Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Down with Winter, Up with Spring

Even though it still looked suspiciously like winter outside, a week ago I finally packed away my winter decorations and swapped them for something more spring-like . . . and Easter-ish since Easter is fast approaching.


I even put up the quilted spring wall hanging (it's called "Garden Trellis) I finished a bit ago.  This is a shot from across the kitchen showing the "bare" wall space between the two windows where I keep a seasonal wall hanging.


I think I've taken about twenty shots at different times of the day to show this piece, but I simply cannot get the true colors to come through in a photo.  The grayish check you see next to the pink is actually a pretty spring green and white check.


I found the pattern for this piece in a quilting book, but could not get the first two squares to go together after piecing them.  I finally figured out the cutting measurements for two of the pieces in the square were incorrectly stated in the pattern.  Arrrrgh.  I re-cut them making them 1/4" smaller, and they fit.

When my daughter saw this wall hanging in progress, she said something to the effect of, "That doesn't look like something you'd usually make.  And you NEVER use pink!"

Working "outside the box" occasionally is supposed to be good for us, right?  Well, I did.  And I'm not sure I like this piece very much at all.

* * * * * * * *


This is what my raised garden beds look like this afternoon.  I'm so excited (doesn't take much, huh?) to actually see them (mostly) free of snow.  And, yes, there's still a bit of snow down on the bottom part of the garden.  (Like about a foot.)  BUT guess what our forecast is for tonight into tomorrow night?  Sigh.  Right.  Down to 8° tonight, a high of 26° tomorrow and a 70% chance of snow.  Southwest of us is forecast to get 10-15" (eeep!), but we're to expect no more than 3-5".  (Keeping my fingers crossed we don't get more than that.)

Just for fun (so who's laughing?), take a look at this picture of what we woke up to on this date last year.


See?  We could be farther behind on spring weather than we are this year!

16 comments:

Carolyn said...

Did you go out there and just sit in your dirt? I know I would have. Maybe you can put a really, REALLY big umbrella over each of the beds to keep the snow off???

Akannie said...

We had snow flurries yesterday. And cold temps today, standing water was frozen this morning. WINTER--GO AWAY !!!!!!!

It's supposed to be warming back up starting tomorrow.

God knows I'm ready! lol

M.E. Masterson said...

beds are looking good....

Susan said...

I dunno, I like that wall hanging! After years of shunning pink, I am starting to mellow. I was so happy our snow was finally almost completely gone - then we woke to 3" this morning. I am over it.

tpals said...

I can't see the green in the quilt either, but my first thought when you said you don't care for it was 'giveaway!'

I wish I could say you won't get more snow but this forecast seems to be fairly accurate so far. :(

odiie said...

We have 10" forecast here, but they may have revised that. It didn't start snowing until 10:00 this morning. Everything is frozen solid, again. Did you look at the forecast for next week? 60 degrees!!!! Be still my heart.

Mama Pea said...

Carolyn - I've been antsy to take my spading fork out and stick it into a couple of beds to see how far down the frost goes. Haven't done it yet because I know I'll want to plant something if the frost isn't too deep!

Mama Pea said...

Akannie - We are all trapped in the Never Ending Winter! :o(

Mama Pea said...

M.E.Masterson - Hey, just seeing DIRT is good! ;o}

Mama Pea said...

Susan - We have no snow so far, but now they are saying we are going to get 8-12" starting this afternoon. Enough to make a grown woman cry. Or scream. Or drink. Or cover up with a quilt and stay there until July.

Mama Pea said...

tpals - I'll probably live with the wall hanging until I put up my "chicken" one after Easter (our new chicks arrive end of this month) but whether I'll like it enough to keep it . . . well, time will tell!

Mama Pea said...

odiie - Oh, would I love to see some 60° weather! Wouldn't that be loverly? Hope you don't really get 10". Hope WE don't really get 10"!

Lisa said...

I love the way you think! Hey, I like the wallhanging too.... I was looking at your photo trying to figure out the way those blocks do go together. Striking design! Hope you didn't get the snow and are able to get out in your dirt.

Mama Pea said...

Lisa - No playing in the dirt yet for this gal. Got another dumping of snow overnight . . . but the forecast is for warmer weather so we're hoping it will melt fast. If not, we'll just have to be patient. I guess. What else can we do? I'm sustaining myself through the lovely spring pics all the rest of you are posting!

Carolyn said...

Oh yeah. Frost. Honestly, I've been gone from "up north" so long I forgot that there was such a thing.

Mama Pea said...

Funny. Very funny! ;o)