Signs of Spring!

It’s that time of year when I just crave spring so much. And even though it’s still, let’s face it, pretty cold, there are signs of spring.

Crocuses! Popping up all over my yard. Okay, yes: they are NOT native. But they aren’t invasive, and it is only March, so I am grateful for any flower at this point. I didn’t plan any seeds and it isn’t following any pattern, but this is new, so maybe having the other native plants has encouraged birds to hang out around my yard and “gift” some seeds to me? I don’t know.

These sweet indoor kitties are not allowed outside, and, let’s face it, they have very few survival skills, so it’s just as well. But they do have kitty instincts, which means that at this time of year, they especially want to eat greenery. They are enjoying these little pots of cat grass. The tubs are taped to the cardboard, and the cardboard, and they still make an absolute mess of this, but it makes them happy and diverts them from my house plants, so I’ll take it.

Even though the kitties can’t go outside and get ’em, they still enjoy watching thebirds, and I was excited to get a shot of this cardinal, who stopped by to eat a snack and taunt our housebound kitties. Poor photography, sure, but it brought me joy.

I am realizing that a lot of March is about just really, extremely low expectations. Happy for any flowers, and any fleeting glimpses of wildlife, patiently cleaning up after my pets, just living every day for those sweet days when we can open all the windows for a fresh breeze before things get hot as hell.

Speaking of hot as hell, we also had our first patio fire of the season.

Sure, since this picture was taken I’ve occasionally had to brush a bit of ice off those blue cushions, but soon, soon, those days will be over. Also, don’t you just love the vibrant branches of my red twig dogwood? Native plant, grows like crazy here in Old Niskayuna.

Other signs of spring include our daughters’ spring breaks. M came home for her two week break, but broke up her visit with a trip to Northampton to visit J and trips to New York City and Maine to visit friends. J decided to stay on campus for spring break with plans to spend much of it in the lab. It sounds like she ended up spending more time than she’d expected just hanging out with friends, but to us, that felt appropriate, since it was her spring break. We drove over to take her out to lunch yesterday and enjoyed a completely scrumptious meal at Taqueria Del Pueblo followed by bubble tea at Ten One. Both daughters have solidified some plans for the summer and, spoiler alert: they won’t be here with us. But I’ll save that for next time.