Where does the time go?

It's been over a week since my last post. I really did think about things to write but I was never at my computer when those thoughts occured so it didn't get done. Lots has happened during these past 10 days and I'll try to get caught up on at least some of it. A note to those in ND: This post contains forward-looking expectations for all of you. I just read this morning that the southern part of ND received an additional 15-inches of snow this week. Bismarck has now received over 70-inches for the winter...I don't care who you are or where you live, that's a lot of snow. So, while I'm impatiently waiting out here, knowing that Spring is just around the corner in the Pacific NW, I know that all of you back there are probably not going to see any sign of Spring for a very long time. Really sorry about that. Really.

We worked in the backyard, trimming overgrown shrub roses and pruning the lace leaf maple, as well as pulling weeds - I swear they grow throughout the winter.

There are signs of the first flowers in the yard...like this one.

And I was very happy to see the first shoots from a peony - right there, do you see it? I added the arrows in case you couldn't find it.

Peonies, along with hollyhocks, are among my favorite flowers.

Here is what the path looked like after pulling weeds.

And here's what it looked like after I picked up the weeks...much better. Randy later hosed it down so it was nice and clean (his parents were coming out so we wanted it to look nice).

The daylilies are always some of the first plants to start growing in the backyard and while I know it'll be another couple of months before they flower, I always look at these new shoots as a promise that Spring (and warmer weather) is coming. These are all going to need dividing this year - just add it to the to-do list that just never seems to end!

We still need to pick up the old leaves that we scattered at the base of the bananas last fall. It wasn't on our "short list" of things that needed to get done now...another list addition! These are going to have to be thinned, too. This grove that started with one banana plant was 18 plants last fall. They're starting to remind me of zucchini. My friends better make sure their car doors are locked!

I'm pretty surprised the mint survived. We didn't cover it before all the snow and cold in December but I found these little shoots after clearing away the dead branches. Good thing, too, because it's almost Mojito season!

The windmill palm also came through without damage. Remember this photo?

Here it is now...much better. It looks happier, too, doesn't it?

Randy really knocked back the shrub roses - these guys really like the hot, dry hill they're planted on. And while I know trimming at this time of year means we'll lose some of the flowers, if we don't trim them, they'd soon be inside the house having dinner with us! (They don't really grow quite that fast but you get the picture.) I did find some new growth after all the trimming so there will be some flowers.

The other thing that says Spring is that the goldfish start spending more time near the top of the pond. And that's always fun to see. I counted 15 at one point.