thinking". so a well spent afternoon.
and tomorrow brings the state garden club convention. another lovely day spent inside - with an assortment of old ladies. their range of information is amazing. and oh the stories of hijinks from their youth!! the notecards pictured above are my contribution to the auction that is an integral part of these gatherings. equipment, plants, books, decorations are part of the offerings of the day. it is a fun way to pass along old/new treasures, raise money and share a laugh or two.

stage 2 complete

ta da!!

busy day

tim was in omaha for budget week at the home office. generally when he's gone i concentrate on a particular project and it's been a very busy day here. i took out a wall in our "powder room" to create space for a bathtub in what used to be a closet. the demo has been a big, dirty project. taking off the old the wallpaper was the first stage.


these are my tools for the job. i think the goggles and mask were the worst part of the project. it didn't take me long to ditch the hat.


the first hole.


making progress.

here you can see into the empty space where the tub will go. just a couple pieces of plaster/sheet rock left to come out. tim will finish earlier than expected and return from omaha tomorrow. i'm hoping to see some real progress this weekend.

new growth

in talking with my sister last night she was surprised to hear all that was growing here so i thought i'd put out a few more pictures. i found delphinium poking through yesterday. the peony tree is showing leaf bunches. my rosettes and dragons blood sedum are looking very healthy. autum joy sedum shares this long bed with iris and they are both up. another iris bed. columbine. and we're expecting a warm day so tomorrow they will all look different...i haven't cleaned out all the beds yet because we are still predicted to have some cold weather early next week. but i may try to get a start over the weekend.

april showers

thursday brought my favorite kind of snowstorm - no shoveling!! i was going to include a picture but the snow, 5 very wet inches, melted away on it's own before i could even point and click!! with the snow gone - and still waiting for reliable sunshine - i'm making a garden tour pretty much every day and seeing something exciting every time. i have about 3-4 inches of clematis. the sedum out front is coming in nicely. the peony has one tall shoot but the rest has poked through now and is filling in it's circuit. what a fun time. and i picked up some garden accessories while visiting up north so i'm getting antsy to put them in place.

home again

we're home. we had a great time - short- always short. my daffodils had poked through before we left for the weekend and i was afraid they'd already be done when we got home and if the weather had been warmer here, they might have been. but it stayed cool. i'll get to enjoy these beauties and we're under a winter storm watch!! ah! springtime in nebraska.

killing time

ah, a lazy monday morning....grandpa, aidan and charlie are downstairs playing together. happy voices floating up the staircase....naphtali is updating her site in the other room. i'm adding a brief post because the dishes are done, i've had my shower, caught up on emails.....naphtali has an interview at 1:00 so we're all just killing time....and with this morning's snow we're not inclined to go to the park or try aidan's bicycle or rake the nasty spot.....yesterday we enjoyed a lovely spring rain. aidan tried out his rain gear from kitty grandma. i picked up a couple things for the garden and am excited to get home and get started. also found some cute ideas thumbing through a couple books during some downtime before bed. and, of course, i'm going to spend some time editing previous blogs, adding photos. and the bathroom demo is still waiting. there's always something waiting.

i'm visiting my daughter's family to celebrate aidan's 4th birthday and naphtali's teaching me new skills so bear with me...
so we'll start with a picture of (guess who) aidan!

she is also making me learn how to add links into my text. For example, if you had read her blog entry from March 30th you would have read about her favorite fabric store, and i think she is going to drag me there tomorrow to see if she can help me spend my money. always more fun than spending your own. In case you are ever in the area, this is her favorite place to buy fabric.