planting

Today we planted green beans, lima beans, corn, purple hull peas, crowder peas, pepper, tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash!  Bring on the rain and warm temps and we will soon have veggies galore.

april showers

April showers have been happening for the second day now, so when the sun broke through I headed out for a little walk to the mailbox.  Seemed like all the critters had the same idea!

I almost didn't notice that this little fella had gotten himself into trouble because he looked like a leaf.  I flipped him.

And scooted him off the driveway to a spot where he could recover and get his bearings back!

By the time I returned he was long gone.
A few steps away I ran into this critter.

I left it alone.

I stopped to admire how much the May apples had grown and his little bird just sat right down beside me.  I may have gotten too close to where it was trying to build a nest.

I didn't hurry to the mailbox because there was lots of interesting blooming things to see along the way. 

 But the showers are coming back, unfortunately for most of the rest of the week.

regret

Yesterday and today I have been filled with  deep regret that I did not rake many leaves last fall!

I have some company while I rake!

By lunch today the wind has caused me to stop burning! No need to burn down the neighborhood.

This does not help my regret, but it does wonders for sore muscles!

I had some with breakfast!

spring break

 I may not attend or work at a school any more but this week I took a little trip on spring break.  Parker and Tracie invited me to go with them to Atlanta.  We had a great couple of days visiting the Atlanta Zoo, Legoland, Ikea and the World of Coke!

We left late Sunday afternoon and stopped at Monteagle to eat dinner at the Smoke House Restaurant and Trading Post.  Its a unique spot with good food and lots of old stuff inside.  We got a table by the fire and enjoyed our meals. We traveled on to Dalton, Georgia where we spent the night.
On Monday our first stop was the Atlanta Zoo.  We checked out all the animals!

 This guy may look lazy but just for your info the sign says he can run up to 30 miles per hour.  You might want to keep this in mind if you are ever chased by a rhino.  I suppose if you can't find something to climb the situation could be dire.

 The Atlanta Zoo has a huge gorilla exhibit.  It was my favorite. 

 Parker feeding the parakeets!

After the zoo, we found our room and then headed for Legoland where there are rides and movies, a replica of the city of Atlanta built from legos and tons and tons of lego bricks.

You are never too old to play with legos!

We visited Ikea and called it a day.  My phone said I walked almost six miles today!
On Tuesday we headed for World of Coke.

 We bought a ticket for the VIP tour  so we had special headphones and our own tour guide

 This is the vault where the secret formula is kept.

 Being VIP's we got to have our photo made with the polar bear without having to wait in line!

Our favorite part of the tour was the tasting room!  We were allowed to drink all the coke we could hold.  There was different flavors from all around the world as well all the types of coke we know and love! 
It was a terrific spring break!

snow week

Since Monday I feel like I've been in the movie Ground Hog Day, where you keep waking up to the same day over and over!  It looks like this in our driveway so my car has not moved.

All of the side roads that lead to our house looks like this, except for the big hills.  They are cleared.

 

I did leave the house one day to go with Peanut to get hay in the four wheel drive truck.  Otherwise I would not know what this road looked like!

This morning its still here! And still cold! And the forecast is for another winter storm!

This woodpecker has tried to peck our house down this week and when he couldn't succeed starting stealing the dog food.

On a brighter note the hot water in the kitchen just started running, it had frozen last night.

and miles to go. . .

When we were out in the snow feeding cattle today I was reminded of this poem that I had to memorize in junior high school!

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

birthday

Today the oldest Ponderosa Princess celebrated her 37th birthday. She had a "surprise" party hosted by all her little Bs who love a good celebration!  Here are some pictures they sent.

big birthday celebration

My grands are all happy children.  It's hard to steal their joy!  They are excited about anything we do together, going for a walk, playing a game or riding the golf cart, but if there is a celebration involved they just about explode with excitement!  They all came this weekend to have a birthday celebration for me!  Mom and Dad cooked a big meal and we had a great time playing balloon games and eating ice cream cake.  They all pick out their own presents so you always get a treasure.  This month is filled with more birthdays and Valentine's Day so the excitement level is off the charts!

Happy Birthday to me!