Local 'Yoke' l , NOT

Sometimes I think about munching down a bowl of Kellogg's boxed cereal and then I remember sitting in my frig I have eggs from our chickens, morels from the woods and cheese made from the milk of our goats to go in an omelette so why would I want a bowl of processed grain that a company like Monsanto has genetically monkeyed seeds to put in a box all at a very high environmental expense.

Why do countries other than the U.S. ban and remove Monsanto?

Perhaps it's because the Koch Brothers's money has kept the answers to the questions on the left out of our newspapers and filled our heads with the right column...

I know I'd rather know where my breakfast is coming from and at whose expense, wouldn't you?

Japan-cancels-us-wheat-order

In Season...

We have been eating very locally with a wonderful abundance of asparagus and morel mushrooms from the End of the Rainbow Valley.

The asparagus has been broiled, steamed, sauteed and even blended. Natureman made some great asparagus soup last week.

So do you have any great recipes that you'd like to share using either/ both of these ingredients?

On Craigslist I noticed that morels going for $50.00/lb in the Chicago area and here about $25/lb.  In between rainfalls yesterday Natureman returned with probably his last trip of ' hunting and gathering'  morels bringing this season's stash to about 15 pounds to consume during this upcoming year.  It was a good year. We are indeed rich.

Don't Name Them...

Two kids arrived on Friday and two goats departed on Sunday. No they didn't die but it's kind of a long story.  You know I never have short stories and I have told you about how we got the Amish Goat Unojo ( one eye).  See blog entry: Sensitive Topic Read at Your Own Risk

What I also mentioned in a later entry was that Unojo had mastitis last summer and had a tough time nursing her first kids in the Valley. 'Sweet' Sally got ripped off in the milk department as her brother Crouton and her competed over whatever milk they could get. Sally ended up being the 'runt' of the barn. She was too little to breed this winter and that meant Natureman was eyeing her for ground meat.  Remember you have to have a use on the farm in Natureman's eyes. ( Don't worry I am always trying to make myself useful!) Besides wanting to turn Sally into hamburger, her Mom, Unojo, had become lame this winter and I knew where Naturman's mind was going. I can't even say 'Run, Unojo, run.'

When the vet finally made it out to the Valley he diagnosed Unojo with a frozen shoulder and arthritis in the knee. Eegads, I could have guessed that but I thought the least he would have done was give her a cortisone injection. But no such luck, he actually offered to put her to sleep.  No way José. We don't how old she is but she was bought to supposedly keep Jacqueline company.

Sweet Sally

OK, Time for Mission A- to save Sally by placing an ad on Craigslist and to find her a good home as a pet. Natureman bought the idea and actually placed the ad but forgot the most important thing which was to include a pic.  So I added both a pic and some adjectives: Cute, sweet, small dehorned one year old doe...

How could anyone in refuse this face?

We had 2 responses by evening. One wanted to know if she was good with 'littles.'  Those human kids, I presumed. This family did have 3 kids of the human variety besides a menagerie of chickens, a dog, fish, turtle, etc...  I invited them to come out to visit but reminded them to bring appropriate footwear.

After attending church the interested family with 3 cute little munchkins came over to meet Sally.  Their Dad changed them into their boots and t-shirts to cover their church clothes. Aren't they the cutest 'littles' even in the rain?

As Natureman pointed out later if a Dad takes care of his kids like this, he'll take good care of his pets too.

Anyhow adding on to that caring feeling, the Dad inquired if Sally would be lonely and we had to be honest that she really shadowed her Mom a lot still and 'might be lonely. We told the story of Unojo and her limited mobility now. Natureman said if he wanted to also take Unojo,  he would throw her in with the deal too. Well, guess what this guy does as a living?  He is a chiropractor and he immediately started working on Unojo's leg. OMG maybe he could actually ease her joint discomfort. And not only would Mother and child be together, he could offer her flat land, not our hilly terrain.

So Sally and her Mom, Unojo, left End of the Rainbow Valley to go to a new home...  better there than into the freezer, don't you agree?

Soggy Holiday

This  Memorial Day Weekend was very wet, drizzly and actually cold.  I think it was Mother Nature's way of giving us a break from mulching. It's difficult to have a fun cookout on a rainy day unless you  have a fireplace and some dry wood.  We had both so we moved our celebratory picnic inside. There was no need to cancel as Natureman started a fire and we had our picnic for 2 being dry and warm.

In fact we had to wait a bit for those flames and their heat to die down to have some good embers.  What's a  picnic without Natureman's infamous potato salad?  He  did add beets to this batch. The dreary day must have demanded something different.

At first I though we'd spread a blanket on the floor but with a dry table and much more comfortable chairs nearby, it was a no brainer to choose the chairs over the floor.

I don't know about the rest of western Wisconsin but we were slugs all day... I even called it an early evening. It's good to be a slug every once in a while even in the End of the Rainbow Valley...

Memorial Day Weekend

Besides remembering those who serve/have served in our military Memorial Day Weekend and a visit to a cemetery, it is a great weekend filled with family and friends at cookouts, graduation parties, weddings, garage sales and yes garden projects.  Stores's gardening sections insure increased sales with lots of specials at this time of the year  and we obliged by purchasing a new wheelbarrow, construction size.

Isn't she a beauty?

Why?

The obvious is that the 2 wheelbarrows that came with me to the End of the Rainbow Valley have long since bit the dust and sometimes the cart is just too big for certain work areas.  

Some people get jewelry for anniversaries. Heck ours have been filled with shop vacs,  mowers, plants and the like...

It is time to re-mulch so Thursday a truckload of mulch was delivered filling our parking area. I am not using the phrase truckload lightly, that's 23 yards of mulch.

You can already see a corner missing as Natureman had already started carting it to the side yard dumping it nice and thick to prevent the forest from swallowing us. Weeds had already been tackled and now mulch to continue smothering new growth.




We worked as a team Thursday afternoon and all Friday. Thank goodness "wet" weather   saved us our aching muscles Saturday and Sunday but we'll be back at it today...

If you call, and we don't answer, you know we are out in the garden using our new wheelbarrow. I wonder if we'll fight over who gets the cart/the wheelbarrow. ????

It's THAT Time

Did you know that it's THAT time?

Well since I was hosting Book Club at the house, Natureman was going to find something to do while the women and I took over the house space.

So off he went with Romeo, the ever companionable dog and a yellow plastic grocery sack.

Romeo returned sprayed with eau d'cologne of skunk but Natureman returned an hour and a half later with a sackful of....

MORELS... morel mushrooms.

Great job NATUREMAN.  These will be washed and most of them frozen to hopefully last us the entire year.

One of the  benefits of living in the End of the Rainbow Valley for us but obviously a disadvantage today for Romeo. Poor DOG... it's a good thing he's an outside dog. His bath of vinegar will have to wait until tomorrow.

Footprints...

Although there are many advantages to living out in the country, the one disadvantage which will eventually do me in is the traveling.  This week began the last of this semester's student teacher observations. I will have put on a lot of miles by next week's end in addition to just normal trips back and forth to 'town.'

I might be compensated for mileage by the university but am not compensated for the time it takes for me to get there. I spend a lot of time en route. I sure am glad that I don't have to travel like my Amish neighbors on the ridge in a horse and buggy.

All I know is that next Friday afternoon, I will be really glad to utter these words as I walk through the door upon my return from 4 hours that day on the road... "Honey, I 'm home."

Some days it just feels really good to get home.

Gone Wild

If you leave home for 2 weeks, you will definitely notice differences upon your return especially if you leave the End of the Rainbow Valley in May. When I left, the trees hadn't even budded out. Now the apple trees are in full bloom as is the red bud and the hills are green.

The Valley's gone WILD.... especially the front flower garden. All I could see were the dandelions!

I knew it would be bad, but not this bad.  A bit of warm weather and lots of rain make a lot of weeds sprout and bloom.    

After 9 hours digging dandelions from the front garden I had filled the cart and the goats were thrilled with their afternoon treat.  Now if I only was done and didn't have to tackle the Creeping Charlie, grasses and brambles out of that same flower garden. Remember a weed is only a plant growing where you don't want it to grow.

Natureman reminded me that I would never lack things to do in my retirement.  And you know what? I  know he's right...

Snack Time

Cart packed with dandelions

Community Party in the Garden

Gardens really do look different when you change zones.

Check out the End of the Rainbow Valley western Wisconsin's garden when I journeyed from  ZONE 4  to Arkansas's ZONE 6 . Quite a difference I'd say.

The one similarity is that both these food gardens are being grown due to sustainability. The elementary school kids on the right are learning how to grow their own food. Their elementary school is even setting up out of door kitchens. The school invited the community to join them in the garden last Saturday late afternoon.

One can never learn too early the importance and health benefits of knowing where your food comes from and growing/buying locally grown produce. These urban kids are learning about gardening and using those products as part of their school curriculum.

End of the Rainbow Valley's Veggie Garden

Pulaski Heights Elementary School's Green Garden

These young gardeners learn about soil preparation and planting seeds and seedlings. 

Some students were also filling donated shoes with soil and annuals to make money  for their gardening program in addition to a t-shirt and home made food sales. 

While people picnicked, there was music by both adults and children. 

Some people really know how to do up a picnic! Notice this delectable colorful spread- home smoked chicken and turkey, an thinly sliced beef, 3 different types of cheeses,  stuffed olives,  pickled peppers, a baguette/ crackers to dip in a rosemary olive oil and marinated skewered basil with cheese and tomato prepared by my buddies whose neighborhood school this is. 

What can be better than to be able to spend some time with your community and friends out in the garden?  Don't forget to put on your favorite sun hat and join in...

José, Can you See?

I have forgotten how long José has been part of our family get togethers but he tends to  make  unexpected  appearances.  AND sometimes it is long after the family has departed.  As I was repacking my back pack for my return trip, there he was.

Are you CONFUSED? Don’t worry, we are too.

You see José first was introduced to our family through my father.  Dad tends to find unusual souls and José is just another such example.

José is very small and can fit in very small places. José earned his name from his unique moustache and sombrero.  I am not sure of his profession although maybe he was a cowhand in a previous life.  He is a softy.

So can you guess where I found him?

I found José in one of my exercise shoes.  No, he wasn’t wearing one - he was inside it.  I told you he is small.

Confused?  Well  José is made of felt and through time has even lost some of his clothing before he ever met our family.  You see José was just another unusual gift from my Dad  that makes us shake our heads in wonder. Whatever possessed my Dad to present this guy as a gift.

Well now José is a running joke as we have decided to include José whenever my daughter and I are together.  The chore is to  hide José with hopes that the other will  eventually find him and then rehide him on another visit.

We never talk about him in between. So we never know how /when the other came upon him. I think I stuck him in her coat pocket the last time I saw her. I wonder where he will turn up next, don't you?

A Southern Staple

There's a staple in most Southern refrigerators that was never in mine growing up with my Mom's Germanic kitchen.  I enjoyed it nevertheless at friends's houses during my childhood. And what is this Southern staple?  PIMENTO CHEESE .

Its origin had it served as a crustless tea party finger food sandwich revered as much as those cucumber and dill tiny tea sandwiches.  The delicacy status stemmed from its two main ingredients's expense of cheese and pimiento peppers, at one time imported from Spain. When James Lewis Kraft sold the first processed cheese in 1915, it reached the masses. Southern farmers then began growing pimiento peppers which lowered its cost and this cheesy orangy spread's fate was sealed.  Although it never lost its elite status at weddings nor tearooms where 'Pimento Cheese' sandwiches can still be found.

Its history also included it being a 'work' food where these sandwiches were sold on factory lunch food carts and eventually in vending machines. Women were the ones who were instrumental for these businesses as an outlet to being stay at home Moms/ textile workers themselves. Who knew?

Well, I just lucked out this Southern visit arriving to my brother's house as my sister-in-law had been the recipient of a quart of a local caterer's Pimento cheese that would have been devoured if I had waited one more day.  Fortunately I had 2 lunches of Pimento Cheese sandwiches on white bread of course. I will be forever grateful that they let me polish it off.

If you'd like to try making Pimento Cheese, here is a great recipe :

Ingredients

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup grated sharp cheddar
1 cup grated Monterey Jack
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon House Seasoning, recipe follows
2 to 3 tablespoons pimentos, smashed
1 teaspoon grated onion
Cracked black pepper

Directions

Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add all of the remaining ingredients and beat until well blended. It can be used as a dip for crudite or as a sandwich filling.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

It took many years for Pimento Cheese to be stocked in Northern refrigerated grocery sections. Now although it's available, sandwich white bread ( Wonder Bread) has never made it into the kitchen of End of the Rainbow Valley. To tell you the truth Pimento Cheese spread is just not the same on homemade multigrain bread. You just can't mess with childhood memories...

Big Momma...

The mind is a curious thing indeed. Add to that the limitations of sight and it can create all sorts of reality.  Mom usually has her TV on for company regardless of the fact that most times she has no clue what's going on.  Think about how we've all probably used the TV as background noise.

Well, the other morning Mom shared this story with 2 women in their 90's at the Rehab's breakfast table.  They listened as she began this story of how one of the black aides had called her 'Big Momma' and she thought it was a bit unusual since no one else in her life had ever addressed her as such even though she knew she had gained weight due to the prednisone. BUT then she added, other staff decided that that was her nick name and everybody's now calling her 'Big Momma.'  We all got a good laugh out of the story with one sweet woman saying maybe that it was meant as an endearment. I actually cringed as I knew Mom doesn't feel good about all the extra weight and even if she can't see herself in a mirror, she knows how clothes fit and how tiresome it is to move being so much larger.

The story was actually bothersome until I remembered  TV programming talking about the upcoming evening's  showing of  Martin Lawrence who dresses up as a BIG woman in the Big Momma movies.  Apparently one of his movies had been on the previous night as she had drifted in and out of sleep. As far as she knew people were in her room addressing her as 'Big Momma.'

Let's add this one to the books... Another day in Rehab.

SEEing is Believing...

Tuesday  was a monumental day as my Mom got her new prescription glasses. Her cataract surgery on the one eye with sight was performed on February 28th and now two and a half months later after having cleared some other health issues, the surgery has given her some more sight.  She actually thinks she can drive now. WELL, it's not that good but we are glad that the glasses have improved her vision and spirits.

                                                 It's a happy day indeed.

You Can't Leave Home Very Far Behind

Sometimes we take for granted what we have. I know our dog, Romeo, in the End of the Rainbow Valley probably does. He not only has our 44 acres of woods as his playground but also the adjoining properties that he may on occasion wander on. We've asked him many a time where he's been and his lips are sealed.

When you are a city dog you have to really leave home to go run around in a doggie park. In fact with a half an hour to kill yesterday in between an airport run and school pickup, my brother, his dachshund Fritz and I made a visit to the new doggie park by the U of Arkansas Law School. There, a piece of land is divided into 2  fenced in areas, one larger than the other. There was no doubt we needed the smaller area for Fritz to stretch his legs.

It's a good thing it wasn't distinguished by the size of the owners.

Each area is equipped with decorated fire hydrants and then water sources with bowls to replenish that  lost liquid.  There is a cement pad surrounded by 'pea' gravel and the green area.

You know how they say you can't ever escape home. Look at this very important piece of equipment included in the doggie park. Do you know what it is?  Hint: It is also found on most golf courses.



It's called the scrusher.

 Do you know what it is for?


It's for cleaning off unwanted 'debris' from your shoes.

And guess where it is made?




Chaseburg, Wisconsin no less. You can't ever leave home very far behind... LOL

Mission Accomplished

What a drop dead gorgeous day Mother's Day was in Arkansas and to be able to spend it with so many members of my family was frosting on the cake.

Our day started out with my now traditional  early visit to Mom's Rehab home but this particular morning I had my daughter in tow as my partner in crime.  You will see that it does take a village...

My brother in his infinite wisdom had stated a new wardrobe that 'fit' was a definite must for our Mother. AND what better excuse than Mother's Day to carry out that endeavor! The girls which included my sister-in-law, niece, daughter and myself had hit JJill, a women's clothing store, and we had an ensemble of 3/4 pairs of pants, tops and 2 sweaters which all  mix and matched by the time we walked out.

 My daughter and I would be the ones to bestow the haul and ensure that everything fit.

There's a white top with graded neutrals too.

Fortunately we found the recipient very willing. After her Oma's shower and breakfast, my daughter began the makeover with 'her' great idea of a manicure as she had purchased a great pink nail polish just for this occasion and applied it. My job was to tame the new hair cut with some hair product.  Then it was time to begin the fashion show try on to decide on the outfit for the day.

 The blue was our  choice for  the day... 

Thank goodness the sweaters had pockets for her Kleenex!  We opted on the blue outfit and by the time we removed all the tags, added the new fitting comfy socks ( Did you know there were special socks for diabetics?)  and velcro sandals, the morning had  flown by.  Since we were going to pick up Pappa en route to the restaurant, we also picked up one of her necklaces to accessorize.  VOILA.

Mission Accomplished


 I have a feeling there were a lot of happy Moms yesterday...

REhab

Today I got to witness my Mom in action at the Rehab place that she has called home for the last 2 months.  I was there as she started her day and shared meals with the same 3 women who  repeated the same dialogue numerous times. None of them seemed to mind the repetition. What was funny was the fact my Mom was the only one not in on the retelling mode today which I found curious. We have experienced the repetition at other times and when she has her daily oral interview, she is able to answer all the questions quite well with the exception of the question of place, where she is right now. She apparently has been stuck on the answer Madison, Wisconsin.  She hasn't lived in Madison since 1958 when Little Rock, Arkansas became home.

Wheel chair follows behind, in case the patient becomes tired

Well even if my Mom doesn't remember she lives in Little Rock,  she certainly knows her directions quite well. She has always had a very keen sense of direction. A lot of people don't even have that in their younger years with complete sight.  My brother and I took my folks on a field trip for hair cuts  and if we listed  landmarks, she knew exactly where we were.

We had Mom back in time to the Rehab to be on schedule and have lunch with her 'new' acquaintances. One of the girls, a spry 96 yr old will be moving to another facility this weekend and didn't understand why she had to move.  Change isn't easy no matter how old you are.

While Mom had lunch, I took a tired Dad back home to rest.  I kept him company while he ate and then I was off on errands.  The most difficult errand being to find socks with treads on them for Mom's swollen feet. *Beware if you ever need  socks with non slip treads, these are considered a winter item and have been cleared out by May in the South ! I did find a pair of Yoga socks that hopefully will be comfortable for her until the swelling goes down and she can wear shoes once again.

I returned to the Rehab to find my Mom trucking it back and forth with her walker for her physical therapy in the hallway. I couldn't have kept up with her. Some things never change as I never could keep up with her walking pace!

The remainder of the afternoon was filled with me reading to her and a friend of hers visiting before dinnertime. As I sat with all the women once again at the dinner table after witnessing one of their days, I couldn't help to think this may be what my future  holds.  It was humbling indeed...

Live each day to its fullest and may good health abound.

Staging? Staging what?

There's something I haven't mentioned and I may have misled you into thinking we live this quiet pastoral life.  I'm guilty by reason of omittance. I have neglected to tell you that the power company had  set up a staging area at my neighbors to the west about 2 miles away.

Yes, one of the neighbor's sons decided to rent a piece of their farm land to the power company for this purpose.  First, I noticed a new dirt road being built next to their house and thought it was rather strange/ perhaps they were building a new home although I certainly didn't think there was anything wrong with the nice house that was there.  The raised dirt drive seemed very overkill considering it led to the field. Then after asking around I was told that the power company had approached the owners since they needed a locale with access to the county highways. All I can say is they must have offered them a pretty penny because trailers and power company vehicles started filling up the once corn field and additions were made of tall security light poles and a huge gate roadside...

For months the trucks have been rolling out in the early ams from this area next to their house  and rolling back in at all hours until the early evening. The crews are busy replacing telephone poles and power lines all over the coulee.

Think of the amount of traffic this generates. All of the workers driving back and forth to work in their own vehicles and then getting in a company vehicle and riding back and forth to their job sites.  I used to have the road to myself coming and going in 'to town' .  There used to be the occasional Amish buggy to slow down for but now there's always utility trucks and equipment traffic.

This small county highway has really taken a beating with all this constant wear and tear. You can't even tell that it had been resurfaced a couple of years ago. It has also added to the noise pollution. I can't imagine living right next to it.

Anyhow, the news is the power company said that they are supposed to be done in a month and we hope to return the peace and quiet of the rural highway and living.  Good riddins' is all I can say. One gets really spoiled living in the country and the End of the Rainbow Valley.

Tis the Season...

Our beautiful  late afternoon spring walk came after planting our cool weather crops and flower seeds.  We decided to go visit the  Chaseburg Nature Walk along Coon Creek where we discovered work has been going on to the save the shoreline since our last visit. Those huge piles of rocks we saw last month have now been placed to stabilize the banks so that  the water won't continue eating that shoreline away.                                                                                                                                                     

The past year had brought  a lot of storms and snow our way that continued to wreak havoc on the surrounding woodlands.  Many of those trees made their way into the creek diverting its waters. 

Now hundreds of those downed trees are being cleared and removed from the shorelines and water.  It wasn't 'Mike' the Steam Shovel 's noise we heard ferociously working as we headed down the path.  When we came upon him it was obviously who was making all that noise. 

HOW in the world did the weight of the debris not tip him into the waters he was clearing. The bucket would lift entire trees with gallons of water from the creek. 

Coon Creek wants to keep its reputation as the one of the best trout streams in the state and it appears that we will have some really nice fishin' holes... From the looks of the footprints in the muddy shorelines it doesn't look like those fishermen are going to wait for the earth to dry to find out just where those are either.

Happy Fishing!

Spring Candy

Sunday I succumbed to my first of the season plant purchases.   I didn't even make it in the front door  to pick up my Chicken-Q dinners at Mayfair, a craft show fundraiser for the Heider Center. This show helps earn  monies for the theater program. There in front of the entrance were annuals  high school students had grown. I brought home a flat of pansies along with a couple of running wave petunias so that when the pansies give way to the heat the petunias will be going strong.  Aren't those yummy colors?

Once inside the door there was my favorite garden sculpture artists and I had to pick out a new rebar flower for the garden . I swear it's the best type of plant because it doesn't need watering and it can't die from neglect/ too much water.

Newest  6 ft addition to the sculpture collection 

As you can see I returned to the End of the Rainbow Valley with much more than the chicken dinners to fill our stomachs...  Ah yes, spring has arrived.

It's That Time Again...

It's difficult to believe but it's that time again when the outside world revisits our lane, the hard top road where our mailbox sits.

Can you guess why that is?

If I tell you that those guardrails are over Coon Creek would that be a good hint?

If you guessed that it's the beginning of 'Trout Season' you would be correctamundo.

Most of us say the water's too high from all this rain for fish to bite but OBVIOUSLY it didn't deter these die hard fishermen.  Some arrived all decked out with their new gear and fishing jackets. If nothing else they looked the part even if they got skunked.  Something tells me the fish don't care what they are wearing.

 I 'll be sure to let you know when they start biting, OK?

That Bad, HUH?

Some took it hard that snow was predicted... if he had only waited as we only got rain, lots of it.  Hari Kari wouldn't have been necessary.  By noon though 60 miles away over a foot of snow had fallen in Rochester.  And we lucked out... no snow Mr. Snake, just nasty cold wind, rain and a bit of sleet.

Seriously we don't know if a hawk/ eagle/owl/? dropped this snake. It was gone by the next time we walked down our road.

C'est la vie.  In the End of the Rainbow Valley, here today, gone tomorrow.

The INFAMOUS Question...

Everybody was out yesterday in the End of the Rainbow Valley and of course it had to do with the weather and what was blowing in...


I finished my school paperwork as quickly as I could so I could get out to use my new garden gloves. It was time to plant the dahlia bulbs I had purchased last weekend. They were the first of my many plant purchases yet to come. Wink, wink. Natureman had been busy with the rototiller as he was making a new raspberry patch area and had even had roto - tilled the little area in front of the chicken coop where I wanted to plant the dahlias.  I wanted to get those bulbs in the ground before that predicted snow.

Dark shadows flew by and I was afraid they were vultures at first coming to pick off a chicken. But thank goodness it was just a pair of turkeys. I had heard their flock earlier on the other side of the valley and I guess these two decided to join the chickens grazing on the hillside.

As I was enjoying being outside playing in the dirt, others were enjoying the beautiful day too. In the  pasture all the goats were grazing on the new green emerging and Fluffy the barn goat cat was hanging out with them.

 It looked so inviting that I joined them and then Naturman joined us too sitting in the pasture, taking time to enjoy the spring day.

I said Natureman's line before he could get to it,  "What could be better than this?" and Natureman smiled knowingly back at me and replied, " Nothing."
And you what?  I know he's right...

COLORTIME...

A couple days of warm weather and the front flower garden is coming alive with some color... our first daffodils bloom with the hyacinth not far behind....the bluebirds finally started working on their nest.

The first garden blooms

Hyacinth smell will soon be wafting in the air...

 80 degree weather tends to hurry things along.

Mr and Mrs Bluebird are back working on their nest...

                     Ha... Wouldn't you know snow is predicted tonight?