Catch Up with This and That

The irises are in bloom now.

 Well, I did it! I made it to the end of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge without hating the whole thing. I have done the A-Z challenge seven times over the last eleven years and have found it a struggle to post six days a week, as required. Actually, nothing is required. It's not like I won't eat or something if I miss a day, but I am stubborn and like to finish what I start. 

The next obvious question is: why do I keep doing the challenge if it stresses me out so much?  Because with the desperation of coming up with six posts a week comes some of my more creative postings. Much of the time, I don't feel like I have anything to talk about, and the A-Z forces me to think outside the box of my routine life. 

This year, I revisited posts from the past. That made the task much easier, and it also made things interesting for me as I read through past posts. Thanks to all of you who read along with me.

Now, it's back to the everyday, and I'm drawing blanks again. Also, it seems that I didn't take many pictures in April to jog my memory, but here are a few.

Last weekend, we went to West Virginia for a memorial service for my cousin. We also visited three different cemeteries where my parents and grandparents are buried. In one of the cemeteries, we were trying to locate the unmarked grave of my found-grandfather. (It's a long DNA story.)
Also, at this cemetery was this Lewis family marker. They were early settlers of the Northwest Territory, and it was interesting to see something tangible that I had only read about in history books. 

Ward continues to work on puzzles. This one, called Literary Dogs and was quite interesting with its whimsy pieces. (Enlarge the picture if you want to see the details.) As it turns out, the puzzle was based on a 40-foot mural in a library that was only about an hour from us.

So we had to go visit it. It was hard to get a picture because it was so long, but it was a really fun mural.

And speaking of Ward, he had a birthday yesterday.
 Note: He is not quite 100 years old yet. 😀

This bluebird has been flying into our living room window many times a day. He then goes to the gutter to keep watch. Apparently, he is trying to defend his territory from his reflection. Some sources this could go on for weeks. 

We recently visited the Brighton Dam Azalea Garden. We try to go each spring when the 22,000 azaleas are in bloom. However, we kept up our trend of being about a week late for peak blooms, but it was still pretty. It is a popular place for photo shoots, and we saw several. If you look closely, you can see one here.

And true to form, Ward was just as interested in the structure of the dam as he was in the flowers.

That's all I've got for now.

Until next time...

Long Time, No Blog

 I am determined to check in before another day goes by. There's been a lot of something and a lot of nothing going on here.

Bluebirds are making a daily appearance at our feeder now. (Two males)

First was the big snow and ice storm. We spent time preparing beforehand, and luckily didn't have to deal with the worst-case scenarios we had prepared for. However, the snow and ice, coupled with frigid temperatures, made going out treacherous. The main roads are clear now, but still have narrowing from snow pileups on the sides. Our walks are not clear. It takes a heavy digging bar to break through the ice on top, so they may stay covered for a while.

A female bluebird on the flower box.

In the meantime, my father-in-law had to go to the hospital. The neighbors did heroic feats to clear enough snow and ice to get into the house and clear a path for the emergency responders. A firetruck actually came before the ambulance to clear snow so it could get down the unplowed street. The good news is that after a week in the hospital, he is home and improving. Now, there is a whirlwind of activity getting services in place, going to doctor appointments, etc. A million details are being worked out, but the process is not conducive to a calm mind and restful sleep.

I find that when there is downtime, I want to do nothing. And what that looks like is a little reading, knitting, and video watching. Forward progress on other things will just have to wait for a little while until things settle down. 

Until next time...

Spring is in the air

 I wish I knew the songs of birds better because they are singing all the time now. I can identify a few common birds, but I rarely see the bird while it is singing to know whose song is whose. And it doesn't matter how many times Aunt Martha identifies songs for me, I don't seem to remember them. But I enjoy them all the same.

We have been seeing more bluebirds this year than years past.
This one was visiting on our porch.

Right above the bluebird on the railing was this female with whom the male was flying around. I don't know if they are officially a couple or not, but I've cleaned the bluebird box in case they want to raise a family there.

We have had a few days of warm, spring-like weather and it is definitely a mood lifter for all concerned. I have been working in the yard cleaning flower beds that didn't get cleaned in the fall and pulling some of the winter weeds that have taken up residence in our vegetable beds. I find weeding is a time when I get a chance to think.  This week my thoughts went to hopes for a different summer than last year as more and more people get vaccinated.  While working in the dirt, I imagined picnics, trips, and family gatherings. Summer may be a little soon for my imagined freedom as Ward and I are in the last group to be eligible for vaccination, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. My father-in-law is fully vaccinated now and our last visit was more relaxed than it has been in a long time even though we were still taking precautions. It was pleasure.

While cleaning the mum bed, I found our first blooming crocus. I think this one was planted by a squirrel. The ones I planted haven't bloomed yet, but any day now I expect to see their bright colors.

However, the snowdrops are blooming. They sometimes bloom as early as February,
but I was happy to see them even if I had to wait until March.

Seeds have sprouted in 3 of the 4 milk jugs I planted. I'm still waiting on the carrots.

The brussel sprout plant that I didn't pull last fall is growing some new sprouts.
Another fun thing to find.

I hope that you have been able to find some signs of spring where you are.

Until next time...

A Second Look--February 23, 2016

We had a warm, beautiful day on Saturday with temperatures reaching the 60's. It was so nice to feel warm air and sunshine again. I used this opportunity to survey the far back to see what has been going on for the last month or so since I took a look. The normal effects of winter were everywhere. Lots of downed branches, although no huge ones. Also fence posts and rails had fallen down probably in part to the weather and in part to the deer.

The ground was very soggy and muddy where it wasn't covered with crunchy snow. However, among the snow and the mud, there were signs that spring is on its way including my first snowdrop bloom.

Here are a few things I saw this week

 during a Second Look.

Shallow snow covered much of the lower back. There was a crunchy layer of ice on top of it that made it fun to walk on.

There was abundant evidence that the deer spent the winter with us.

Among the leaves and weeds, I saw my first snowdrop.

Closer to the house, I saw daffodil leaves emerging. No crocus however.

On Friday, we had several bluebirds visiting the suet feeder and had some good sightings of both males and females.  Notice of muted colors of the female on the left compared to the bright blue of the male on the right. (That's a male house finch behind it.)

The big surprise was the bluebird's nest in on of the nest boxes. I'm not sure when it was built, but I do know that I cleaned out the box last fall. It's too early to lay eggs, so I'm not sure what's going on.