Mr. Bichler: April 11 ~Spring Blaahs~

I think this is probably the longest I have gone without a post. So long in fact that I had to re-read my last post to see what I was doing last month. I am chalking this time lapse up to the "spring blaahs". I know, I know, that everyone is supposed to be so grateful for spring, the melting snow, the increased sunshine and green grass but for some reason, even though I am looking forward to warmer weather, I do not relish all of the work that comes along with spring and summer that follows. To me, April means showers, that means MUD, and spring flowers, that means DANDILIONS, and where there are dandilions there is crab grass! Yes, each spring all I can think of is all of the work that is involved in keeping up our 4 acre paradise! Paradise! That is what our visitors and family call it, I have another 4 letter word for our little paradise on the Little Darby, WORK! Andy has already been mentioning that the garden should be tilled until I remind him that it is under water. Last week he was on the phone getting estimates for a split rail fence that he wants to put up in the pasture to replace the old fence. I heard him say something about installation, his reply, "no, we plan to do it ourselves". And I'm thinking, "when?". The barn roof leaks, the deck needs refinished, the fish ponds will need to be cleaned and there are a multitude of sticks in the yard from the past winter and the spring winds that have been passing through before we can even think of mowing the grass.!

At least the snow covers up all of the spring clean up that will have to be done!

At the present, this is all under water!

Okay, well I feel a lot better now that all of that is off my chest. Since I last posted, we had to put our dear Molly down. That was soon after I returned home from Atlanta (baby shower) and Dover (Lily's art show). Molly's tumor had grown and she was blind and unable to get up from the floor without a lot of assistance. We knew that this day was coming but it did not make it any easier. Andy helped me load her in the car and said his good-byes and then I took her over and stayed with her until she passed. Strangely, it was very peaceful, mostly because I had listened to her whimpering for the 2 day weekend knowing how frustrated she was at not being able to get up or see once she was up. Andy has said he doesn't want another dog so for the first time in our 43 years of marriage we have a pet-free home.

Evie, the dog whisperer

Molly never really enjoyed walking too much, but Shorty seemed to make it more tolerable.

Molly's 4th of July attire

It took us forever to get Molly to walk on grass, I don't think she had ever been on it before.

Lily was small when we first got Molly and I credit her with a lot of Molly's socialization..

Please do not feel too sorry for me, "for this too shall pass". Once the weather warms I will be outside where I enjoy being any way, the inside housework will go undone until the week before the 4th of July and I will be too busy cleaning up our little paradise to feel this annual "spring depression". I look forward to walking in the woods again, once the water goes down, and looking for the new wildflowers and those elusive morels. A batch of morels, floured and fried in butter would do wonders for my morale! Happy spring cleaning!