Monday Missive – Our First Hugs

It was a hallmark Weekend for us. We were able to hug my son and my grandchildren for the first time in over a year. Wow. I started to get teary-eyed but held back. I wanted the occasion to be upbeat and joyful. My grandson held me for a long, long time. There is a kind of missing that words do not convey. My granddaughter was a chatterbox trying to catch up after a year of no contact. We delivered Easter baskets and had a nice visit.  I hope to go back and have lunch with them while the kids are still out of school for spring break.

• I am hopeful we are through our latest cold snap and moving toward gardening weather. It might be time to take the flannel sheets off the beds.
• Today I plan to start spring cleaning – both inside and outside. My house is barely Covid Clean – the kind of clean that is passable because you know no one will be coming in your house. Deep cleaning is not my jam, as my granddaughter would say.
• Yesterday I noticed a few of my Irises have started to make an appearance. It will not be long before they are in full bloom.
• Carpenter bees. Ugh. Love them or hate them, they are important pollinators. Our azaleas are covered with them. Many people cover their homes in pesticides to prevent the damage the bees can wreak on soffits. We use bee traps near the eaves instead of pesticides.
• Early wildflowers are in bloom. It is so nice to see the earth come alive, changing dramatically every day.
• I am trying to work up the nerve to go to the salon. My hair is so long now it has become an annoyance.
• Hubby is ramping up getting ready to go to a Japanese timber frame workshop in late May. It is a week long where they learn the process and erect a structure. It has been postponed twice because of Covid and hopefully, this time it will proceed if the Covid numbers continue to improve.

I hear the cardinals calling. My first chore is to clean out the raised beds so hubby can turn and refresh the soil. If all goes well, we will get a few of the cooler weather plants in the ground. It looks like the end of the week brings the possibility of more rain.