Getting a Jump on Spring

Well, my dear blog readers, we are a full two weeks, and maybe even a little more ahead of our usual Spring weather here in Oregon. The plum trees in our orchard are now in full bloom, as well as the Forsythia and Crocus, and we spent some time this weekend doing, of all things... yardwork!

I should have taken a "before" photo, but you can see by this wheelbarrow load that the flower beds were a mess when I set to work clearing them...

The kids were a big help; they followed me to the burn pile each time, picking up whatever I dropped, and then they kindly helped steer on the return trip to the yard.

Some "after" photos (the tractor was used to bring over big scoops of our favorite mulch, "medium hemlock")...


I call this one "Boy in Greenhouse with Blueberry Pancake"...

and this one is simply titled, "Nonchalant"...