In the Spring

The first fresh and tender flowers start to show their faces in the middle of Spring. Bleeding Heart, Trillium, Grape Hyacinth, Flowering Currant. Brand new leaves on trees are my favorite Chartreuse; so vibrantly green it hurts my eyes. It is still so, so, wet and chilly, but when the sun peeks through the clouds, there is warmth and even... sometimes... heat (gasp!).

Migrating birds return and the slugs and bunnies are everywhere, evening and morning, nibbling away at the edges of the yard. Our resident part-albino doe visits the yard, still with her Mama. She doesn't look like she will ever be full-sized, which we read is common with albinism in deer. She's very shy, so pictures are never possible without shrubbery partially obscuring her bright coat. 

In the greenhouse, seeds are planted in anticipation of warmer and dryer days ahead. 

And my new second-favorite pollinator is discovered hovering over the Forget-Me-Not patch. What is it? A little ball of fuzz with long legs and wings. Like an oversized mosquito in a fur coat. Its not exactly a bee, and doesn't really look like a fly, but is so darn cute! Give up? Its a Bee Fly!

You learned something new today. You're welcome.

Lately

One day getting sunburnt, the next bundling up in layers because it's downright chilly out.

Sunshine, rain, hail, in quick succession.

This is Spring in our part of Oregon... At least we haven't had any late snowfalls this year.

It is turning so green outside that it sometimes hurts my eyes. Glowing shades of the brightest chartreuse with flowers, flowers, flowers everywhere. Cherry blossoms and dogwood and lilacs and the bulbs springing from the ground. The earth has waited long enough and all of that saved up energy is bursting into the air, leaving behind a dusting of pollen on every surface.

He wants to eat the double blooms on the flowering cherry because they look like cotton candy... She breathes them in so deeply that they tickle her nostrils and make her laugh.

Pink Dogwood

Right there, just outside my window, every mid-Spring she blooms.
Larger and fuller each year, producing one of my least favorite colors,
and yet somehow completely capturing my heart each time.