Just a peek

Ahhhh.... I finally finished the project I've been working on! The most recent one that's gotten precedence over writing blog posts. 

Remember this?

Now you'll get to see what it became. It's on its way to its recipient, so you'll get the full picture soon, but for now, here are a couple of "peek" shots I took yesterday as my daylight was fading. They're not the best shots... as you can see the colors don't even match from one photo to the next. And I didn't even take time to press it first, so don't look too closely. In fact, it wasn't even 100% done at that time. Ha. But here ya go....

Bet you can't guess who it's for. Hahaha.

Well, just for being so patient, here are some more tulips for you. We're having such gorgeous warm weather (which is due to end with rain tomorrow, but we need that, too), that they've all popped out at once!

Annabelle wasn't quite so patient with me, though. She heard me outside the window and was trying soooo hard to join me.

Silly girl!

Hope with me that the above project FITS! Then you'll get to see it modeled, hopefully early next week. Time for me to start the next one.....

More signs of spring

Photos from this morning... spring is definitely here!

Of course it wouldn't be spring without dandelions. This is the first one I've seen so far. Or second. It had a twin nearby.

And the violas (a.k.a. johnny jump-ups) always bloom early.

But my tulips started opening yesterday!

This is actually the one I went out to photograph:

And closer:

Did you notice the background above?

Yep, I was getting an assistant, Miss Mia. She had her eye on the same flower I did.

Awwww......

That was a lucky shot - ha!

Boring?

I was informed the other night (very gently, mind you) that my blog has gotten somewhat boring lately. :) I readily agreed. I'm kind of bored with it, and I guess it shows. I sorta feel like it's become "same ol' same ol'" in some respects. I mean, how many times can you go through the same events, year after year, and keep them interesting?

Writing blog posts takes time... time I'd rather spend sewing. So do I give up blogging to have more time for other things? Maybe. But not yet. I still have to think about it.

Maybe it's just the time of year. This right now is about the most dreary time of year ever. The snow has all melted but it's left everything just a blah tan/brown. Not much new life out there yet.

BUT... it's coming! On the way back from shooting yesterday's squirrel, I noticed these pretty leaf buds on the maple trees. They're so tiny... yet so colorful! Just look and see what I mean:

I especially like this next one. Have you ever looked closely enough to notice all those teensy spears?

Against a blue sky, they look especially lovely.

Just so you know, my tulips are making good progress, too. The color's coming.

So who knows what will happen with the ol' blog. Maybe there'll be new life here, too, eventually. Or maybe not. Any input or suggestions for possible future posts would be appreciated. Or feel free to tell me to give it up 'cause it ain't worth the time to look at anymore. ;)

It's Autumn!

Really... it's Autumn! Remember that little furball that was born last summer and got named Autumn? Here she is:

She's definitely tame now... she's always the first one to greet me when I go out to feed them. (Um... I think she likes kitty treats.) She winds so tightly around my feet that I have a hard time walking. :)

She's still as beautiful as ever, although her coat is very matted at the back of her neck, and I'm looking forward to warmer weather so I can cut out the knots and brush her. She really should be a housecat with all that long hair... but not in my house. Two is plenty!

She is, unfortunately, the last remaining of her litter. Mama kept taking her kids out 'wherever' and not bringing them back. Her brother, Punkin, was still here, but I'm afraid he got in the way of some machinery or something and met his demise. Very sad. But dear little Autumn, my favorite, is still here, and I hope she manages to stay alive for many years.

Just to prove to you that it's only the kitten that's "Autumn", after I took the pictures of her Saturday morning, I checked to see if there was any sign of my tulips yet. Sure enough, they were peeking out! I had to look VERY closely to even see them, but here they are!

They should make good progress this week, since the temperature is supposed to... unbelievably... be in the 50's and even mid-60's! Too good to last, I'm sure (considering that it was below zero just a few days ago), but I'll enjoy it while it's here! Spring's a-comin'!

Morning macros

It's such a beautiful morning today, which seems to be rare these days, so I just had to take the camera out for a little play practice time. It's been unusually cold, for the most part, so spring has progressed slowly. The trees are only beginning to leaf out.

Here are some pretty macro (very close up) shots of those same leaves:

A good thing about the chilly temps is that the tulips have lasted much longer than usual. They're still blooming, although nearing the end.

The violas are getting thicker...

And of course the dandelions are popping up all over.

I've mowed once, and thanks to recent rains, need to again very soon. Miss C comes again today after school, and we need to finish our 'project' from yesterday, which I'll show you soon. I've also cut out another small sewing project. So I've been busy. I haven't planted any garden yet, but that'll need to happen soon, too.

All it took was some sunshine

Updates

I took all of these pictures yesterday. The tulips have been making progress, despite the 40-something degree temperatures all week!

The rhubarb is growing, too:

The stalks are getting big enough that a person could find enough for a pie, surely.

The asparagus is coming, but very slowly. The purple color indicates that it's cold.

Here's my favorite update:

They're growing beautifully. Three males and three females.

PINK - noses, ears, toes...

(Click to enlarge.)

... SWEET!!!

Spring sights

I have to remind myself that it's really spring, since it was so cold yesterday. It was even snowing when I woke up, and the ground was white. Yuck. But it changed to drizzly rain, which carried on all day long, and the whiteness was soon all gone. Here are some pics I took last Friday, which was a MUCH nicer day.

Getting close!

Those were poppy plants. Look how hairy the leaves are:

Yep, the grass is growing. Whenever this rain stops (which according to the forecast isn't going to be for a few days, at least), it's certainly going to need mowing. That doesn't exactly excite me.

Signs of spring!

My favorite sign of spring right now is open windows! It got just above 70° on Saturday, and 78° yesterday. It was a perfectly beautiful Easter Day! Annabelle and Josie are pretty thrilled with the open windows, too:

Lots of green things are making their appearance. Snow on the mountain:

Irises:

Sedum:

The rhubarb peeked out before it got so cold the last time, and it appears to have been nipped a little bit by frost. That doesn't hurt it at all, though, and it's growing quickly:

I had to look closely, but the tulip buds are coming:

And the lilac bushes are getting a tinge of green to them, thanks to the leaf buds that are popping out:

(Click to enlarge... it's prettier!)

Spring is here! Now let's just hope we don't get any more ugly surprises, like last year when we got 4" of snow on the first of May.