A TOUCH OF SPRING! Outside there are snow flurries - again.
I really haven't found anything that even hints that spring might be close to arriving, so about two weeks ago I forced some pussy-willows, but there aren't any bursting forth naturally yet. With guests coming for Easter, and lilies not being a favorite of mine, I bought some potted miniature daffies, some tulips and a hyacinthe when I shopped last week. This basket of spring flowers brightened our Easter, and will last at least for a little while to stave off the blahs of our present weather pattern. I can't wait for my flower beds to come out from under the mounds of snow.

Fred found a flock of cedar waxwings in our crab apple tree.
They seemed to be enjoying their Easter feast!

This weather pattern of snow every day, all day, is a little much even for those of us who were born and brought up here. Personally, I'm really, really ready for spring and at this point, I'd even welcome muddy roads and high water - I think. I tell myself perhaps the frost is coming out of our roads very gently and therefore we won't get the serious mud this year, and perhaps under all this snow the earth is warming up as usual in spite of additional snow we get daily and the unseasonably cold air temperatures, and perhaps when every place around us gets the predicted warmup and rain later this week we WON'T just get more snow. Perhaps . . . oh, never mind. We had a lovely Easter with the family, and friends dropped by; Fred's got all those logs cut up and the wood stacked neatly to dry; the Ice Out Contest was more fun than ever; and now I have time to work on the Joe's Pond Association newsletter. I mean, plenty of time. We always like to announce the Ice-Out Contest winner(s) in the spring newsletter, so it looks as if Evelyn and I will have plenty of time to put it together.

The last two pictures were taken on Easter Sunday afternoon from our house. One shows where snowmobile tracks north of the islands; the other is the channel coming into the pond at the north end. There is open water, but just in the channel. A little warm weather and some rain will make a huge impact, though, and I think we're about due. In the meantime, the block and pallet with the Ice-Out flag are still covered with snow!