After a long, cold winter with more snow than I wanted to deal with, I am looking forward to spring. Maybe because last winter was unseasonably warm that this winter seemed harder for some reason. Regardless, it is making the thought that spring is only a few weeks away even more inviting.
One of the things I look forward to are the first perennials that emerge and bloom in the spring. The bleeding hearts and ferns under the front pine trees are some of my favorite plants.
Bleeding hearts under the pine trees
in the front yard.
I enjoy being able to explore the trails at local state parks with Sophia, Olivia, and the dogs.
Sophia and Olivia running with Gretel at
William O'Brien State Park.
Seeing the migrating birds return is always uplifting. Some are simply passing through while others will stay here the entire summer.
Trumpeter swans that Olivia and I saw
in the next door neighbor's cornfield in March 2012.
The fruit trees are covered with white and pink blossoms in the spring. Having apple, cherry, pear, and plum trees here at the farm means lots of beautiful trees during the spring months.
The apple tree covered in blossoms.
Sophia and Olivia enjoy climbing this tree
during the spring and summer.
St. Patrick's Day is one of the girls' favorite holidays. They enjoy building a leprechaun trap each year with the hope that they will capture him. So far...no luck capturing him.
Yet, they are never disappointed for long because he always leaves gold coins and gold dust. The leprechaun has even been known to write messages to the girls in coins.
Olivia and Sophia by the leprechaun trap
they built one year.
Although dandelions are looked at as a nuisance by many, Sophia and Olivia always have enjoyed the deep yellow color that the lawns and fields turn each spring thanks to the dandelions. I always like the bouquets of dandelions that the girls bring me.
Olivia handing me a bouquet of dandelions she picked.
Easter is another holiday that we enjoy. Sophia and Olivia look forward to dying eggs each year. I always ask them if they want to decorate them with patterns or do something different. No...they just want to color them in the boldest colors possible.
Easter eggs the girls colored.
A sure sign of spring is when the rhubarb and strawberries emerge. I'm always surprised at how quickly the rhubarb grows.
Rhubarb starting to grow in the early spring.
Hanging clothes out to dry is something I like to do. There is no comparison to the fresh smell of clothes that have dried outside. This year - rather than hanging the clothes over the fence, I would like to have a real clothesline.
Clothes drying outside a home in
an Amish community in southeast Minnesota.
And...just because we like celebrating Easter so much, I have to include a picture of the lamb cake. Olivia and I make a lamb cake each year...it's become our tradition.
In the picture below, someone got a little excited about candles and decided to make sure the lamb had a dramatic entrance to the Easter table.
Ten candles on the lamb cake -
8 on top and 2 out of the mouth.
Needless to say, it was a memorable cake that year.
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