Baby Hawk Ready to Fly!!

Hello All,

Dropping in quickly for a short post.  I took this picture yesterday.

Look at that!!  These baby hawks are ready to fly the coop.  Actually I was surprised to see them still in the nest this a.m.  Both have been standing on the edge and opening out their wings.  It won't be long now!

I've been surprised at how quickly my days are going back in the office.  I'm not staying ALL day - I get in before 7:30 and have been leaving by 3 or 3:30, but the time is jam-packed.  And today there are a few more folks in the office.  Still a pretty empty place though (which is fine with me).  One of my peers is in and she told me she has decided to retire at the end of September!  She is 75 (please God, do not let me still be working at 75!!) and figures it's time.  I'll say!  So it will be interesting to see what new configuration there is for supporting the folks she currently supports. 

My hope is that tomorrow I can/will work from home.  I have one conference call at 10 and believe that's the only thing on my schedule.  Other than knitting that is....

Hope everyone's week is going well.  I've got to run!

Unraveled Wednesday, 05/27/20

Good Morning!

It is sort of a Sleepy Hollow morning here - quite foggy and damp, grey.

I managed to survive my day at the office yesterday.  It was actually pretty quiet and I'm hoping today will be like that as well.  I'd like to get out of Dodge early if possible.

When I got home yesterday my bike was on the patio.  Fletch had brought it up from the basement, cleaned off all the dirt and cobwebs, put air in the tires and lubed the places that needed to be lubed.  My bike looks brand new!  I had forgotten that I have a big basket on the front handlebars - perfect to hold my phone, some water, keys, etc.  I'm all set to go biking...now I just need some time (away from the office - lol).

While at the office yesterday I did manage to get some more hawk pictures.  In this first shot below you can see the mother sitting on the nest and the two baby hawk rumps right there! 

And here are the babies:

They periodically stand up and hold out their wings.  Won't be too long before they fly off.  So fun to watch.

As I had hoped, I managed to finish up the first of my brother's socks last night, and start the second.

The cuff of #2 is complete, so I can start on the leg tonight.  I also did a few more sections on my Hellebore Hitchhiker, but forgot to take a picture.  However, I did remember to take a picture of the latest Granny Squares:

That one in the middle certainly looks splotchy!  I am still having fun with these - just sticking my hand in a basket and seeing what yarn comes out.

That's all I have for today.  Hope your week is going well!

Weekending

Hello, Hello, Hello!

How are you?  Did you have a nice Memorial Day weekend?  There were a bunch of fireworks that were set off near us - Saturday, Sunday & Monday.  Luckily they didn't go too late at night.

Our weekend was pretty quiet.  Fletch did some gardening and I puttered around.  I did (finally) go through my closet and brought out summer clothes and put the wollens away.  I also ended up with 4 Trader Joe's shopping bags full of clothing and shoes to donate.  Those were taken to one of those clothing & shoe drop boxes on Saturday (before I could change my mind about donating it all - lol).

Sunday Colin & Mailing suggested we come over for a walk and then stay for dinner.  We ended up walking just over 3.5 miles and went to a different park that Colin had discovered.  It is in Lansdale and called Stony Creek Park.  There is a nice pond where people were fishing (all practicing distancing).  We saw a turtle and even a tiny baby turtle.  Off one of the trails was a bit of chalk art:

Someone did a very nice job!!  It was really cool.  There was also a labrynth that we walked as well as a nature trail that went through some fields, some woods and some wetlands.  We came across an amazing grouping of phlox:

So many!  We also saw some kind of growth on leaves and some interesting/beautiful shelf fungus on a tree.

By the time we got back to Colin & Mailing's house, it was feeling pretty steamy and humid.  But, it didn't take long for it to cool down.  Colin grilled some faux hot Italian sausage (Beyond Meat brand) that was pretty good.  Mailing sauteed some peppers and onions.  She had also made Italian rolls to go with the sausage.  Colin made some home-made pesto to go on pasta with artichokes and calamata olives.  So freakin' good!!  But, so much food!!

Yesterday I did a little baking.  I made Basil Lime Shortbread.  Oh my!

Shortbread is not one of Fletcher's favorite things...oh well!

Our PA Primary has been delayed until June 2nd.  Fletch and I both applied for mail-in ballots and gosh!  It took FOREVER for those to be delivered by the post office.  Long enough that we could not/did not want to chance mailing in our ballots.  So yesterday we drove to one of the drop off places which, fortunately, was open from 9-12 on a holiday!  Glad to have that task finished.  I even received an email confirming receipt last night.

Some knitting and crochet was accomplished.  My brother's sock is now at the toe decrease.

I should finish this up tonight and hopefully start on #2.  I managed to make three more granny squares, but forgot to take a picture.

And that brings us to today.  I'm actually at work (I think there are 4 of us in the office!) and budget meetings are starting.  The hawks are still in residence.

And (obviously) there is still a lot of bird poop around!  The entrance has been cleaned up a little bit - most likely it was thoroughly cleaned, but several days ago.  You have to be careful going into or out of the building that nothing comes down on you!!

Finally, I noticed that the parking lot for the River Trail in Valley Forge is finally open.  Funny though as all the other parking lots that I drove by in the park are still roped off.  I probably won't have a chance to walk until Friday (when it is supposed to rain).  Pretty sure I will be here at the office today, tomorrow and Thursday.  I'm not used to this.....

Friday Felines

Good Morning!

TGIF...though this morning I have 3 conference calls.  Yuck.  This is my new routine every other Friday:  a call at 8:30, another one at 10 and yet one more at 11.  That sort of blows the day.

But it is Friday and it is a holiday weekend.  This will be a strange Memorial Day, but then the entire year has been strange.

So I have a tale of Tyg for you this morning.  Wednesday night I went to bed as usual and then was woken at 1 a.m. by a "banging" at the back bedroom window.  I rolled out of bed to look and there, hanging on to a very thin metal edge was Tyg!  Yup - he had climbed up on the patio roof (not unusual), but then had jumped (HIGH!!) and held on.  He shortly thereafter dropped back down to the roof...I opened the window wide and got the screen out of the way and that beast jumped again right into the window opening and came into the bedroom.  After that, of course, he wanted me to go downstairs and give him some treats.  Oy vey!

I was wound up after that so sat up reading for about an hour.  And then, 4:30 rolls around and Tyg prances into the room meowing and clawing the rug to wake me to let him outside.  No, I did not open the window and put him out that way...I went downstairs and let him out the normal way.

I sure hope this is not a new routine (he was out all last night and did NOT come up on the patio roof that I'm aware of - and did not jump up to the bedroom window.

Here he is:  beast extraordinaire!

In other news:  the catbirds are back and the Goldfinches have arrived (in color):

Beautiful birds.

We went over to Colin & Mailing's last night for a fire.  We hung out for about an hour which was nice.  It got surprisingly cool.  Not sure if we are going to do a cookout with them this weekend or not.  They have a lot they want to get done around the house (gardening, mowing, etc.).

Yesterday afternoon I walked along the towpath at the canal.  No blue herons in sight.  Plenty of turtles (as usual), and not too many people on the trail which was nice.  I remembered to map it this time and was surprised to see that it is 3.2 miles that I walk when there.

No real plans for the weekend - hopefully plenty of knitting.  Perhaps this is the weekend I'll put away the winter stuff and get out my shorts and capri pants?  Whatever you do - have a good one!

Unraveled Wednesday 05/20/20

Good Morning!

Time continues to be moving at warp speed for me.  The days are just getting away from me.

A little bit of knitting and crocheting has taken place.  Not a lot, but a bit.  First up, the Hellebore Hitchhiker now has 12 teeth and 50 stitches on the needle.

So many pretty colors in this yarn and it is all flowing together so smoothly.

My brother's sock is progressing as well.

Hard to see the herringbone pattern on this, but it's a bit more visible in real life.  Again, this yarn is full of such pleasing colors.  I'll probably do about 5-10 more rows and then start the heel flap (right now it has 15 rows of ribbing at the cuff and then 62 rows with the pattern and plain knitting).

Finally, a few more Granny Squares were made.

This is proving to be a fun project.  I'm up to 16 squares so far.  I think once I hit 25 I'll lay them out and see how they all look together.

My reading mojo isn't fully back yet.  I keep starting and stopping books, but I am almost finished "Olive Kitteridge" which I am re-reading in preparation for reading "Olive, Again."  I must have read Olive Kitteridge when it was first published and I don't remember any of it!  Some of the stories are just so bleak (maybe it's the time we are in right now?).  I have one or two stories/chapters left and then I will pause before picking up Olive, Again.  Fletch and I are continuing to read "All the Little Live Things" by Wallace Stegner (a favorite author of mine).  This book too has some dark bits to it, but we are now more than halfway through.

Once again, linking up with Kat for Unraveled Wednesday.  Head on over to her space to see what she and others are making and reading.

Baby Hawks!!

Good Morning Everyone!

Yesterday I managed to pull it together and head into the office and I'm so glad I did!  I could see the mother hawk sitting on the nest as I walked up to the building.

Look at that disgusting mess on the wall of the building!!  And, as I mentioned, the entire entrance area to the building is covered like that.  Anyway, can you see her on the right?

Once I got to my office I grabbed my phone and went into Bill's office where there is a good view of the nest (still below it, but a good view).  At first I didn't see anything, then the mother flew back in and two babies came into view.

The two babies are big!  And so downy looking - black and white...and the mother is brownish (I'm pretty sure these are red tailed hawks which are plentiful in the area).  The mother flew off (guessing in search of more food) and the babies were a little more visible.

So cool to see! 

I didn't hang around long - was probably at the office only an hour or so and then headed home.  I did what I needed to do and got out!  The afternoon got a little busy with work-related things, but not over whelming.  Still, I did not manage to get out for a walk.  Today I may have Fletch bring my bike up from the basement, dust that off and take it over to Oaks just for something different to do.  The weather should be good for bike riding.

Last night after dinner I did tackle the canning.  First up I made Bluebarb Jam (blueberry-rhubarb).  When that was finished I dove into cutting up the jalapenos I had gotten (they were the largest I have ever seen!!) and made candied jalapenos.  I love these added to salads, or on tuna sandwiches, or just to snack on out of the jar!  Voila!:

Eight half-pint jars of jam and four half-pint jars of jalapenos.  That's not a whole lot for 2+ lbs of peppers!! 

And that's it for me on this Tuesday morning.  Hope you are all doing well!

Weekending

Good Morning!

I hope everyone had a nice weekend.  I'm kind of surprised that it's Monday morning already - not sure how that happened.  And, I don't feel as though much was done this weekend, but I guess a bit was accomplished.

Saturday morning I walked the tow path by the canal.  It was a pleasant morning to be out.  After my walk I stopped at Produce Junction for a few things - a couple pounds of Crimini mushrooms (which went into a barley casserole dish last night), some yellow cherry tomatoes (so good!), a couple pounds of jalapeno peppers (which will be candied later today) and several pounds of Persian cucumbers which became pickles.

Sunday morning I walked the trail in Oaks and ended up walking 4 miles in just under 1.25 hours.  Not too bad!!

Laundry was done and the kitchen floor was mopped as well, so chores were completed.

A small amount of knitting was accomplished.  The Hellebore Hitchhiker is now at the point it was when I lost control of it and had to rip it all out.

This is such a meditative knit and the pattern is easily memorized.  I just need to pay a little bit of attention and not let my thoughts wander too far!

As of last Friday I had cast on and knit the cuff for my brother's sock.  A bit more has been done on this.  I'm using the Gladys pattern (free on Ravelry).  Just doing the top portion with the Herringbone portion.  The balance of the leg will be plain.

I used the same pattern on a pair of socks for Fletch and they turned out really nice.  Hopefully Phil will like these.

Originally I thought I would go into the office today.  I have stuff to drop off and things to do there, but I can't seem to summon the energy to go in today.  LOL.  This could end up being a problem when we "go back" to work!  I have a conference call at 10 and some other things I can do from home, so the entire day won't be lost.

It doesn't seem possible that we are already halfway through May!  Hope your week goes well.

That Was a Quick Week!

Hello All and TGIF!

It was not my intention to post on Monday and skip the rest of the week, but somehow the week got away from me.  Work seems to be getting busier and busier (which I guess is a good thing).  I did go into the office on Tuesday to take care of some stuff.  There were only 3 of us in the office the entire time I was there, and I got my stuff done and was home before lunch.

No sign of the hawks - either adults or babies, but the whole side of the building is splattered with their mess and the entrance to the building is still filthy.  I hope that gets cleaned up soon.

I still need to be in the office the last week of May for budget reviews, but a number of people are opting to not come to corporate for reviews in person, but rather do the reviews over Webex.  I still need to coordinate ordering lunches, etc.

Other things during the week.  Our iris are beginning to open!  We can always count on them opening the first week in May.  They seem a little late this year (surprising with the mild winter we had).

On Monday I did harvest rhubarb and made a pie!  Not the most beautiful, but Fletch pronounced it as my best ever!!

I cut up more rhubarb for another pie and froze it.  A ton of rhubarb went to my boss Bill - he and his wife love it.  And, I still have more than enough to make some jam.  I bought blueberries yesterday, so will make some bluebarb jam.

Colin was over last night to get some bamboo plants for his property (we have it growing at the back of our woods) and he hung around for a fire.  It was nice to see him, but still so weird to sit far apart and no hugging, etc.  Earlier in the week he texted me this photo:

Nice to see the Canary Blanket is loved!!  The coral & green blanket behind Marcel is the one I crocheted while in college - so 45 years ago!!  This picture was taken in Colin's home office - he said Marcel likes to hang out with him while he is working!  Colin has also found out that he can work remotely (i.e., from home) permanently!!  He was always able to work some days from home, but felt obligated to go into the office some.  Now that obligation is gone!!

I also got out and walked after lunch twice this week, but did not see any wildlife (other than a lone turtle).  I was walking on the trail in Oaks and I think I spotted a second heron's nest, but still no sign of the birds.

Today should be easier work-wise.  My conference call has been cancelled and reports I do are pretty much caught up.  I have some chores I want to do (laundry, kitchen floor, etc.), but other than that no real plans.  I did have to rip out the Hitchhiker last night - somehow my stitch count got way off...not sure how...but easier at this point to just rip it out and re-start.  I hadn't done much on it at all this week.  I did start socks for my brother, but only got through the cuff of the first sock.  Hopefully this weekend will see much more knitting!

TGIF!!  Have a great weekend!

Weekending

Good Morning!

How was your weekend?  I hope it was good.  Ours was nice and thankfully did NOT include snow!!  Though I know it was all around us.  Definitely a weird Spring, but the weather has been weird for so long (my opinion).

Friday ended up being very busy work-wise and I never shut the computer down until some time in the evening...and then was back doing work Saturday morning.  But, that's ok (happy to be employed).  I (finally) took a turkey breast out of the freezer and cooked that on Saturday.  The house smelled like Thanksgiving!!  I ended up making a huge pot of turkey soup with the carcass and some of the meat and now we have good sized containers of home-made turkey soup in the freezer.

Yesterday, Mother's Day, was a much nicer day.  It turned out to be beautiful.  We met Colin & Mailing, Zhongren & Bonny (Mailing's parents) and Anna (her sister) at the trail I walk alongside the canal and river.  Huge turtles were out in amazing numbers, but no sign of the heron and (thankfully) no sign of serpents!!  It was just so nice to see everyone and get out in the fresh air.  After our walk we all stopped at Zhongren & Bonny's house.  They had made dumplings earlier in the day and had large containers for everyone.  YAY!!!

When Fletch and I got home, I noticed something high in our crepe myrtle tree.  It has not leafed out yet and I believe what I spotted is a hummingbird's nest!!

(Look at how blue our sky was yesterday!!).  It is roughly the size of a golf ball.  Not sure if this is a current nest or one from last year.  Fletch did see a hummingbird one day last week and our feeders are now out, but we have not seen one since.

There was a small amount of knitting over the weekend.  First, I finished the socks for my sister-in-law on Saturday morning.

I smile each time I see them - they are just happy socks!!  I decided I needed to pick out yarn for socks for my brother in CO and I also wanted to wind the yarn from Vicki for a Hitchhiker.  The yarn I picked out for Phil's socks I'm positive I bought at a fiber bestival (probably Allentown).  It is by Cape May Fiber Co. and the colorway is Janthina.  So pretty:

So pretty, but notice the way it is wound?  This yarn would not behave and ended up looking like this at one point:

Yup - yarn barf!  It took ALL Saturday afternoon and part of the evening to straighten out this mess.  Weird how some skeins just fit on the spindle and wind up beautifully and others are a horrible mess.

The Make-Do yarn from Vicki DID wind up beautifully.  While the sock yarn for Phil was put in time out for misbehaving, the Hellebore Hitchhiker was started yesterday.

This is going to be one gorgeous Hitchhiker.

I also managed to make one Granny Square over the weekend.

If you click to enlarge, you should be able to see that the yarn in the outer rows has some deep red in it.  Soon I'm going to have to spread out all the squares and see what they look like together.  Not enough for any one thing, but it should be fun to see them all together.

It is grey and overcast (again) outside and I think rain (again) is in our forecast.  I hope to run out to the garden this a.m. and cut some rhubarb to make a strawberry rhubarb pie later today.

Here's to a great week ahead!

End of the (Work) Week

Good Morning!

We made it to Friday, so cheers for that.  It has been a busy week work-wise for me.  I've missed walking, but the weather hasn't been the best anyway.  More grey and damp today.  Some are saying a chance of snow on Saturday.  I'm not listening/not paying attention/ refuse to believe!

First of all, Happy Mother's Day to all.  Some of us have human children, some of us have animal children, all of us nurture something or someone.  I'll be remembering my own Mom (and missing her) and Fletcher's Mom (and missing her too).

No new Granny Squares since Wednesday.  The heel of Tutti Fruitty sock #2 has been turned and gusset stitches picked up.  Hopefully I will knit down the foot today/tomorrow and this pair of socks will be completed over the weekend.  I'd like to wind the yarn from Make Do (Vicki) and cast on a hitchhiker.  And, if it is as chilly as forecast, I think I will cook a turkey breast that has been sitting in the freezer for months.  And then make a big pot of turkey soup!  That's pretty much as far as any weekend plans for me go.  IF the weather cooperates, I'd love to get outside...yet TBD.

Meanwhile, let's see what's been happening around the yard.  Big news:  the fig plant that the deer munched on last year and left for dead appears to have revived!!  There are several buds on one of the twig stalks.  Happy!!  Even bigger news:

We have two Asian Pears forming on our little tree!!!  There were so many blooms we hoped we would get a pear or two, but didn't expect to see them so early!

The sugar snap peas are growing quickly and climbing the trellis.  No blooms yet, but it won't be long:

And the rhubarb is now flowering:

That's another weekend thing - I need to harvest some rhubarb and bake a pie 😊

Our wisteria seems less full than usual - a bit on the sparse side, but still very pretty and so fragrant:

Given today's forecast (rain - heavy at times) I decided to cut a lilac bloom to bring inside:

Gorgeous, non?  Early this morning (4:30!!) Tyg wanted to go out.  When I walked downstairs and headed towards the kitchen to let him out on the patio, all I could smell was lilac.  It was wonderful!

And that wraps up things for me today.  I have a conference call in an hour and then another one after that.  I'm hoping for an easy afternoon!  Have a wonderful weekend.

Unraveled Wednesday 5/6/20

Good Morning!  Happy Wednesday!

If it's Wednesday, that means it must be Unraveled Wednesday.  Joining in with Kat and others to talk about what we are making and reading (though in my case, once again the books I've started are not holding my attention...).

First of all though, thank you Val and Kym for identifying our mystery plant.  As soon as I showed Fletch the link you had provided Val, he remembered the name!  And Kym, you are correct, there is a faint almost cinnamon scent from the blooms.  Very nice.  I cut one small piece of it yesterday along with some lily of the valley and a piece of another plant (once again, the name escapes me) and I have them in a little bud vase on the kitchen windowsill over our sink.  The scent from the lily of the valley is so strong!

I did make it into the office yesterday and ended up staying much longer than I anticipated!  It was like old home day or something.  My boss Bill had come in, my other boss Bruce was in (my other boss, Kevin, lives in Atlanta, so he was not in!).  A few people from accounting; Dan (our CFO) and Heather (she comes in Tuesdays and Thursdays to go through the mail and FedEx and UPS packages).  So, there was a lot of catching up to do with people and it was nice to see them all.

When I first was walking up to the office I heard a noice and looked up and one of the hawks was perched on the edge of the nest and squawking away!  Really, loudly.  I hoped to see little baby beaks poking over the edge of something, but I didn't.  What a mess though!  The entranceway to the building is covered in bird shit and sticks that have been dropped from the nest.  Bruce said the hawk flew at him when he came into the building!!

On to the making!  Tutti Fruitty sock #2 is now more than halfway down the leg and moving right along.

This is just such a cheerful piece to knit!

Granny square #12 was completed last night.  Here the the most recent 3 I've made.

Each square is 9 rounds and typically I use 3 different yarns.  The latest square though (the one in the back with the pink center) is from one little ball of yarn.  I just decided to keep going since the colors kept changing.  I still have a ton of leftover scraps from knitting socks and shawls, so there are still plenty of squares to be made.  It's fun to just stick my hand into the pile of bits and bobs and see what I pull out and then start crocheting.

One last picture for the day.  Cozy Tyg - curled up tight (it really got chilly), covering his eyes and also holding his tail down (his tail is almost constantly moving back & forth).  So cute.

He is out of the box and onto the chair at the head of the table!

Hoping your week is going well.  Be sure to visit Kat's blog to see what she and others are doing.

Some Pretties and Some Creatures

Good Morning!

The sun is out and it looks like it will be a beautiful day.  But, oh boy!  The temps sure dropped last night.  Fletch actually shut the patio door and turned the heat on in the downstairs bathroom before dinner!  Good thing I did not mess with my clothes yet and winter woolens are still available (don't really believe I'll be wearing them...but...).

Yesterday I never made it into the office.  I got busy with work and then all of a sudden it was time for my 10:00 conference call.  So, the plan is to make a mad dash in this morning and be home before lunch.

Finally our lilacs are beginning to open.  The fragrence is just amazing!

This is a plant that I brought down from Vermont years ago and it has struggled ever since.  We never have many blooms.  This year I think there are 5-6 clusters.  Last year it was pretty much choked by a vine of some kind (can't remember this morning what it is), but I think we were able to rip all of that out, so here's hoping that the lilac will now thrive.

Then there is this plant that we have down near our crepe myrtle by the edge of the street.  It is something Fletcher's Mom brought to us and neither of us can remember what it is.  Does anyone know what it is?

And a close up:

The flowers almost look like spent nut shells.

Now for the creatures.  First of all, Tyg.  This box is at the end of the hallway (the area that appears to be a dumping ground for things to go down to the basement...), just outside the office room door.  He curled up in the box and was purring so loudly when I started my conference call at 10 yesterday morning.  And, he ended up sleeping in the box for over 2 hours!  So silly and so cute.

Last afternoon/evening while I was preparing dinner I walked from the livingroom into the kitchen and glanced out the patio door.  I saw this guy hanging out at our peanut feeder:

I love this shot!  I think it was a red-bellied woodpecker, but he flew off before I could get closer.

Yesterday was also a fun mail day.  Last week I ordered a skein of yarn from Vicki and it arrived in yesterday's mail!  Woo-Hoo!  It is even more gorgeous in person than in this picture.

There is a lot of yarn here folks - 463 yards and it is a soft 4 ply fingering (75/25 superwash).  The colorway is Hellebore and it is just so pretty.  I did not have anything in mind to make with it, I just fell in love with the colors.  But now that I have it in my hands, I believe it is screaming Hitchhiker!  It's been a year since I knit one, so it might be time.  What do you think?

Weekending

Good Morning!

How was your weekend?  Mine was filled with a variety of different things which was nice.  I managed to get out for a walk after lunch on Friday and it was the perfect time to go.  I walked along the towpath between the canal and the Schuylkill River in Phoenixville.  The trail was pretty empty - just a few people here and there.  Plenty of BIG turtles were out sunning themselves.

I also saw the Evil Serpent

A good reason to NOT go paddle boarding here!

Best of all, I saw the Blue Heron

These birds are so majestic looking.  I never tire of seeing them.

Friday night I made the mushroom tacos that Vicki blogged about in mid-April.  Oh my!  I could eat these every single night.  The creamy slaw was delicious and the fried shallots are to die for!!

That night I mixed up some "artisan bread" that Minerva blogged about the other week.  Easy Peasy.  Four ingredients you can leave overnight and then bake in the morning.  No kneading required.

A bit lop-sided, but tasty!  We had it Saturday night with some grilled hot & sweet Italian sausage. 

Saturday afternoon I went back to Oaks to walk along the Perkiomen Creek.  It was a beautiful, sunny day and the trail was mobbed!  I have never seen so many cars parked there and I had to wait for walkers, joggers and bikers to pass before I could even get onto the trail.  Way too many people, but I did manager to walk for over an hour which was nice.

The wisteria is beginning to open now and is so fragrant.  Our iris are budded and should open this week (right on time - they always bloom the first week of May).  The lilac is still not fully open, but I could see that some clusters are slowly opening.

I had a zip lock bag filled with ends of embroidery thread and yarn, so I spread that out on the fire pit for birds to take.

I think most of it blew away before any takers came.  We do have a pair of wrens fixing a nest in our apple tree (in a bird house hanging from a branch).  I think there is a nest (robin??) in one of the bushes at the front of our house - every time I walk by I hear something/someone chirping at me.

Sunday afternoon I rearranged my sewing and knitting books.  They were in a jumble and not readily accessible.  I needed more space/another bookcase!  So, I put some of Colin's books into two boxes and grabbed the bookcase those were in to use for my stuff!  Of course I spent some time flipping through books I had not looked at in years.  An enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.

Today or tomorrow I will go into the office for an hour or so.  I have things I need to print on what we call "big boy paper" - 11x17 - (easier on the eyes for some things) and my printer at home doesn't accommodate that size paper.  If nothing else, it will be nice to take a little drive through Valley Forge Park.  I did gas up the car the other day - first time since March 15th!!  And wow has the price of gas dropped.

It feels like Spring is finally here to stay and the days are getting warmer, so it's time to put away the winter woolens and drag out the capri pants and summer tops.  I may try to do that at some point this week.  No rush as I wear the same thing every day - lol.  Leggings and tee shirts or jeans and a tee shirt.

There was some knitting and crocheting over the weekend too.  Another granny square was made and a second one started.  The leg of tutti-fruitty sock #2 is progressing (about a third of the way finished).  More on those things another day.

Wishing you all a wonderful week - enjoy!