Apple Blossom Time in the Valley

It's that special time in our valley, when the orchards are beautiful in their dresses of blossoms. There is an Apple Blossom celebration this weekend, complete with princesses, a new Queen Annapolisa crowned, parades, fair grounds and lots more. People go on drives to observe the orchards in full bloom.

Yesterday, I thought I would take a little walk in the orchard to take a few pictures. I took a walking stick with me to help me along. (Good planning)

Starting out, I got a picture of  Dawn and gals setting off 

to work

This is what they are doing. All of the branches, save one have been

cut off these trees, and bud wood from another variety grafted on.

I stopped for a while to chat, (mostly to have a rest), then continued on.

I was feeling pretty good, and carried on to the end of this orchard.

This is the end of the one block looking toward another

section that goes further along. About this point, I figured I had

better turn around, as legs were starting to get weak and

going back would be uphill.

Oh Oh! Up hill! There would be a whole lot of 'rest stops'

before I got back to the girls. It is close to 1/3 mile from

the road to the end of this block. It felt like 3 miles by the

time I got back to the house.

Stopped by the pond going down and coming back to check out

tadpoles, but I didn't see our resident muskrats (2).

By this time I was beginning to wonder whether I had bitten off more than

I could chew, so to speak. Legs burning, and leaning more and more on

my stick buddy, I carried on.

Taking pictures was a great excuse to rest my legs.

Finally I was almost to the road.

Tired? Yes. Sore? Yes. Feeling accomplished? Yes.

I wasn't sure I could do it, but I managed. I'm a little slower today,

but am planning my next walk to another pond, a little

further away in another block. There is a beaver there who has

been chawing on some trees.

In the meantime, I am trying to do a bit of work around the house, and am

slowly but surely getting weeding and whacking done.

I'll end this post with a picture of the blossoms on the flowering crab 

on our front lawn. Bees are humming around it, of course....

....and a view of the orchard from the road facing the North Mountain..

Have a great weekend!

What a Weekend!

This past weekend, I was busier than I have been in a very long time. Now weary and a little sore, I know that I wouldn't have changed it for all the world.

Saturday, H came to pick me up and take me to Ironwood. I haven't been there for quite a while. The day was dreary, wet and very cold, but it didn't put a damper on my enjoyment. H & R's farm is such an amazing place, and I just wanted to soak it all in. Lambs, lambs and more lambs, and a few piggies thrown in for good measure, we slip-slapped through the rain to visit all the woolly creatures, and I couldn't get enough. When we got really cold, we nipped into the greenhouse, where the furnace was on for the plants. I took a lot of pictures, and will share a few of them.

Then, from the farm we went to Windsor, meeting up with Dawn and girls, and Eva, first to enjoy supper, and then to see "Drum", a wonderful show tracing the history of Nova Scotia, through the Mic Mac, the Acadians, the wars, and the deportation, and the settlement of the Loyalists and the black settlements.  Drumming played a main part in the whole program, along with music, singing and dance, and it was absolutely a fantastic evening. To top it all off the Nova Scotia Mass Choir sang for a half hour before Drum began. If you ever get a chance to hear them, they are super. They sang on CBC Radio one time with Meesha Brueggergosman a wonderful Canadian Soprano.
I was so wound up by the time I got home, and even though I was tired, I could not get to sleep for hours.
I actually slept in Sunday morning until 9am. Usually I'm up between 6-7 most days. I think I played alright in Church, at least no one complained.

Ironwood Farm

This is a little spring lamb, a little over a day old,

and still penned in with her mother, who isn't sure

she want to let the little one drink.

This little one is a couple of days old

One of my favourites, born Jan-Feb. You can see

how fast they grow

More of the winter lambs. They loved to be scratched

under their ears, and I could have done it all day. They 

have been weaned.

These are younger ones, not yet weaned, so are out

in the field with their mommas.

I took lots of pictures of the piggies, but they weren't

very co-operative. Liked the colour on this one. They are

pretty big.

This is a look from the pasture back toward the house and barns.

One of the greenhouses

And then.......on Sunday.....

Graduation pictures in the orchard......

With Gowns 

...and without

The photographer took around 500 pictures of R and C, along with siblings and parents. It
brought a tear to my old eyes to see these two young people at this very exciting and important time of their lives. So lovely. (The chair was a prop)

This is why the chair was in the orchard.

R wanted the view of the orchard and

the valley and mountain behind

The blossoms were not in full bloom but were beginning

And so I had a busy but absolutely

wonderful weekend.

Tiring, perhaps, but so worth it.

Sun and blue sky....Nice

Ahhhhh..... it's an absolutely beautiful day today, and I have been outside a few times this morning working in the little garden. There is so much of what I call quack grass, though I'm sure it has a proper name. It has roots that run all over the place, and when I am lucky I can pull up more than a foot of the stuff. That's when I am lucky. Most of the time it is one or two at a time. But gradually I am getting the garden spiffy, though my body needs a bit of a rest afterwards. Work a half hour, rest a half hour. That's the rule for fibro, but I get so engaged that I forget. It makes me sore but also gives me a feeling of accomplishment.

The Captain has gone off to the camp for a couple of days, and I laugh at myself when I check the clock to see what time it is.......I don't have to get lunch ready, or supper or whatever. I am not on the clock......nice! I even have bread on the go, though the bread maker is doing all the work. My goodness, I am so full of energy today I don't know what to do with myself. It is only noon!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now it is Monday, Victoria Day in Canada, and it is another lovely day, after rain yesterday. The weekend was a little busy, and I didn't get any outdoor work done. I have done a bit this morning, but I swear that if you pull a weed and turn around three times, and look, there is another one to take its place. It a little hard on the old neck and back but......you know, gotta keep going. 

This branch had to be cut off unfortunately. We are

having the house painted and it's too close to the wall.

.Getting there slowly but surely ......

The blossoms are blowing off. They don't last too long

especially when it is windy

These little beauties come up now every year.

I really like them.

I am so thankful that Spring has finally arrived. There is nothing like a time outside to

lift one's spirits, unless it is a time spent with special friends, and lots of hugs to go

around. 

Perhaps.....

Perhaps it is time to start blogging again. The urge has moved me to tap the keys and write. I have been doing a lot of thinking during the last few weeks, and my poor little brain is quite tired. Perhaps taking those floating words, and writing them down will give my brain a rest.

Yesterday was Mother's Day, and I enjoyed a wonderful time with my girls. We went out to lunch at a little restaurant called The Naked Crepe. Delicious! Filling! I love spending time with my two daughters and two granddaughters. They are such a blessing to me.

I have decided that I really need to concentrate on them, on my blessings, and not think about what could be if things were different. I have been looking at old photos of D and H, and then R and L. It is hard to believe that all those years have passed. I must have done something right to have such beautiful and loving daughters, to see them now as grown women, each with their own special gifts and personalities.

When you get to be my age, and  look back, sometimes I think, I should have done things differently, and I question decisions I made, and yet I know that I did my best at the time in each circumstance, with what I knew. You can't second guess yourself, and you can't change things now, you just have to keep moving forward. Life throws you a lot of curves, and you just have to get around them and look for the straight way ahead.

I am still missing, and will for a long time, my little Sadie. I still expect to see her sitting there beside me. But I am better, and smile when I look back at pictures of her adventures.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spring has finally arrived...

The first bud on the magnolia tree.....

.....and more buds and blooms

I have spent some time painting rocks. When I don't want to think about other things

I paint. Black and white seemed to have been a theme.......

I do not know what I am going to do with these, but

painting them is good for the soul.

And.......

as I was going through some old pictures, I came across this one,

To explain, I used to do puppet shows and above is my puppet Floyd. He is

weird looking but I had a lot of fun with him entertaining children and

older folk. I put the photo on fb and was amazed at how many people remembered him

from their childhood. I look quite a bit younger of course, since this is about 25+ years ago.......

This picture was from our local paper....they must have done some sort of write up,

but I can't quite remember why. I used to go to the schools and libraries so maybe it

was about that. Or, perhaps it was about the fun baby shower my friends had for me, 

so that Floyd would have some clothes. What a riot. What a fun time.

It was long, long ago.......

Enough for today............

It is good to be back.......

Perhaps I will be more regular in my postings....

Perhaps.......