Happy Mother's Day! Every day is a good day to be thankful for Mothers. I just found out the origins of this holiday and am so excited to share this original proclamation of Mother's Day by Julia Ward Howe.
Andrew, Ramona, Astrid, and I have been enjoying the spring in our garden, with friends here in Johnson City and back in Asheville, and with our families. We were happy to witness the coming of Spring with our very own robin family nesting on the front porch. Ramona and Astrid watched the whole process from mating, to nest building, to little blue eggs appearing fresh each day, to mama sitting and sitting, and finally the babies all pink and tiny, then the growth in size and of feathers, and then they were gone...we did see them one last time a few days later still being fed by their parents out on our birch tree.
We have been eating the first of spring harvest from our garden...spinach and kale. I have lots of new ground planted and am trying to keep "peter" rabbit from eating much of my baby plants. I think it is rabbits because we have seen big brown cottontail rabbits a few times in the back yard and my turnips are always all eaten down to a nub. (Isn't that what Peter Rabbit loved out of Mr McGregor's garden?) We just finished putting up a new fence, hopefully that will keep Peter out of my garden.
We just spent a wonderful weekend going to the Lake Eden Arts Festival and hanging out with good friends. I'll have to say that even Andrew was dancing at the festival. If you've never heard Haitian music and want something that will get you dancing try this artist. There was a kids tent full of instruments and Ramona really enjoyed playing with the violin.
Andrew has finished his first year of grad school and will soon start his field work in the Smokey Mountains. I am still working two days a week on Labor and Delivery as an RN. Ramona has gotten into a full-time preschool that will start in late August. Astrid will start attending daycare twice a week in the fall and hangin' solo with Mama the rest of the weekdays. Of course, Andrew and I are still pondering all sorts of plans for where we might move when grad school ends, but our top two are Missoula, Montana or Chapel Hill, NC.
Happy Spring!
