"It is only March 1!! " she muttered to herself . . .

Where in the world did January and February go? I swear . . .this year is flying by. I think I blinked or took a nap back during Thanksgiving weekend and missed something. Actually, we have had a busy but wonderful time starting back in the fall. Laura and Glenn and Lauren's birthdays are all in November and we celebrated. Thanksgiving came next and we celebrated. In the midst of the holidays, we celebrated at wedding parties for Glenn & Lauren. January rolled around and we celebrated New Year's and we celebrated at the rehearsal dinner and the wedding. Our fun wasn't over because Mark and I immediately worked an Emmaus walk and then I was blessed to go back to Sumatanga for our overnight staff retreat. Last weekend, Laura and I worked Discovery weekend. Spread throughout all of that time, we all worked and we hosted Bible study on Tuesday nights and we went to church every Sunday. This is the first time that I have really thought about how crazy life has been for the last several months. Life is good - life is very good.


I think the thing that has surprised me most is that it seems like it was just snowing (oh wait - it was snowing just a few weeks ago!!) and now we are in full spring mode. Last weekend during Discovery, it was 79 degrees one of the days and my face showed it. I've never been sunburned in February before. (it actually felt great to feel that sun beating down on my upturned face!!)


All of that brings me to this post. On Tuesday night (March 1), I was waiting on everyone to get here for the Mere Christianity study and I grabbed my camera and walked out into the back yard. First, I encountered the jonquils. They are such happy flowers. They always make me smile. They signal that winter is ending and spring is coming.Right next to the jonquils is the big forsythia (yellow bell) bush. As I type this post, I can see the branches of yellow flowers blowing in the breeze. I swear they are doing a happy dance. I love this plant so much that I have two in the back yard and they were both mother's day gifts from Mark and the kids many years ago.


I walked over to the bird feeder and underneath there is lots of green growth. I can't wait for the day lily plants to bloom. They make me happy, too!!

On the property line between our house and the next door neighbor's house (the one that has the turkey call like mark - you can read about this in a previous post - which I have no idea how to link . . . anyone??) is a Bradford pear tree in full bloom. It looks beautiful. They are blooming all over town and sometimes when I'm driving home and come over a hill, the sight of several blooming together will actually take my breath away. Thank you God for creating such beauty!

Imagine my surprise when I was walking back to my deck and spotted this - oh my goodness - some of our azaleas are blooming.

Now you have to understand that this is one of my worst allergy seasons. The oak trees are doing their "thang" right now and I can't spend much time outdoors. I'm supposed to be inside and as pollen free as possible - no open windows or doors. If it is hot, I have to run the air conditioner . . .so it was a treat to walk around for just a moment and snap some pictures (and no, I DID NOT wear my ugly mask . .. though I probably should have!)

Last but not least, look who greeted me after my walk . . .snugs on his throne. I'm sure he was watching me . . .wondering . . .what is she doing? To be honest, he probably heard me muttering, "it's only march 1" . . ."I can't believe how beautiful" . . .and other crazy comments. He is used to my craziness. Doesn't he look majestic?

I know it is not officially spring yet . . .but you could have fooled me. I have heard (from Mark!) that it is going to be cold again this weekend. What? You are kidding me, right?