Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Ushering in Spring with Zest

Last week felt more like spring with temps in the mid 70s and warm breezes; a great time to start the spring cleaning. Took a trip to the grocery store on Monday with Mom tagging along- I did her shopping while she sipped a coffee at McDonald's, much safer for her and faster for me.

Tuesday I was determined to furnish the nearly-empty living room, vacant since building the family room addition two years ago and moving the furniture out there. To my own amazement, I found a new Simmons hide-a-bed couch (ahhh-memory foam), a wildly patterned armchair for the bedroom, a rolling lift-top coffee table and a solid wood bookcase in the Rooms for Less showroom that's closing soon. My good fortune was enhanced by the amazing news that the furniture could be delivered that afternoon - and to my delight, it was!

Wednesday I made an appointment for Louise's little Beagle-Dachshund who's needed a trip to the vet for months. Mom wanted to tag along to get out of the house, so the she, Louise, Fritz and I drove to Sachse and saw Dr. Pirkey for an update on Fritz's shots and a general exam. For a 13 year old dog, he's holding his own.

The morning was filled with the noise of professional tree trimmers who managed to turn my three big trees into a sculptured art form. Then we went across the road and they worked on trimming up the mulberry tree at Mom's house.
Tree Trimming Article with Pictures

But the day got even better when I stopped by to speak with the next-door neighbors, who having enjoyed the entertainment of the tree trimming event at Mom's, observed the workers looking under the hood of her old Crown Victoria and asked if I was selling the car. Yep. SOLD! Hooray. No more insurance premiums, inspections, license renewals and best of all, no more costly repairs to Mom's old car.

Thursday was relatively quiet. Hubby and I took a truckload of cardboard to the local recycling center then picked up groceries for our house. Returned home in time to write an article on HubPages - my tawdry escapism and current addiction.

Friday I took Mom to the Rooms for Less store where I'd seen a reclining chair that looked perfect for her. She wanted it, naturally, so we'll go back this week to pick it up. I don't look forward to dragging the thing out of the truck and wrestling it into her living room, but it wasn't worth the delivery fee for one item.

All in all it was a productive week. There's nothing like the warm winds of spring to get me motivated.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Spring is Sprung as March Marches in

Spring is making its presence known here in Texas with mild temperature in the 70s this week.  It's a blessing to see the new blossoms appear on the Bradford Pears and baby Sparrows happily feeding at the bird feeder.

Another welcome event was the sighting of three woodpeckers in the backyard but only one let me capture his image.

The crops in the pastures along Highway 78 are starting to wear their finest green color as St. Patrick's Day soon approaches.

Ah, spring - so delightful.

Below the woodpecker taps out his song to the beat of his own drum.