Signs Of Spring

Today I began cleaning and re-arranging the front porch.  Swept off the last of the dead winter leaves and put some budding cherry branches in a big old milk bottle full of water.  Hung up the hammock (for a day, anyway....chance of rain tomorrow) and took the tarp off of my grandma's old glider.  The dog and cat are happily lying in the sun and the chickens are pecking away in the gravel driveway (they've started laying eggs again....safe from roasting for another year!  And yes, I would eat my own chickens.  Quite happily).  While I was trimming the branches, I heard several bees in the flowers, and this is a great thing, because we are having a honeybee shortage, apparently.  They've actually been advertising for people to 'host' hives on their property (no way....our yard is not big enough!) to try and build up the local bee population.  I will do my part by purchasing some local honey at the farm stand I drive past almost every day.  This year I am going to try fighting my horrible seasonal allergies (alas, I am allergic to tree pollen and I live in the oak capitol of California on Walnut Street, which is off of Pine Street....not good) with a daily dose of local honey (for the pollen) and organic cider vinegar (sounds gross, but I am determined).  I got the recipe from "Mary Jane's Farm" magazine, one of my favorites, even though my kids refer to it as 'that hippie magazine'.  Hey, nothing else has worked well so far, so I figured I'll give it a try.

Jamey has finished work on the Rambler and is currently driving it around, causing quite a stir in town - people pull up beside him at stop lights and give him thumbs up, or peace signs, or ask, "What is that?"  If I can figure out how to, I'll put some pictures here for you all to gaze upon on admiration.  It really does look great.  For a 1962 station wagon.

Jamey is my current hero, though.  He knows the way to his wife's heart - for Valentine's Day I got a Mean Joe Greene jersey.  The classic black one.  Yes, it's big, and Jason told me that it does, in fact, make me look fat, but I don't care and I will be wearing it quite a bit come September.  

After Valentine's Day is Saint Patrick's Day, one of our family's favorites, and everyone knows that always comes with NCAA March Madness, so it seems that Spring really is almost here!  Hooray - even this rain-lover is happy to see the sun and the flowers coming up!