Wednesday

One more "seize the day" moment. Warm, partly cloudy, lovely. Yesterday, we hit a record high of 70F (21C). Today, we're just a few degrees less than that. (Tomorrow we return to what is properly ours in March: cool, wet, cool, dry, cool wet and so on.) Ed thinks we should aim big today, but I resist anything that has us rushing like kids chasing an ice cream truck. Better to go local, moving gently from one thing to the next. Rushing belongs to those under 70!

The hens are in a good routine. All are back to treating the coop as a home base. 

And the older girls are laying again. Weirdly, one lays huge monster eggs, the other -- small and rather oblong. Same breed, same age, same diet. Different... what? Temperament? We have no idea. The younger foursome spend the day moving between barn and the nearby fir trees. For all that crazy, wild run in every direction on their first free day here, they now seem completely disinterested in venturing out beyond this tiny stretch of land. That's just fine with me. Hiding under the firs is a great way to protect yourself from hawks. 

Walk back from barn: the crocuses! Oh, the crocuses! 

 

 

 

 

 

It's been a stellar year for them. It could be that I planted a good batch of bulbs at the right depth, but honestly, I think it's just the luck of the weather. Crocuses come out early. They'll survive the cold, but their blooms are fragile. We've had no snow, no big storms and rainfalls to topple these guys. Best crocus year ever!

I have more appointments, more errands for this morning. Indeed, I decide that I can lump everything into one neat stack and do it even before breakfast. Including the week's grocery shopping! The reward? I have fresh (grocery store) flowers for the table for our morning meal.

And now for out light walk in the local park.

We choose the longer trail through the woods, which promises a ton of birdsong! Robins, song sparrows, chickadees. Heavenly!

And that's how you quickly move from morning til school pick up time.

 

The kids never play outside during the school year. (They do at home, with neighborhood friends, but not at the farmette.) Still, on great weather days, there's that temptation to do at least a quick run in a field...

Before hurrying inside. 

 

 

 

For the food. And the book. (We're currently reading Greenglass House -- a mystery, a spooky story, with bits of the unreal sprinkled throughout. Even Sparrow, who cannot possibly understand the plot's twists and turns, kept repeating -- this is such a good book!)

 

(All the cats stay outside when the kids come. Too much energy in the house!)

 

 

Evening. A light rain. More to come. 

Soup's on! Feet up. Exhale...