Signs of Spring

It was 80+ degrees here today. I think we skipped spring and went right to summer! I'm not complaining though. I am happy to be able to take baby E outside and give her a change of scenery. I spent a good bit of time (for me) outside over the past few days, and I noticed all sorts of signs of life! My hydrangea is sprouting new leaves. The hostas are poking their tips out of the ground. The tulips have grown (and gone actually).

However, the most exciting things I saw were birds building in my birdhouses! I saw a tufted titmouse flying in and out of my bluebird house. Tuba noticed it too, but he didn't bother him (or her). Then today I saw that my wrens are back!! I like to think it's the same pair of wrens every year. They were very busy cleaning the old nest out of the birdhouse and replacing old stuff with new stuff. It's amazing to watch them fit long twigs into such a small hole. I look forward to watching them this season!

I also did a little bit of cooking today. I found and made this recipe for homemade granola bars a few weeks ago. They were very yummy, but got really hard after a day or so. That didn't stop me from eating the entire pan myself though! I decided to make them again, but this time I only cooked them for 23 minutes instead of 30. Oh.My.Goodness! They are extra tasty and chewy. Perfect! John liked them enough to take some to his coworkers :)

The granola bars will not be helping me get back into my pre-pregnancy clothes. Neither will the peanut butter filled pretzels that I inhale all day long! I bought the economy size at Sam's a few days ago. Not good.

Speaking of pregnancy. My baby is 7 weeks old today. Where has the time gone? I only have 2 more weeks of maternity leave left :( I don't know how I will ever be able to get up and get ready for work AND get there on time! It's usually 1:00 p.m. before I can ever seem to get in the shower these days! I better start practicing soon.

The Owls Have New Hair

Take a look...

The paddle plants did not survive me. I will try to treat these pretty plants a lot better. I just wasn't sure about those paddle plants. If I watered them, the leaves shriveled. If I didn't water them...their leaves shriveled. Hmmmm. I need low maintenance plants. Maybe these will fit the profile.

Salty and Sweet

My new favorite snack.



This stuff is so good! Nuts, granola, dried cranberries, yogurt covered raisins, and dried apples. Yum!

It's also highly addictive and NOT on my "look decent in a bathing suit" plan.

This is the 2nd night in a row I have skipped dessert. I'm proud of myself, and I am trying not to obsess over it. The chocolate mint brownies I made this weekend are calling me, but I am ignoring them. Note to self...get John to take the brownies to work!

Pretty Flowers

AK and I picked out some pretty flowers :)

The pictures don't do them much justice, but we had fun planting them. AK didn't want to mess up her manicure, so I did most of the digging.



I just tried to keep my toes clean :)

We went yesterday and had our first Mommy/Daughter pedicures, and AK got a manicure too. Oh, it was fun! She wants to go back today, and tomorrow...and the next day.

Back to my yard...
It is beginning to look pretty. I have been trying to pull weeds, but they are EVERYWHERE! I do a little every time I am in the yard.

I am excited about the size of my hydrangea. We planted it 2 or 3 years ago, and last year was the first year it bloomed. Look at it today (just ignore the weeds).
No blooms yet, but it's getting big!!



And here is the other corner of the yard. Lovely.



This corner had a hydrangea about 3 summers ago. It didn't make it.
But the dandelions and wild violets obviously love it here!

Happy Spring...Break!

Wooo hoooo! Spring Break has begun! One week of no school and warm weather. Now, to think of something to do :) My mom is coming to visit for a few days, so there will probably be some shopping going on at some point.

While we were outside yesterday we saw this pretty guy...

I was so excited at the thought of bluebirds in the bluebird house! We have had other bird nest in the box, but never bluebirds even though there are lots of them around our neighborhood. He took some time checking this box out, but I think it may have already been occupied. This morning I saw a Tufted Titmouse go in and stay a while. It was too cute because he sat looking out of the hole for a while. We have had a Titmouse family nest in there before, so maybe they came back again!

Here comes Peter Cottontail...

AK's class egg hunt was yesterday. There was candy, snacks, eggs, and best of all...baby chicks! They were adorable :)

Crack Snackle Pop

Yesterday we took a day trip to Macon, GA to see AK's Aunt "B" and Uncle Phil. It was the last weekend of the Cherry Blossom Festival. I thought I would post some of my favorite pictures from the day. We took so many!

This is a nest in the wreath on "B" and Phil's front door!

Just before we were leaving to drive back home I realized I hadn't taken any pictures of the cherry blossoms! So we snuck (sneaked? I keep getting a spell check error here) into the neighbor's yard to get these shots.

It was a beautiful day and we had a beautiful time :) AK was so tired she fell asleep in the car and slept in her clothes. She was amazed when she woke up this morning still dressed. When John told her she didn't even brush her teeth she said, "Look in my mouth. Do I have any cavities?" The words of a dentist's grandchild :)

She asked for Rice Krispies this morning. She kept saying "Crack Snackle Pop!" No matter how I tried to correct her, she insisted her way was better. I say we just go with it.

Happy Spring

Today was a beautiful day. A wonderful first day of Spring. AK and I spent a lot of time outside, which is a rare thing for me. I am not much of an outside type of person. I actually got a couple of bug bites today...yuck. However, if that means it is getting warmer, I'm all for it! The weather forecast is for rain and colder tomorrow and Monday, but Wednesday looks like it will be very similar to today! Here are some signs of Spring that I have come across this week...

Ah, the weeds. That is a sure sign it is warming up. They have invaded my flower bed...again. My yard is a haven for weeds. I spend most of my limited outside time pulling them! But, my pansies survived our cold snowy Winter :)

Signs of Spring

Look what I found today...

Ah...pretty flowers. Unfortunately, I did not find them blooming outside. They're on the little African Violet in my living room. Spring will be here soon. I keep telling myself this while it is 25 degrees and very windy outside. Soon...