Spring Break is a Washout

The radar has looked like this pretty much all week. We'll get a brief respite from the rain tomorrow, but it will be back Friday. I had hoped to spend this week cutting the grass, clearing leaves from flowerbeds, burning out stumps, and marking off the area for the swingset. It's been warm enough to work outside, it's just been too wet!

There is at least one project I can do tomorrow, and the wet, soggy ground will only make it easier, but all of the other projects will have to wait until the rain abates.

But, there are signs of spring everywhere. The flowering trees are all beginning to bloom or are already in full bloom, and my forsythia bush is covered in pretty yellow flowers.

Two branches are overachieving a bit, but I can take care of that with two snips of the clippers!

I have two Chinese plum trees in bloom ...

My pear tree is just starting to bud ...

My red spider lily has been up for a while ...

The daylily's are coming up ...

As are the hydrangea's ...

The hosta's and rabbits ears are coming up ...

The coral bells look pretty already ...

The moss between the bricks on the patio has made it's appearance ... as well as the weeds in the driveway. But a jug of groundclear will take care of that ... if it ever quits raining!!

But the grass is greening up nicely!!

Raining or sunny, I don't care ... BECAUSE IT'S SPRING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Swinging Ernie

Barbie Has Been Shopping

She found this adorable lounge chair ... and it will be perfect for her balcony. I'm sure she'll spend many leisurely hours relaxing on her balcony for a much-needed break from her busy life!

Yesterday

Yesterday was the first day of spring ... and I feel cheated!!

I Don't Think Spring Knows What Day It Is

My Girls and a Friend Sang at Church Yesterday

So pretty!

I Actually DID Laugh Out Loud at This!

Remember These?

For those of you too young to know, this was our ice cream truck! These were a happy and welcome sight coming down our street.

A Few Last Fires

After a relatively warm February, we got a cold snap last weekend. I still had wood to burn, so we decided to enjoy (at least) one more fire ...

Today is "Ken Day"

Growing up, my little sister and I spent a lot of time playing Barbie's. I drew out plans, my brother-in-law built a Barbie house (which I still have), and I set about decorating it.

Years later, I got the old Barbie house out for my own daughters. I put shingles on the roof, wallpaper on the walls, wooden shutters on the windows, bricked the second-floor deck, and put a wooden railing around it. The Barbie house is currently stored at my daughter's house, and I don't have any pictures handy, but I'll post some later. (I'll need to dig it out and clean it up for my granddaughter soon anyway!)

We had a lot of Barbie and friends, but we never had a Ken doll. My mother refused to buy us one. I have no idea why ... I mean, it's not like they were anatomically correct! So, when we needed a date for one of our Barbie's, we'd have to borrow one from a neighbor girl. I guess it's a good thing we didn't have Ken full time ... because one time he robbed Barbie with the gun from the Clue game!

Ken (and Barbie) have changed a lot over the years. Like us, I'm sure Ken has pictures he wishes he could erase from our memories! Check out the bootie cutters Ken rocked in 1979 or the suave, sophisticated Casanova of 1992!

Personally, I've always had a thing for a man in a suit, and I find I prefer Ken in a suit, too ... just not the one from 1972!

 

Great Work!

 

A coroner released the cause of death for a man shot multiple times by police ... he died of multiple gunshot wounds which caused internal bleeding!

I'm sure it's protocol to do an autopsy on any shooting victim, but is "releasing" the cause of death really necessary? If you are shot to death, I think everyone already knows what you died of!!

I Can Only Imagine

In 2002, a relatively unknown group called MercyMe raced up the Christian music charts with the release of "I Can Only Imagine". I remember hearing it for the first time. It gave me goosebumps.

Those were the growing up years for my kids. We'd spend Saturday at the pool, then come home and get ready for church that evening. Sunday mornings, we were almost always back at the pool.

The music played over the loudspeakers at the pool alternated between rock and country stations. I was okay with either (although I would have preferred listening to one of the Christian radio stations). One day, a rock station was on, and the song "I Can Only Imagine" came spilling out over the speakers. I was thrilled ... and surprised that a mainstream radio station would play a song so blatantly Christian. I mean, the word "Jesus" is sung throughout. The didn't just play once ... it played every time we were there that summer.

It's not often that Christian music is played so freely on mainstream media, but "I Can Only Imagine" was, and for good reason. It's a beautiful song, with a beautiful message, sung by a man with an incredible voice, and accompanied by amazing musicians.

A couple of days ago I heard that the movie "I Can Only Imagine" is going to be in theaters on March 16th. I looked it up. It's the story of Bart Millard, lead singer of MercyMe and writer of the song. The movie is about his abusive childhood and how that song came to fruition. I quickly got a group together and we ordered tickets. There are four of us going, and we got the last four seats in the theater together for the time slot we wanted. (Was God holding those seats for us?!!)

Without having yet seen the movie, I already know I want to own it, so I got online to see when it will be released. I didn't find out when I would be able to buy it, but I discovered a book by the same name and immediately ordered it.

I was anxious to get home yesterday because I knew my new book was waiting in my mailbox. I started reading it as soon as I got home. Three and a half hours later, I was done. I would have finished it sooner, but I had to stop a few times to go to the bathroom, get something to drink, or to think about what I'd read. Needless to say, it was a good book.

Books made into movies are almost always better than the movie itself. There is so much you can put in a book that you can't put in a film. I always prefer to read a book before I see the movie. If you know the whole story, a lot of what you see makes more sense because you know the emotion or actions behind a behavior or decision ... things you don't always get from the movie itself.

We go see the movie a week from today ... and I can't wait!!!

A Celebrity Actually Said Something Intelligent!!!

I don't remember who said this, but it's so true.

This Weed is Driving Me Nuts!

This is a weed outside my office building. It popped up a week or so ago. I hate weeds! It's always chilly in the morning, so I'm wearing gloves and I don't want to remove them outside ... I hate cold hands even more than I hate weeds! Also, I don't want to get dirt under my fingernails, so I walk by it ... scowling ... every day. If the groundskeepers don't pull it when it warms up, I'll be forced to pull it. I don't think I can walk by it every day for another month without doing something!

Thick as Thieves

 

 She has her own car, but she likes being with her big brother :)

Cars 3

 

Apparently, you don't need to be the prodigy of a gearhead to be entranced by Lightening McQueen ... you just have to be a little boy!

January's Super Blue Blood Moon

It's a little late, but here is a picture I took of January's Super Blue Blood Moon.

I love the branches juxtaposed against the illumination of the moon.

River Update

As of 6:00am this morning, the river was at 46.85 ... much higher than the 44.3 crest predicted. It's supposed to rain again this morning, but they say it won't amount to much. Of course, they also said the river would crest almost 2' lower than it did, so ... I'm keeping my umbrella close today!