New Beginnings

After a thaw, a re-freeze, we were threatened with a sloppy snowstorm that might have dumped up to four more inches of the white stuff on us. Today was another thaw day, and they're calling for Saturday and Sunday to be warm and fabulous. When I got home, about half of my flowerbed was melted out. The mountain of snow melted down significantly, so I got out there with a snow shovel and helped it along. Tonight I'll put my bulbs outside in their cardboard box to get them good and chilled so that I can plant them on Saturday.

In fact, I feel so confident that spring might almost be here that I ordered my flowers and trees and shrubs today. I am so excited! I just went for it and ordered all of my project beds. Lilacs, butterfly bushes, roses, a all-red bed and a blue-yellow-pink bed. I got the strawberries, too.

This weekend I hope to get down to the home improvement store and get some peat moss and fertilizer to till into our beds. Plus pulling away the nasty hay bales along the front of the house where I want our tomatoes to go. If I'm super motivated, I might even measure and get the edging materials, too.

Somewhere every spring there's the moment when I stop seeing things as nasty, gross, muddy snow and start seeing them as waiting potential, if only I will come and plant something new.

A small school-day story: I was doing a lab today with my classes that marks the change over from "out there" stuff--astronomy, atmosphere, weather--and the "in here" stuff--water movement in the ground, soil and erosion, rocks, volcanoes, plate tectonics, all the stuff that I ADORE. So, it's a good time. The lab involves using a long plastic tube with a clamp at the bottom and a bunch of beads of different sizes. We pour water into the tube and take various data, which tells us a lot about grain size, pore size, water retention, and rate of flow. I'm about two weeks behind the other teacher, so I had a chance to watch her extensively as she worked her way through the lab with her students. I tweaked it a bit and did it with both classes today. We'll finish it tomorrow. The kids loved it even though it was a whole-group approach where each student got to do a different part of the lab. I also thought to add a drop or two of food coloring to the water before we used it. Even just having something nifty to look at drew their attention more effectively. Rule #857,345,320 of teaching: never underestimate the power of adding food coloring.

And finally, some fabulous news from my Oldest Best Girlfriend.

She and her fabulous husband expecting their second bebe in the late fall.

I am beside myself. I can't believe how big her Maura is already, and I've hardly had a chance to visit and meet and get to know their amazing little daughter. And now there's going to be ANOTHER honorary neice or nephew.

I am beyond thrilled!