Flowers Bloom & Burt Gets to Work

After what seemed like a very long wait, the spring flowers are finally here!!!

Our Star Magnolia is the always the first tree on the street to come back to life in the spring.

I wait anxiously for those heady fragrant blooms to appear,

hoping they don't come out too early and end up getting frozen in a snowstorm.

This year was just perfect!

I took lots and lots and lots of photos.

I have no self control.

In the backyard a few other blooms popped up.

Trilliums under the crabapple.

Ferns, unfurling amid the . . .

bluebells.

Of course there's lots of weeds to pull up everywhere!

So here are a few more spring flowers. Trilliums because they're just so pretty,

funny checkerboard fritillaria,

and cheerful anemones.

So before spring slips through your fingers . . . 

. . . remember to stop and smell the lilacs,

because Halloween is only 175 days away!

Ok, bear with me, just two more photos of the magnolia.

Thanks for visiting and to all the moms and grandmas out there

to humans and pets, best wishes for a Happy Mother's Day!

Bunny Burt and Friends

It's been a long wait but it seems that spring may have finally arrived here. Easter came and went all cold and snowy but luckily it melted the next day. Meanwhile, Burt got in touch with his inner rabbit.

 My garden is still mostly brown and I have to say it's really not much to look at but at least it's a good camouflage for the bunnies. This one is all fat and sassy from feasting on my roses all winter.

Meanwhile, the indoor bunnies enjoyed a more colorful scene. These slightly scary vintage ones seem pretty happy to be out of the drawer they've been hidden in for the last fifty years.

Of course, some of the bunny wannabes are less enthusiastic than others.

Others get a little too excited, eventually getting on other peoples nerves.

Then there are the industrious rabbits. While packing up the Easter decorations I noticed that the bunnies have all the responsibility for the eggs! Not just for the delivery but the decorating too.  

This guy looks pretty satisfied with his egg painting.

Happy 420 Mr. Bunny!

Yet another rabbit hard at work.

Then there are those that become sacrificial bunnies.

Doomed by being tasty, they seem resolved to their fate.

 Earless but delicious.

Happy Spring!

Thanks for stopping by.

 Do you have a favorite bunny?

Burt's Top Ten Signs of Spring

April showers are a sure sign that spring is finally here.

The daffodils make a tentative appearance. 

There are those sudden and unpredictable weather changes.

Wait! Whaaaaat????

The snow shovel gets traded in for a garden spade.

The terrarium gets cleaned up and ready for seedlings.

All those seed and plant catalogs start to pile up.

At least there's lots of time to make plans for the garden, while it's snowing! 

The primroses arrive . . . at the  garden center.

Last year's maple syrup is almost gone.

Of course there's lots left in the stores, it's just not from these particularly tasty maple trees.

The tornado warning sirens go off for several minutes every Saturday at noon.

Friends get together for coffee.

and a good prank . . .

on April Fools Day!

Hope you all are enjoying a wonderful spring day!

With or without snow.

Pi Day 2015

Last Saturday was the Pi Day of the century (if it's noted in our odd way of writing the date by starting with the month first, then the day and using two digits for the year). Searching the internet I couldn't find any explanation of exactly why or when this started in the US or even why we continue to use this unusual system but in this instance it gave all the math nerds a special day to party. Apparently they lost a really big chance to celebrate in 1592! Since science and math are popular topics for discussion during meals in our home, the day was marked by the production of 3.14 pies.    

The pies chosen for the big event were spinach quiche, pumpkin and deep dish pizza for the whole number 3 and a little apple pie for the .14. To be honest the little apple pie is a bit over at .16666667!

Yes, both pi and pie are indispensable in the real world!

So what is the big deal about Pi Day? Is pi really an equation we use much after taking the college entrance exams? It is cool that all those seemingly random numbers that go on forever actually make up the order of a perfect circle. So here's some of that perfect circle business with a pi crust. 

Ok, so that's not quite a perfect circle. Guess it's all in the wrist.

If you put pie crust and filling in a square dish would it still be called a pie?

Then there are all those numbers . . .

. . .  never ending or showing a pattern of repeating,

It seems I'm the only one in our household who actually uses Pi for practical purposes, like sewing a round tablecloth for this serviceable table Nick made to hide the woofer for the sound system. It makes a good hiding place for our kitty, Spenser who is portraying Schrodinger's Cat here, maybe.

The  inspiration for the spiral design on the pumpkin pie came from this Pi Pie charm on my bracelet. I have made use of pi when ordering bangle bracelets online in order to get the right size. Thanks to all the attention I'm actually paying to pi for this post I will probably be able to remember it to four places and won't have to cheat by dividing 22 by 7. So that's twice I've used pi since the SAT!

A couple of math nerds with their quiche. March 14 is also Albert Einstein's birthday so Burt decided to pay homage to the great man by dressing in his likeness. As for Nick, well that's just how he looks. 

Hmmm, Pumpkin Pi to 29 places. 

A piece of pi's irrational numbers.

Later that day there was the deep dish pizza pie!

Ok, I found this on the internet.

If depth = a, and the radius = z, the volume = pi * z * z * a

Well, I believe that was all the nerdy pi related stuff that happened on 3-14-15.

Think I'll go make a circle skirt.  

Now Burt, what are you planning on doing with that pie?

Did you celebrate Pi Day? Do you every use pi?

Is it irrational to want to know?

Thanks for stopping by!

Burt Cleans Up

Tomorrow is the beginning of Daylight Saving Time for most of us here in the states. It seems like spring is in the air even though it's still officially a couple weeks away. It will in all probability be snowing here until May, but that's ok, we're used to it. In the meantime, that extra hour of light at the end of the day can illuminate all sorts of disgusting housekeeping problems. Luckily, Burt has offered to help out with the spring cleaning chores in addition to offering some of his sage advice.

Be prepared.

 Being able to see things clearly is always important . . .

 

. . . so is looking at a problem from a different point of view.

Have fun, but don't overlook those hard to reach places . . .

. . . because cleaning, like life is all about balance.

After all you never know what you will find once you start looking.

You might find cat toys under the couch . . .

or a skeleton in your closet!

Thanks for stopping by!

Is it spring yet where you live or are you still waiting for it to arrive?

What do you love most about spring?