Monday Musings

Good morning, my friends. It was good to take a day off yesterday. I managed to make my way all the way around the house pulling weeds, filling my 7-gallon bucket with hairy bittercress. I'm sure I missed a few sprigs here and there, but I gave it something to think about. There were a few other unrecognized blooming weeds out there too...friends of the hairy bittercress, one assumes. I pulled up any weed that was blooming. They'll have to spread their seeds somewhere else.

My knees were killing me after that effort. The thing is...there really wasn't that much getting up and down. I mostly bent from the waist unless I came across a particularly populated patch (awesome alliteration). There were just a few times I sat on the ground and had to get up again. Just the same, I iced my knees when I was finished, and then again last night while we watched TV. This morning, everything seems fine. I worried I'd broken myself.

And you'd be disappointed if I didn't show you every blooming thing, wouldn't you? It's still a little too cold for most things, but the yellow daffodils are starting to open.

As I've mentioned, we planted more daffodils last fall, and so I haven't yet seen some of them. I saw a few of these little guys. They look like any other daffodil, but they are tiny, and their stems are only about four inches tall.

Across from where I was standing, I could see the flowering plums in bloom. They've been blooming in the valley for a while, but at our elevation, we have to wait a little longer.

The star magnolias are starting to fully open too.

This whole big shrub will be covered in flowers within a few days.

Also, the grape hyacinths are blooming.

There is still much to do in the garden. My next focus will be to deadhead all the hydrangeas. That's a job that allows me to remain standing, and so it shouldn't cause me any grief from my knees. Probably, I'll take a few days off before I start on it, though. The weather is still chilly. I had on a thermal shirt, a sweatshirt, and a heavy coat yesterday, and I was still too cold. We're expecting warmer weather by Thursday, and a good day of weather on Saturday. (We'll be attending a No Kings event that day, and so a sunny day will be appreciated.)

On the sewing front, I squared up the Fantastic Felines and sewed on the binding.

In two sittings yesterday, I turned two corners. I'm about halfway around this now, and so I expect to have it finished in a day or two.

Today I have just one easy housekeeping chore to do, and then I can focus on more sewing. The next thing I'd like to work on is the Nordic Star table runner I made while we were traveling. It was a request from one of my friend Sue's inlaws.

I need to make a back for it, and then it will be ready for sandwiching and quilting. I'll probably do some sort of dot-to-dot motif on this. With straight lines, I can probably create some star shapes on the quilt back with whatever quilting design I choose. I'm hoping to get it sandwiched today.

Tomorrow is going to be a run-around day. I'm getting a badly needed haircut, and then I'm going to run a few errands in town. Despite that, I'll be back here for a quicky post in the morning.

It's gray and chilly again this morning. We're expecting rain tomorrow and the next day, but then some clearing and warming. Better days are ahead, my friends. It's a hopeful time of the year weather-wise.