Thursday, March 24, 2022
Festivities
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
A lovely surprise
When I got to work today I was presented with this by the two school nurses, Lisa and Shalonda. I was so touched!
I have plans with friends tonight and also this weekend--more about that later!
Tuesday, March 22, 2022
Some weekend pictures
Can you spot the baby rabbit? We apparently have a nest in our back yard. This one let me get very close and take a picture, but even from a couple of feet away he was well disguised.
I repotted most of my house plants on Sunday.
Saturday, March 19, 2022
Birthday boy
Little P. and I have a birthday coming up next week! He's going to be nine years old. I adore that boy, and it's fun that we share a birthday. This year I have no idea what to buy him for a gift, though. A couple of weeks ago I asked him what he wanted, and you know what he said? "I don't know, I really already have everything I want." I thought that was rather mature, given how he usually has a big list of expensive items in mind when holidays and birthdays roll around!
I pressed the issue a bit the next day, since I'm going to get him something and need ideas. After giving it some thought he mentioned that he went to a birthday party at a skating rink a while ago and didn't have his own pair of skates. Since I know nothing about kids' sizing, or how fast his feet grow, I didn't feel comfortable with that suggestion. It's a specific enough request that it's likely someone in his family has already bought the skates, anyway. When I asked him what else he might like instead, he just shrugged.
So, dear blogger friends, what would you buy for a nine year old as a birthday gift? I love to buy books for kids, but only if they like to read and will appreciate them. I'm sorry to say that even though P. reads really well (and well above his grade level), he's not turning out to be a real reader. What he does like is building things with Legos, and projects that involve electronics and robotics and even math. He recently qualified to begin the advanced/gifted academic track in school, so he's a really smart kid. And he likes active outdoor play and sports, typical boy stuff. Any suggestions will be welcome (not too expensive, though).
I have two more Little P. updates for his fans. Remember I told you he had a crush on a little girl in his class? Everything was going well until the day the teacher asked the class who had been whispering when her back was turned and the girl ratted P. out. He showed up at my desk that afternoon in a state of high dudgeon, a betrayed young man! From that day on, Love was Dead.
At the end of January Little P. had his "Vocal Star" audition. He had picked I'm Still Standing by Elton John to sing. His mom said that when he first got up on the stage and saw the people looking at him, he froze, and then his bottom lip started to tremble. She thought, "Oh, no...." but then he pulled himself together, managed to smile (although she knew he was on the verge of crying) and then sang his song all the way through. His voice shook but he finished it! She told him afterwards how proud she was of him, even if he didn't win. I was pretty proud of him, too. That took guts!
And look how handsome he looked in the new jacket she bought him for the audition:
(This picture makes him look so grown up for an eight year old! He doesn't really look quite this grown up in person).
Thursday, March 17, 2022
Irritated
Sunday, March 13, 2022
How we fared
Here's how I prepared for last night's freeze:
This morning when we got up it was 23 degrees outside! I'm pleased to say that my plants were almost completely unscathed despite the bitter cold. The only loss was a few leaves on the fig tree (over where you can see a few leaves peeking out from the cardboard) but the majority of them were fine. The salad garden looked green and cheerful when I pulled back the tarp this morning, too. Tonight it's supposed to get just to freezing again, so I've covered everything back up now that the sun is going down.
One last thing....why, why, why must we continue to observe Daylight Savings Time?! I hate changing the time both times we do it in a year. I wish the powers that be would just pick one or the other and leave well enough alone!
Saturday, March 12, 2022
Batten down the hatches
Saturday, March 5, 2022
Early March update
Remember the daffodil bulbs I bought on a clearance rack over Christmas and planted on New Year's Day? The ones I thought might have been planted too late to bloom this year? This is what they look like today.
We planted the bulbs in clusters around the crepe myrtle trees. There were a dozen clusters all together, and all twelve spots look like this, with short flowers getting ready to open. This fall I'll probably add some more varieties of daffs (these are King Alfreds) as well as some hyacinths.