Spring in full swing...

 Last weekend, Rachel, the Owlet, and I went to a plant nursery. It was a first for the Owlet, and all the employees gathered 'round to remark on how cute she was and about her "big eyes." She gave gummy smiles out freely, to the apparent delight of the recipients. 

 I filled two boxes with delights, from pedestrian petunias to exotic-looking passionflower vines and many other things that struck my fancy. Then Monday, on my day off, I weeded flower beds and got to digging. The weather was flawless, sunny, with a light breeze and low humidity. I was as happy as I could be. 

The crabapple trees and lilac bushes are in bloom, perfuming the air indescribably. Bees buzzed, birds sang, and my heart was happy. 

The fancy passionflower was tucked into the center of this pretty obelisk. 

I gave the garden around the little chicken coop a facelift. I weeded, laid in a thick layer of bark mulch, and planted the "window box" with a sweet potato vine and some portulaca.  I will place a couple of pretty hanging baskets from a shepherd's hook next to it this weekend to really make it pop. 

The new wee residents of the coop are growing at a steady rate. Their adult feathers are coming in, so they are in a state of adolescent flux but still adorable. They will be big enough to explore the yard in a few weeks. That will be fun! 

Spring is a time of clean-up and reconstruction. I have a carpenter friend that kindly repaired my big chicken coop. It has a kick out for nest boxes with a little "roof" on it that was rotting. The day before he came to fix it, a massive chunk of it came off in my hand when I lifted it to collect eggs. He will also replace the door, which is in sad shape. He does fantastic work; I am so pleased with his efforts. 

Chris and I spent a happy couple of hours one evening last week and cleaned up cluttery junk from the pasture. We took the cold weather windows off the goat house and stacked a bunch of stuff on the burn pile. We work well together and accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. 

There are bigger spring changes to come in the next few days. I can hardly wait to share them.