Springy Things

We went to the park.

The girls got a visit from the Easter bunny. (Tutus and white bunny ears courtesy of Papa & Gigi; they were part of Elora's Christmas 2 years ago.  They just now fit!)

And we've taken on a family project.  As you can see, our yard is in pretty sad shape.  

We've done little more than push a lawn mower through it and rip out a few weeds since we moved in.  A gentle nudge from our POA about the unsightly weeds in the front planter spawned a discussion about our lawn, and we decided to take it in hand.  We went this past weekend to scout out materials, make plans, and acquire some new toys tools for Brandon.

So far, we've mowed, trimmed, edged, weeded, put down turf builder, and started the trench for planter edging.  This weekend, we're hoping to finish installing that edging strip, put in some low ever-green bushes between the larger ones along the front foundation line, and put down some new mulch.  Eventually we'll be extending the front planter around the other side of the house, replace the plants along the drive way, get rid of the weeds throughout the lawn and put down grass seed, build a fence, and plant a vegetable garden in the back.
Ambitious, I know.

It'll be a long process, but I'm actually looking forward to it.  I'm excited to have a full, plush yard for the girls to play in, for one thing.  And for another, I like the idea of all of us working together toward a common goal like this.  I like it a lot.  For all that we've been together for so long, Brandon and I don't have a whole lot of common ground.  He provides, I manage the home.  He's into electronics, and I like arts & crafts.  He likes to watch movies, and unless it's something that I specifically want to watch, I have to be coerced, even though I almost always end up liking the movies he chooses for us.  I read (books) whenever I can, while he generally reads (books) only a little before bed. Of course there is overlap, especially with respect to our children. But this is something productive that we can do together, and we can bring the girls out to play while we work.  

Our goal is to put at least a few hours into it every weekend.  (We had better!  After what we spent on his new tools, they had better see some use!)  I'll be posting pictures periodically, to measure our progress.  

Recently...

Elora loves it when I brush her teeth.

She likes to "help" me with the laundry.  She actually managed to restart the washer before I could get the clean clothes out and into the dryer.  Since it locks itself once a cycle starts, all I could do was change it to "rinse and spin" and let it go.

Pictures from playing outside on Tuesday, when the weather was still being agreeable.

My newest Elora Book spread.  I went really simple this time.  I'm trying to escape the patterns I keep going to in my LO's.

Playtime

We got some more lovely weather, and I finally thought to take Elora outside to play this past week.

She didn't do much exploring; she stayed on the blanket, or right next to it.  But she did a lot of looking around, and there were plenty of interesting things to examine right there by the blanket. 

She shared her finds with Momma.

 

And of course, everything had to go into the mouth.

I let her play with whatever she found interesting, but as soon as it went to the mouth, I took it away.  (Ok, for this one, I took the picture and then I took it away.)  We weren't out there all that long, less than an hour, but it was fun all the same.  I've been waiting for another nice day ever since.

In other news, my grandmother  is still recovering.  They've taken her off the ventilator, and I think they'll be taking the stomach pump sometime this weekend, as well as moving her out of ICU and into a regular room.   When that happens, she'll actually be able to take nourishment orally again, which will be wonderful.  Thank you all for your continued prayers and support!

SPRING!!!

Thank God for SPRING, and thank God it's finally here!  This weather has been glorious.  The sunshine has done me a world of good, let me just tell you.  I was giddy at the sight of the season's first flowers.  Giddy.  I saw these as I was headed out the door for work last Friday.  I called Brandon and begged him to take these pictures for me, I was so afraid they would be gone by the time I'd be able to do it.

This is why green is my favorite color.  It is the color of new growth, of renewal, of new beginnings.  To me, green, in all its varying verdant shades, is the color of life.  It makes me feel buoyant, and alive in a way I haven't felt since autumn descended into winter, to see the pale green shoots pushing up from the ground and reaching for the sunshine.  I love the way tender new leaves and delicate petals unfurl.  The vibrance and color are a balm after the monochrome desolation of winter.  I am invigorated.

Zipity Do Da

 After several gloriously sunny, snow-melting days, with temps soaring up into the 50's at times, I was dismayed to find that Saturday had dawned so cold and gray. The forecast called for light snow Friday night, so I wasn't surprised to see it when I looked out my window Saturday morning.  It surprised me that there was 6 inches of it.  I don't know if the break made Saturday's plunge back to winter harder to bear, or if it gave me the lift I needed to get through this last leg of winter.  I'm trying to look at it as a boon, a taste of what's to come.

This was Saturday morning:

Yesterday made it easier to see it as a boon.  It was still cold; it had barely cleared 20°F at 11am, but the sun had sole dominion over the sky.  He'd banished all but a few stray wisps of cloud from his sight.  Since it had stayed cold, the snow was just as powdery as when it first fell.  The wind blew it off of the roofs in great swirling eddies that sparkled in the sun, like so much fairy dust cast willy-nilly into the air.  It was a gorgeous, bright, sunny day and I loved it.

This was Sunday morning:

I got up early with Elora, and enjoyed a nice lazy morning while Brandon slept in.

 
I ran some errands mid-morning, did some sewing, and got some great family time in with both Elora and Brandon in the afternoon.  The whole day was just wonderful, a very zipity-do-da day.

It was a lazy day for Brandon too.  He spent a lot of time stretched out on the couch, reading or playing with Elora.  And maybe checking his eyelids for holes?  He's the one who snapped this shot at sunset.

A lovely end to a lovely day.