April Days

 We had a quiet day yesterday, Jen and Andy were the highlight of our day.  They stopped on their way through for lunch and to drop off Far Guys carving supplies. They helped carry a bunch of stuff to the garage....stuff we store inside for the winter...Round Up, Poison Ivy Killer etc...and some "stuff" that Jen unearthed under the stairs that can be sold at a rummage sale. 

I mowed the tall grass East of the house, noticed that the little Lilac there is beginning to show some buds.  It was a terribly dusty job...I came inside washed my hair and had a bath in the middle of the day then a nap! 

I took a break from working on the big sort.  We took paper and plastic to recycle. 

Dangles from Piss Popple on the East side of the house blew in on the patio.  Spring must be here.

Son In Law Andy is tempting the snow spirits...he put away my electric snow shovel and my regular snow shovel.  Last year at this time we had snow on the ground.

Far Side

Blue Sky

 We had a wonderful blue sky day yesterday.  We sat outside a couple of times, our high temperature for the day was 54 F or 13 C eh!

We tackled a project in the garage, and we got it done! 

The Oaks are not beginning to look alive yet. 

Can you pick out which tree is a Piss Popple (Aspen) soon all the dangles will fall off the tree.  They make such a mess.  But it will be the first leafy green tree in our area. 

I worked on the big sort for a bit yesterday.  Very little progress was made. 

Far Guy continues to hold his own and is working on getting stronger everyday.

Far Side

The Big Sort

 It was raining on Monday, so....I began the big sort.  Many totes full of "stuff" were brought upstairs after my Mom died.   Lets just say I have a rather large mess up there...Far Guy refuses to go upstairs. 

Rainy days and evenings will be time to sort.  I will eventually get done...I hope. 

My baby brother brought me three more totes yesterday, one tote had...greeting cards and a small box with some of my Fathers things...like an old billfold...no money in it...a leather belt that has seen better days...a Japanese or Korean book of maps....his drivers license ( I shredded it)...a razor, hearing aids and glasses. 

Not sure what is in the other totes as I didn't get to them yet.  Have to leave those surprises for another rainy day or evening project. 

I know the Lions take glasses...I heard they take hearing aids too!

Six pair...I wonder if that is all I will find?  I tried them on..and no I cannot see through them..he had two real fancy pairs of prescription sunglasses.

Just thankful I didn't get the totes with fabric in them my baby brother has stacks of them in his all season craft/gathering room. 

Far Guy had a pretty good day, we got the bird feeders filled, a Pileated Woodpecker was in the yard and I am sure he will be back for suet.  It was nice to sit out in the sunshine!  The high temperature was 55 F or 13 C eh!

Far Side

What's new?

 We had a busy day; Andy, Jen, Noah and Sadie came to visit.  They helped move a few things from my parents home to their apartment...Mom has about one more load and the house will be cleared out.   Many hands make short work of a project. 

Sadie ran around in our yard curious about all the smells new to her.   She didn't like the bear doorstop in the bathroom...she came over to Noah and barked...a very scary bear...Chance didn't like it either but he got used to it. 

Far Guy and I had a nap got up and cooked some bacon and eggs for supper and then went for a Ranger Blue trail ride. 

I can report that the skeeters are out...horrid little buggers. 

The Large Flowered Bellwort is in bloom, it is a native to Minnesota plant.

The Ferns have begun to unfurl.

We saw a pair of Swans on Elbow Lake and several pair of Swans on Guyles Lake.  Saw a Porkypine sauntering across the road.   And a few deer...

This deer was trimming brush.

Far Side

Early Spring

 We are in early Spring here in Minnesota.   I heard some places had hail that made the ground white.  It thundered when it rained yesterday morning. 

The Cowslips are up but there are no blooms. 

We went for a ride to see what was new in the neighborhood, there is still some snow in the ditches in places.   The clouds were putting on quite a show and the wind was blowing. 

The farmers have been in the fields since last Friday.   A field South of us got its Turkey manure...uffda...that smell really travels.

Far Side

Spring Like Days

 Busy days and nice to be outside. 

My spinner survived the winter and birds are at the bird bath bathing! 

Far Side

Hope

 We have the hope of Spring when the snow begins to melt.  Then it turns cold and snows and our hopes are dashed.

Rivers are rising, towns are flooding so Spring must be somewhere.   Just not here.

Far Side

Miserable signs of spring

The Populus deltoides or Cottonwood or Piss Popple have catkins. 

I think this is a male tree along our driveway.  The female trees will bloom next and then the fuzz flies all over. 

Time to get out the allergy pills.

Poison Ivy berries.

We have a good supply of Poison Ivy Soap, if we use it after working in the yard then our chances of getting it are slim…but still possible.    I still have some of the very expensive Zanfel on hand, it works wonders when you first notice the rash is itching.

Poison Ivy is some wicked stuff. I am going to try to kill these berries before birds eat them and drop the tiny seeds all over the place. Birds are never bothered by the urushiol that causes the intense itching. Lucky birds.

Piss popple fuzz gets all over, the dog carries it into the house, it rolls across the yard in waves, if it stops someplace where there is dirt and water it will sprout almost overnight.

Goodbye March Hello April

The last day of March went out like a lamb.  It was sunny and about 50 F. 

We spent part of the afternoon watching a dock being installed  at my baby brother’s place on the lake.  There is still ice on the lake.

We took Chance along and watched from the patio…the former owners even left some patio chairs.

We got home just in time for the Septic Take Pumper Guy to pump out our nineteen year old septic system that needs to be replaced.  FUN.

March was not a very productive Month for ongoing projects. 

Great Grandson Mikey’s blanket is still in progress.  Good thing he is not due to arrive until late May!

The Income Taxes were filed.

Some family tree research happened, nothing too significant.  It is a huge time sink.

Some volunteer work was completed at Find A Grave…but there is still more to be done.

I completed a pair of carvings that I will share soon.

And so my ongoing projects are still ongoing.

Pussywillows down near the lake.

Warm weather!

The weather is delightful for March!  It has been near 50 F or 10 C eh!

Before:

March 20 the bird feeding/solar light area.  What a mess. The black is mostly from that snirt storm.

This week we spiffed up part of the yard, cleaning up after the birds and their empty sunflower seed hulls.  I checked all of my solar lights and added a few.  Now there are twelve and three are still faulty, maybe they need a cleaning.

After: Nine days later

I saved that red white and blue whirly gig, last summer it blew off the holder and someone might have been me, mowed the holder to smitherines.

Last winter the wind from North Dakota and Montana took out my cheery yellow sunflower twirly whirly gig…I found it back in the woods one day and put it back up…Far Guy said “That sunflower looks pathetic.”   It did…it was not as cheery as it once was.  It kept falling off the holder when it was windy. Sadly I gathered it together to take to the garbage and then had an idea.

The old holder was still in the ground and the flower head part… well I might be able to use it with some modifications…I ripped off the silky petals…decided to make it work with my red white and blue twirly whirly gig…cause I hate to throw anything out!

I glued some beads on the flower head part so it would be kinda matchy matchy.

This time I glued the round flower head part right on the holder…we will see if it holds.

We lugged out the patio table and two chairs…Far Guy likes to woodcarve outside. I just like to sit out there and feel the sun on my head and watch for birds.

It may snow again, in fact I would bet on it…I carried my pretty red snow shovel away from the front door.

Hanging on

I picked up some sticks in the yard.  Someone wanted to burn them right away in the firepit.  I said just cover them up for another day.  A piece of steel is our cover, it keeps the rain and or snow melt out of the pit.

This old hydrangea bloom held on all winter. 

Eunoymous ‘Chicago Fire’ otherwise known as a Burning Bush held a few berries over the winter.

We have two trees that are just hanging on. They are Oaks that grew funny with weak branches way off the ground, that are now almost on the ground.  One day we will deal with them.  It was a tough winter on many of the trees. I miss my electric chain saw….I cut wood as far as my cord would go…when I talked about loading up the generator in the wagon behind the three wheeler to attack trees farther away…my chain saw mysteriously disappeared.

Brown

Everything is brown, except when it is white.  The overnight white yields to the brown once again.  The push pull of the seasons is like a war.

The wind blew, it spit snow/icy rain half the day.  The high yesterday was 40 maybe… that would be 4 C eh.

You can hardly see them, but there are a pair of Sandhill Cranes on the edge of the plowed field and Wild Turkeys way back by the trees.

It is humid, the cold penetrates my old bones and makes them ache.  I need me some sunshine!  How about you …is it sunny where you are at?

Our weather forecasters say warmer weather is still a week away.

Spring Things

I am like a kid sometimes.  I have a “thing” for boxes and cases.  There….I said it I am a hoarder of boxes, cases and maybe even tins. I saw these Spring like boxes in an second hand shop…who could resist?

Right now they will hold colorful plastic eggs and candy for a possible Easter Egg Hunt!  After Easter I will find something else to store inside.

Now doesn’t this look interesting?  It is a wooden case…very well made too.

It holds a variety of second hand art supplies; crayons, markers, colored pencils and oil pastels. 

I was most interested in the colored pencils…I had hoped they were water color pencils..they were not.  BUT I think I read someplace that baby oil or alcohol can be used as a blender so that you can use a colored pencil and get lots of colors and shades.  I will have to try it…someday.  I can doodle in color!!

My husband was already eyeing those markers. I will share….although yesterday he made a comment to one of my friends… “ Sometimes she rolls her eyes so far back in her head that she can see her own brain.”

Uffda

Early Spring Happenings

Snow: It is almost gone, the huge drifts are always the last to go and we still have a couple in the yard. We really need a rain to clean things up..everything is brown..sure, various shades o' brown..but still brown.

Chance enjoying one of the last of the snowbanks.

Bluebirds: They are here, building a nest, they first showed up on Monday April 13. I sat out for an hour one day trying to get a photo, no luck..it didn't help that Chance wanted to play ball, instead of watching for birds. As soon as I got up and played ball, the Bluebirds were behind me chirping away.
Loons: None heard yet, a neighbor said he heard one.. so any day now.

A couple of Swans.

A Red Winged Blackbird

Canadian Friends!

Deer Ticks: They are here. The little tiny itty bitty size of a pin head ticks. Chance had one crawling on him yesterday April 15. We capture them on pieces of scotch tape, then we fold the tape over on itself and then cut the tick in half with a knife or a scissors. Duct tape works really well too..you can line them up and then smother them. You can also get out a magnifying glass and watch their little legs go a hundred miles an hour trying to escape the tape. We use Frontline on Chance, I stopped by the Vet's Office and they said "Yup the Deer ticks woke up on Monday..and Frontline business was booming." They have a new Office gal..I am not sure that she will work out either..she might be a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

Chance perfectly framed, gathering ticks :)