Thursday

Do you like to take all your blows at once, then sit back and enjoy a sweet ride downhill all the way? Or, do you prefer to sprinkle your bumps throughout, knowing that in the scheme of things, they're small little nothings and your overall ride through life (or at least the week) is a fine one?

I'm not sure where I stand on this, but I'll say this much: our morning was of the little bumps kind, with unexpected views onto a splendid world.

Let's get to the details.

First of all, we wake to a threat of rain. Not just a shower, but a thunderous, vicious rain. Expected at around 8:30 -- how is that for precision! That gives me a couple of hours to work with. First, I feed the cats. Unfortunately, Stop Sign's newest -- called Tulip Meow because, well, some of us thought it was fitting -- did not make an appearance today. I would be less worried if it weren't for the fact that we heard our neighbor fire his gun twice this morning. He likes to shoot at moving things and Tulip Meow looks like a small racoon from a distance. I hope the neighbor's marksmanship is off to a rocky start today.

Then, I take in the fragrance and beauty of the blooming trees. You'll see the crabs throughout the day's post. It's such a gorgeous tree (actually clump of trees) and her best performance is so very short lived!






With predicted rains for today, tomorrow, the next day and the next, I don't expect to see the tulips still standing tall by the end of it all. So these, too, are my focus today.






Oh, who am I kidding -- the whole garden is to be my focus -- splendid, even without the summer colors! It shouts at me -- remember this when times are tough in February! Take note and don't forget!

(the lilacs are finally coming around!)






I take out our wildflower seeds now and I seed the spaces we've cleared for them by the sheep shed. I want to do it just before it rains, mainly because I am hoping so very much that they'll sink into the ground then, before the cheepers find them. (Unfortunately, the cheepers are not fooled by the rain. They canvas the flower field throughout the day, picking out the large and tasty seeds. We will just have to see what survived their assault.)

I go inside just as the rains approach. Do you see how visible that approach is??






The rain is intense, but we do not get the worst of it. No hail. No torrents of water. Just a solid, two hour splash, with a handful of crashes of thunder to amplify things a bit. I mean, our ground doesn't need the water and I feel terribly sorry for the farmers, but for us, it is not a significant weather event.

Still, we eat breakfast inside.






I am prepared to spend the morning catching up with indoor tasks and so I am surprised to see that with the passing of the rain system, we get some pretty darn good weather again! An occasional flash of sunlight, really warm temperatures -- stuff that feels grand for a mid May day.

And so I go out again.






I don't tackle any larger project. That's not my goal right now. I just enjoy walking this beautiful landscape. A blooming tree will always be lovely, but growing along a rural path, it looks so contextually perfect!






And massive!






When I pick up my four-year old granddaughter at school, I am suddenly struck by her height: she is no longer the shrimp on the sidewalk. She is young girl. One who loves picking flowers. These weeks of prolific dandelion blooms are a piece of heaven -- there are no restriction as to how many she can pick.






At the farmette, I tell her that more asparagus spears have sprung up overnight. She finds them all and eats them all.






It's a good time of the year to be a kid at the farmette!






(it's also a good time to be a cat at the farmette!)






(... or a chicken!)






You wont see photos of it, but Snowdrop and I do play inside as well. In many ways, it's the same make believe game, but there's a huge difference: indoors, she uses toys as props. Oh, it will be a creative use and have little to do with a toy's intended function. Still, at the end of the day, there will be a lot to put away.

Outside, twigs, flowers, chips and grasses will be her tools. Oh and the wading pool umbrella.






(... always the dandelions!)






With the morning rains and the constant threat of their return, the development construction crews stop their work for the day. When they retreat, all we are left with is the sound of frogs that have found a home in the ponds the crews have (intentionally or unintentionally) created.

I ask Snowdrop: do you hear the frogs? She listens for the "ribbit!" Nope!
What do you hear?
Birds.
What else?
You.
Listen carefully.
(ribbit, ribbit...)
She smiles.


Eventually I have to chase her inside. She has to get herself ready for gym class.

She walks over to where Ed is glued to a youtube.
What are you watching?
A chain saw.
What's that?

She gets a lesson about chainsaws, about cutting down trees and picking out past weather patterns from studying the stump rings.






The weather continues to hold into the evening. Ed and I ride his motorbike to our local farmers market to do our egg - cheese exchange with Farmer John...






... and to pick up a big batch of fresh asparagus from Farmer Natalie...





I make veggie soup for dinner. I'm told it will be really cold and really wet tomorrow. A tumble back down, but as measured against a constant progression to more and more beautiful days.