spring

Signs of Spring: Green

| terriaw

April showers bring May flowers. We are certainly having a lot of April showers lately, so I’m hoping we see lots of flowers in May. We are ever so slowly seeing signs of spring with bits of green here and there.

Weekend Postcard spring green

Most of our bulbs – tulips and crocus – have been eaten by the rabbits this spring, except for this lonely daffodil. We have some other daffodil clusters that are a bit behind so I’m looking forward to seeing their pops of yellow soon. It’s been a couple years since we planted new bulbs, so planting more will be high on my list for fall chores.

lone daffodil

Last weekend I noticed some of the buds on our trees are starting to open and show some of that spring green color I love so much. Looking forward to find more signs of spring over the next week.

Terri

Signs of Spring: Farmers Market Opener

| terriaw

Our farmers market opened this weekend. That’s a sure sign that spring is here. We went early this time, and it was still a little chilly.

Weekend Postcard 1st farmers market

The first market of the season doesn’t usually have a lot of produce, but there’s always bakery, coffee and cheese to sample.

cow cookies

These cow cookies always make me smile.

monster cookies

We always buy two monster cookies from the Amish farmer. They are SO scrumptious!

cheese curds

It was refreshing to see the perennials and herbs available this early.

early pansies

early geraniums

early geraniums

early dahlias

early dahlia

It was wonderful to see so many pops of color and soak up fresh air and warm sunshine all weekend. Hope you enjoyed a nice spring weekend too.

Terri

Signs of Spring

| terriaw

I have seen a few signs of Spring lately: crocus blooming, daffodils and narcissus standing tall, buds and blossoms starting to open on trees, a late snow storm, and a high school musical of Shrek with my niece Abby as one of the stars.

spring is daffodils

spring is buds

spring is blossoms

abby as the dragon

my niece Abby as the Dragon – she rocked the most awesome solo!

abby as the dragon

abby as the dragon

my niece Abby as the Dragon – she’s the star in the purple dress

abby as the dragon

Spring is my favorite season. It’s exciting to see the world (in the Northern Hemisphere) warm up and come back to life , so I look forward to seeing more signs of Spring. What signs of Spring have you seen?

Terri

A Garden Tour: Spring Color

| terriaw

It’s that time of year, when we enjoy a daily treasure hunt through our yard to discover what’s new in our gardens. We’ve been lucky to get more regular sunshine and warmer temps, so things are growing like crazy.

Tulips

tulips and grape hyacinth

pink tulip

orange tulips

blushing sunshine tulip

Grape Hyacinth

grape hyacinth

Raspberry Bushes

raspberry patch

New Blackberry Bushes

new blackberry shrubs

Woodland Poppy

woodland poppies

Willow Shrubs

Willow shrubs

Buds on Trees

crabapple buds

maple tree buds

New Maple Leaves

It’s one of my favorite things to do each morning and evening, walk around and see what’s new. Thanks for stopping by!

Terri

A Garden Tour: Spring is Here

| terriaw

What a difference sunshine and warmer temperatures make in our yard and our moods.

forsythia

Here’s what our yard looked like just a few months ago… buried in snow.

winter in our yard 2013

Spring arrived a little late, so we are excited to finally see things come back to life these days.

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Here’s my favorite spot to sit and daydream. It just needs some cushions, a sketchbook, and a cocktail.IMG_2098

Here’s my favorite view from my favorite spot. It’s fun to listen and watch the birds, bunnies and squirrels busy themselves with the things animals do.

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Every time I take pictures in our yard and get ready to post them, things change so quickly. I will have more updates of some close-ups to share with you. Thanks for stopping by.

Terri

From My Inspiration File: Spring Green

| terriaw

One of the (many) reasons Spring is my favorite season is the color Green.

I love the color of new growth.

I love the color of new leaves.

I love the shininess of fresh hostas.

I love the delicate shoots of new ornamental grass, which changes colors as the wind blows through the green blades.

Even the lawn in spring is such a fresh green color.

I  noticed that I have at least six shirts in my spring and summer wardrobe, ranging from sage green to aqua. Take time to notice all the different shades and textures of spring green on your daily adventures. Thanks for stopping by!

Garden Update: Fresh Colors

| terriaw

One of the main reasons Spring is my favorite season is because there are so many beautiful colors coming alive these days!

Our trees are blooming like crazy.

I always think they look like a big bouquet in the backyard.

And I love to look at the flowers close up, to see the individual shapes of each petal and the little details inside.

The leaves are starting to spring out of the buds on the trees, which really fills in our yard, giving us a lot more privacy.

Our daffodils continue to bloom, and I keep finding more tulips opening. I always wish we had more clusters of tulips, so someone remind me in fall to plant more.

Our yellow woodland poppies are growing like crazy. They are tucked into a back corner on the West side of our house. Since our backyard is fenced in, you have to make an extra effort to walk on that side of the house to check on things. These plants spread, so I have to keep up on them regularly.

Our bleeding hearts are just starting to bloom. They are such a magical plant, aren’t they! True of many things in nature, something this beautiful has a trick up its sleeve: don’t touch them barehanded or you will get a rash.

We had a wicked thunderstorm over the weekend, which really brightened up the outdoors. I am looking forward to another week of new growth and surprises in our gardens. Soon, any chance for frost will be behind us for the year, and then gardening season will officially begin. I can’t wait!

Thanks for stopping by!

Garden Update: Slower Spring

| terriaw

Spring has slowed down a little bit around here with our recent overcast, cooler days. Darn, I was loving all that sunshine and summer temps.

So far, we’ve seen our crocuses bloom, our daffodils continue to open, our forsythia shrub is still glowing yellow but slowly changing to green, our red tulips are just about finished but more tulips are continuing to grow, and the tree buds are still sprouting but have slowed down a little bit.

I was feeling anxious to find something new from our gardens to share with you.

I already showed you our magnolia blossoms.

They are so beautiful that I just had to share more shots from a different perspective. I really want to use the colors and shapes in these shots as inspiration in my sketchbook.

Our vinca vines are coming back to life and filling out quite beautifully underneath our crapapple tree.

I never tire looking for treasures throughout our yard, even if not much has changed since my last update. It’s also good inspiration as I learn how to use my camera. I hope you don’t mind. We’re supposed to have more sunshine this week, so I’m hoping to find more new blossoms. Thanks for stopping by!

PS – if you have a chance, check out Randi’s gorgeous spring blossoms from her spring weekend!

Sketchbook Pages: Signs of Spring

| terriaw

One of the best parts about Spring is watching all the plants come back to life, since I live in a part of the world where vegetation goes dormant in the cold winter months.

I also love watching the birds come back to our neighborhood. Over the winter months, we still see cardinals and chickadees, but not many more varieties. It’s an exciting day when you spot your first robin of the season since it’s an indication spring is near. The mourning doves and grackles have returned early too. Great inspiration for a page in my sketchbook!

I’ve mentioned before how much I love daisies. They are such a cheerful flower, so I’ve been collecting a variety of daisy seed packets and plant tags for sketchbook inspiration. I know they aren’t a spring flower, but I had fun illustrating a little doodle anyway.

I have been doing a lot of painting for my color media class this semester, so I haven’t spent much time playing in my sketchbook. It felt great to mess up a page full of Easter-colored graffiti in preparation for my April calendar.

I ended up covering up some of the graffiti with the squares for the days of the week but I love the layered look. Note to self: definitely want to try more graffiti art in my sketchbook!

I had forgotten how much I like to experiment and play in my sketchbook. It was awesome to create without any pressure or deadlines. Thanks for stopping by!