Friday, April 26, 2019

flipped

It's not a normal Friday. Nothing about it fits previous patterns. The world has flipped and so we must flip with it.

It's a beautiful day -- stunning, brilliant, with a touch of a cool breeze, but nothing distressing. Just your regular great spring weather. But all that is to change tomorrow. We have been warned: a winter storm is heading our way. Not only will we be chilled but too, we'll get the snow. Lot's of it.

Whatever else we do today, we surely have to figure out a way to take the pots of annuals indoors. Too, we should move ahead with clearing the fields by the sheep shed of creeping charlie. Ed read me an article about the noxiousness of this invasive plant (it's everywhere!), so now I think we should attack it full force.

We have our hands full!

But our activities are flipped in other ways too: Snowdrop's school is closed today and so the little one is coming to the farmhouse in the morning and staying until after lunch. If she is here early, I must start work earlier. And I do! By 7 a.m. I am out pulling creeping charlie from the more distant beds.


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I feel a whiff of sadness for the daffodils: they will suffer if there is indeed a heavy snow. The cold wont hurt them, but the heaviness of big fat flakes will topple them for sure. Let's take a good look at these lovely spring blooms in case we lose them tomorrow.


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Snowdrop's about to come. Let's eat breakfast, Ed!


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The girl and I play inside at first, but within an hour, we are out. Ed's been pulling out garlic mustard. She is excited to join him in his noble pursuits.


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At first, I stick by her. But I notice that she is inventing all kinds of games for herself. And so I join Ed in weeding the plot of land, as Snowdrop flutters this way and that, full of energetic outdoor games.


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Sometimes she calls us to join her...


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... but more often than not, she is on her own. Or with the rooster. The umbrella? It's from the kiddie pool, but I'm sure it's part of a Mary Poppins story. Snowdrop is heavily into Mary Poppins these days and that woman always traveled with an umbrella.


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(farmhouse lunch: grilled cheese sandwich and an apple)


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Eventually her parents pick her up. I should head for the grocery store to do my weekly shopping, but we still have so much weeding to do! And so I linger and work until it is too late to work anymore.

I swear I could easily fall asleep standing up. Ed is equally exhausted. It's a good type of tired. Tomorrow we'll rest and watch the snowflakes fall.