Spring Is In The Air

My heart is light today, dear readers.  Although the first day of Spring is officially a little over a week away, dare we hope that it has arrived early this year?  I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, because I feel like surely winter isn't done with us yet; but right now, I'm enjoying this beautiful weather.

It feels good (and a little awkward) to be typing a blog post today.  I can't believe I haven't posted in over a month.  Not so much as a peep to let anyone know I'm still here.  I apologize for that, but winter sort of got the best of me this year.  I ended up being sick with sinus problems and that stubborn, hacking cough from Thanksgiving until about the middle of February.  I don't recall ever having a winter like this one.

Mr. Forest Manor was sick quite a bit, too, and he tells me people are still sick at his workplace.  A few have even come down with the flu (yikes).  We're hoping and praying we won't be visited by that particular bug.

So enough of that.  Is spring opening up in your part of the world?  Are you hearing birdsong and seeing blooms again?  I drove to my parents yesterday, and I took the back roads through the countryside.  I saw cherry trees and tulip magnolias blooming, along with lots of cheerful daffodils.  Here are some pictures of our tulip magnolia in full bloom.

I love this combination of pink and blue -- two of my favorite colors.

In this picture, the blossoms remind me of giant orchids growing straight out of the tree trunk.

Do you have these trees in your area of the world?  Their beauty is hard to beat when they're in full bloom.

They also remind me somewhat of pink water lilies.

This large tree was here when we moved in almost 20 years ago.  It was planted by the people who originally built the house.  A few people have advised us to have it taken down, as it grows so close to the house.  Sometimes I agree with them in summer when the leaves are on the tree, and it blocks almost all the sunlight from our dining room.  However, Hal and I don't have the heart to have the tree cut down.  He did some serious pruning a few years ago and raised the canopy of the tree quite a bit, and that helped a lot.  The tree looks much better (neater) and seems healthier too.

The timing of our tulip magnolia is always tricky.  It seems like two out of every three years, it starts to bloom way too early, and then gets zapped by a hard freeze.  The buds, sometimes partially open, turn brown and fall to the ground.  Then other times, like this year, the frost holds off until the flowers are fully open, and we can enjoy the tree in all its spring glory.

Are you ready to spring forward tonight?  I'm definitely ready for more hours of daylight.  Thank you for visiting -- I've missed you all so much!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!  I'm joining Cindy, our host for Amaze Me Monday.  Hope to see you there.  :)

All pictures were taken by Mr. Forest Manor.

Denise