Nothing quite puts winter to bed than the final weeks of spring training, and the opening crack of the bat.  Scott and I made out trip to Florida this week to see the Braves in action.  It looks like we’re going to struggle some, with so many pitchers on the injured list.

Even though the game was well fought, but sluggish,  we enjoyed our day at the ball park.  And I just happened to snag an autograph from Craig Kimbrell as he was leaving the practice field prior to the game.  He’s such a humble seeming young man.  But, on the field, he’s a dynamo.  Yep, there he is, signing my baseball!

We rounded out our week in the Sunshine state with a trip to Marineland and a pass through St. Augustine especially to get some fresh seafood for dinner.  It was excellent.  Wish I could bring that fresh taste of shrimp home with me to savor at a later time.

The weather was excellent, although we both got a sunburn at the game, even with sunscreen applied liberally.  I’m afraid my feet looked diseased, with the tan line of my flip flops.  Guess I’ll just have to sit at the next game barefooted to even out the lines.

And we have our tickets for our first regular season game, so ‘Let’s Go Braves!”

The daffodils have finished their first flush of blooms, and now hang sad-looking dried heads.  But the second round of blooms have already started taking their place.  I love that I can find something new every morning when I step outside.  Daffodils, crocus, hyacinths, anemones, trout lilies, Bloodroot, Green and Gold.  And tomorrow there will be something new to add to the list.  The honeybees and bumblebees are feasting on the rich nectar and the yellow pollen, as they fly away with their pollen sacs loaded down.  God sure had a sense of humor when he made those plump bumblebees who are so graceful, even though they do ‘bumble around’ in the flowers.

I should have daffodils of one kind or another blooming for at least another month, maybe longer.  And then the summer annuals and perennials will begin their display.  I’m already seeing the buds of the hydrangea leaves and the azalea blossom buds.  The red buds are just beginning to peek out of their hiding places.  The fountain is cleaned, filled and splashing away, drawing in the birds and insects.  If life ever gets better than springtime, I just don’t know if I can survive with my breath taken away for so long!

The Sugar and Spice baby shower was a hit.  We had pink and white decorations all over the house.  Leslie made chicken salad on croissants, lemonade, sugar donut muffins, pumpkin muffins, and had an assortment of candies.  Kristi made a precious tricycle from baby diapers, complete with a teddy bear wearing a tutu riding on it.  I made spiced and glazed pecans and a mixed berry cheesecake trifle.  Needless to say, everyone went home on a sugar high. Carrie got some really great gifts from all the family members who were at the shower, including  a complete game day outfit for her first UGA outing. I never realized until we had these three showers just how many gadgets new moms needed for their babies.

We are out of the shower business until this fall, when we’ll be celebrating the addition of a new granddaughter-in-law.  Shannon and Sam will be married in December, so we’ll host a bridal shower in the fall.  That one will be at Leslie and Bradley’s new house.

The warm days draw me outside, and now the new knee is cooperating.  On Sunday, I planted some broccoli, raked and mulched leaves and pulled weeds for several hours.  It’s been so long since I was able to get out and work, I can hardly tell that I had done anything out there.

However, the daffodils and hellebores are in full bloom so just getting out to admire them is enough to satisfy my gardening soul for a while.  The hellebores are as pretty as I’ve ever seen them, despite the late freeze.  They have been blooming for a couple of weeks, and I’ll enjoy them for several more weeks before they start to die back.

The wood hyaciinths, corcus, and hybrid hyacinths have all opened.  Nothing can compare to the smell of the native wood hyacinths, and several of the daffodil varieties have a wonderful fragrance.  The snowbells have almost completed their bloom cycle, with plump green seed pods forming now

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Some of the early blooming trees and shrubs are looking great right now.  The daphne with its lemon Pledge fragrance and the heady aroma of the edgworthia fill the air.  The smell pervades the yard.  Just follow your nose and you’ll find the flowers!  Scott’s peach tree is in full bloom, and the bees are loving it.  The little fellow in the picture is loaded down with pollen, ready to return to the bee hive.  I’m sure everyone has noticed the red buds forming on the red maple trees.  They are especially noticeable along the bypass near Blandenburg Road.  I love cutting branches of these maples to put into arrangements of daffodils and hellebores.

The fall-planted rutabagas and collards are ready to harvest.   I’ve enjoyed fresh rutabagas and collards with cornbread, cole slaw, and corn several times during the past week.

The broccoli, more collards, lettuce, and cabbage plants are soon to be in the ground.  In a couple of weeks I’ll start some seeds for the summer garden in the basement under the grow lights.   Nothing tastes better than fresh veggies straight from the garden.