Spring?

A bit. In spurts. March came in with winds and swirling snow. It melted finally this week. February and March are consistently the hardest months for me. There are no festive holidays to look forward to and bake for. No seasonal songs to warm the heart. The wood pellets have run out and none are for sale anywhere. Mud is tracked in the house at a constant rate. I have my garden plans to keep me busy, though, and soon I will begin to start some seeds (and seeds do I have...). We have no crocuses or forsythia, no grape hyacinth or other spring-ey bulbs popping out. But I discovered that the rhubarb is trying to peek up! I think I recall it making it's appearance as early as January, but that was at our other house, and it faced northwest, not straight north. This rhubarb is older than me. At our old house, the neighbor (who has lived there since the early 60's) said that the rhubarb had been there since before he moved in. The previous residents had done their best to dig, poison, burn it, but it prevailed. Then it was vacant for a year, and suffered drought, and still it prevailed. I took care of it, and when I moved, I dug up a chunk or two to bring with me. I don't know what 'breed' of rhubarb it is, but I'm happy it is so hardy. I enjoy rhubarb, but will have to see how it does with honey, as we're trying to get rid of the sugar stuff.

In other news, yesterday in the henhouse I made a most delightful discovery. I found an egg! Now, the poor girls hadn't had their nest boxes installed, and the little thing was just being tossed around on the straw floor. The kids were very excited and have been looking for more. I red-necked the nest box installation, and used a rope and ratchet strap to put it where it needs to be. I put hay in them but as of this morning, it didn't look like they'd been used. Hopefully the next time a hen gets the urge, she'll figure out it's a good place to go.

The egg, however, isn't very big. It's pretty cute, though. You can see it next to the crayon for reference, and in the carton it's with some of the Omega-3 brown eggs I get at costco.