~This Evening~

~first bloom on the climbing rose~

~the lavender planted last year is happy indeed~

~two 'welcoming blues' on the back porch~

~a full inspection of the new watering can~

 ~yes, you're my angel (that's a loose translation)~

~oh, AND adorable as well~

 ~but even better than a cat hamming it up~ 

a Husband working in the yard

~(be still my beating heart!)~

~all, this evening~

~Surprise!~

This guy turned 12 exactly one month ago. . .

We decided to throw him a surprise party and nearly our whole family drove down to celebrate. I took him shopping and while we were gone they all hid in the basement.

He was VERY surprised!

Litter box cake was the order of the day. Per his request months earlier . . . the recipe can be found in this book.

Appetizing, eh?

Gifts were given . . . with fanfare . . .

And the birthday boy was THRILLED with his cake!

Nothing like a litter scoop to make cake serving easy!

It was a fun weekend and a great way to celebrate my 'baby'.

Pictures courtesy of my sister.- thanks Nina!

~April's Garden~

Just some bits of what's been in bloom this month. 

As of now, the tulips are all nearly gone and there are buds on the roses- like gifts all wrapped and ready to be opened. The lilac bush is also near to blooming. When they are open I will sit on the old wooden bench next to them and let their homey fragrance transport me to childhood again. 

~Easter Morning~

the house was decorated . . .

the baskets stuffed . . .

eggs were died the night before . . .

and cuddled in crates for safe keeping . . .

 out of the fridge, the eggs are hid . . .

 and the hunt begins . . .

even the walking dead joins in . . .

a few eggs are found . . .

then a whole lot more . . .

breakfast was enjoyed . . .

then basket opening ensued . . .

 on this Easter morning.

cheers!

~Nothing But the Kitchen Sink~

The last three weeks have been a blur of activity in our household, so here I am hoping to get back into the blogging groove. It's so difficult to know where to begin when I've been out of this space so long and so much has happened during the interval! But I will do my best . . .

I'm thinking 'short and sweet' posts may be the best answer to it all . . . so to start off, instead of sharing 'everything, but the kitchen sink', I'll take it slow and show ONLY the kitchen sink! ;)

Now, prepare to be disgusted . . . 

here is what I have been washing dishes in for the past 8 years. Yes- I did indeed scrub it before I took the picture . . . yes, those are the nastiest stains ever. But do you see the good news?

Let's get closer, shall we?
What- What's that? . . . praise be to God!  A CRACK! A hideous, can't-be-fixed, leaks-everywhere crack! 
The perfect excuse to FINALLY replace the horrible, old kitchen sink!!! 
And The Husband cannot say no!! (insert maniacal laugh here)!!

Goodbye, monstrosity . . . ! 

Hello, gorgeous!!!!

No divider to make scouring pots and pans nearly impossible! No hideous stains or leaking cracks!! This baby cleans up like nobody's business . . .

And to add further excitement,  that dream beyond dreams . . . a sprayer!!! Be still my heart . . .

It's been three weeks now, and I can't stop cooing to it and petting it each time I walk by. Which may mean I'm crazy . . . crazy in love!

Back Soon- Cheers!

~Spring Things . . .

. . . in the garden.

. . . and around the kitchen.

Been spring cleaning- inside and out. Unbelievable how much is still to be done. Life is just so full right now- and that's a good thing. Just trying to live in each moment and this month happens to be throwing moments at me from every direction! ;)

I'll be in Seattle with my grandparents for a few days this week- helping out as I can. I know I'm in a season where I just can't post as often as I long to, but I'm here and still so glad you could pop by!

 Wishing you all a lovely week to come!

~Sneaking Out Into Spring~

Yes- the forsythia really is about to blossom! Early March or not, Spring is sneaking in . . .

We've had much warmer temperatures for the last couple of days, so I took a meander through the garden to investigate . . . I found I was not alone!

I was joined by something white, spotted, fury and completely crazy . . . this one has Spring Fever in a bad way!

The next succession of photos were taken in about 2.7 seconds- he was just freaking out on that chair!

And he was no better as we made our way through the garden. At one point he tripped me and nearly sent me to the ground!

As we went about I mostly found a royal mess- I was sick all last Fall and the annual garden cutting back and cleaning up just never happened. But I did find promising bits of color, too . . .

 Early Spring crocus are dotting little patches of the garden with bright, happy color! 

 Aren't they fabulous? Oh, color- how I have missed you!

 This, on the other hand has not given me a moment's peace to even consider missing it. I got in a whole two shots with the camera before he reappeared, bouncing his way here and there like Tigger in Winnie-the-Pooh. Up a tree- down again- flying over a bush . . .

 and then to the top of the playground. The camera must follow him at all times!

 Despite not having been cleaned up in the Fall, the garden looks like it fared pretty well . . . lots of sticks and fir branches on the ground from wind storms, but beside that, not too bad. 
Though, I did notice this fellow and his trusty frog look worse for wear.

 And some naughty son of mine left his bike lying out in the elements all Winter . . . hopefully it can still be ridden with all that rust! I would say it could be a good lesson learned, but I sincerely doubt that with This One . . . he is rather hell-bent on not learning any lessons. 
He has voiced this often. 
Sigh.

Is Spring sneaking in to your part of the world . . . ?