Signs of Spring.

When I wake up to below freezing temperatures, I get discouraged. A couple cups of coffee and a bundled stroll through the yard gives me hope. Yesterday's snow is gone, even from the shady spots in the yard. It's coming, but Mother Nature is taking her own sweet time. We're a month behind last year.

Some of the 200 daffodils on the front slope are finally poking through the soil.



Ditch lilies at the end of the driveway are showing promise.



Hyacinths are budding, finally.



An Endless Summer hydrangea on the north side of the house has been in the shade all winter. Still, it shows promise too.



The birds have stripped the neighbor's holly tree. Two weeks ago it was covered with bright red berries and bright red birds.



There won't be any baths this morning. The stream in the gully is the scene of constant chatter.



It's 40 degrees. Weather.com says we should reach the mid 50s today. By Monday, we'll see daytime highs in the 60s, for at least a week. Only three more nights of freezing weather is forecast for the next 10 days. Come on spring. Bring it on. Everyone's ready.

Blurry Sunday.

I make no apologies.

The perennial bed.



The backyard is full of green and brown. I need more winter interest in the form of color.



The birdbath still has ice in it. The one I made a couple weeks ago cracked when I removed it from the "form". I'll try again this spring, casting it in place in a bed in the backyard. I might scatter a few around the meadow garden.



Mr. Lincoln, after several nights in the low 20s and many heavy frosts.



Nandinas along the back of the house. The dead ivy is dead.



It's 34 degrees, drizzly and foggy. Last night I saw the first snowflakes of the year. I was on the way home from the family gathering just over an hour south of here. When I arrived home, it was just beginning to rain here. My mom gave me her electric blanket. The cat is very appreciative.

Today, I've already swept and mopped the floors twice. Dust from sanding the kitchen has permeated every room and surface in the house. I'll be mopping dusty floors for weeks. The seed swap will be finished as more rain moves in this afternoon. It's supposed to warm up a bit to the mid-40s. We'll see.