Savoring sunshine

As I type this, I am sitting outside on the patio, wearing long sleeves and sipping a mug of hot cocoa, the combination of which keeps me just warm enough to fool myself into thinking it might be summer. I can't even tell you how invigorating these past few days of sun have been for me. It's a little bit ridiculous actually, just how giddy I am over the whole thing. All I can say is that this lady was in desperate need of feeling warm again as my maternity attire is more summer-appropriate. I've spent the past couple months shivering and sitting in front of the heater, wrapped in a blanket, waiting for the day when my pregnancy would provide the needed warmth (don't they always say pregnant women are hot?)

I have spent a good number of the sun breaks digging in my dirt, prepping my pots and planters for the fruits of early summer. My blueberry bushes (may they rest in peace) finally found their way into the trash, which saddened my heart greatly. I only hope I can be a better mother to my real children that I (apparently!) was to those bushes. Man, I invested a lot into them though! I checked the acidity of their soil, gave them plenty of mulch, kept them well-watered during the hot summer months and basically did what any good blueberry mother would do. Sigh. Hopefully I will do better next time (if Graham let's there be a next time!!)

The one positive thing that came from the death of my blueberry plants is that I now have 2 large and vacant half barrels in which to plant vegetables. I don't think a lot of people realize what an incredible privilege it is to have sunny patches of yard where raised beds can be created. There are some of us who give up our pinky toe to have that kind of real estate! Isla and I went on a walk yesterday and I found myself in a deep state of garden envy as I passed huge raised beds that were left completely to waste, overgrown with weeds and obviously not in use. I almost knocked on one person's door to say "Umm, excuse me. If you're not going to use this garden bed here, well then can I?!" But I didn't. Instead, I came home to dote on my precious pots, seeing if any "action" had occurred overnight. I just love spring.

So far, I have planted my strawberries (tristar and quinault) in my sort of lovely/sort of trashy-looking hanging strawberry baskets. The tulips in my flower boxes are beginning to pop open. I have butter lettuce and arugula starts going in one long and skinny planter and oregano and cilantro in another (to be joined by basil when it's a bit warmer). I planted a combination of Touchstone golden beets and Bull's Blood (red) beets in one of my barrels and will plant a hill of zucchini in the other when the right time comes. My patio table is now adorned with fresh pots of sage, rosemary and thyme which I must say makes a mighty fine centerpiece (see above). I plan to replace the butter lettuce with romaine later on in the season and plant some miniature yellow peppers in another vacant pot. Oh and I'm gonna see if I can line the back fence with sunflowers just for fun. Of course I'll also plant my hanging tomato baskets (these are definitely trashy-looking and not so lovely but oh well) come Mayish. And as I mentioned before, my rhubarb is rhubarbing at full force in it's pot!

Did I mention that I love spring? And sunshine!?