On this last day of winter, it was 27 degrees this morning and tomorrow morning promises to be similar. That said, 27 degrees feels nothing like it does in Florida and that's a good thing. Fortunately, the good news is that it does not take very long to warm up when the sun is shining. When it is not, well you can imagine it would be chilly and it is.
As I type this, there is a fire, what we have since learned is a controlled burn nearby, casting a haze over the sun, consequently turning the sky orange.
And to think only an hour ago the sky was this gorgeous shade of Carolina blue.
Yesterday was super windy, so let's throw that in the mix too. A mixed bag as they say.
I will miss the bare trees of winter but by golly, each day brings more buds or flowers which seem to appear overnight.
Haha...it took two photos in before birds came into the picture. (pun intended maybe?)
Honestly, I have been taking pictures as if it were going out of style. There are just so many things to see and I just cannot stop myself because in some cases, things are changing so quickly I have to appreciate each phase of the onset of spring.
Example of such change, remember my last post these were all white? If not, a refresher of that image can
be found here.
Part of that mixed bag of weather were some pretty heavy days of rain. I know that I wrote in my last post that the rain does not last for long but apparently that was a mistake on my part. When I was finally able to go back to the river, the level had risen SO much!
What had been crystal clear water looked like this.
Seeing this image of the rushing water taken from the bridge at the park, Candance, a pickleball friend and one of the Murphy natives, told me a story about how her Mom would drop her off at the community pool beside that gym when she was a child and at the hourly breaks, many of the young folks jumped off that bridge. Knowing how many huge rocks are down there they were apparently very lucky indeed.
Look what I came across on that walk!! It shocked me when this groundhog popped up from his hiding place.
On that day I took a different route, into the street that abuts the park and I am glad that I did. I am especially fond of this blooming quince. The color is perfection.
My first tulip sighting,
along with all of this goodness! Sorry, formatting went a little haywire.
And look who dressed like it was Spring?
I asked Bruce to take my photo because of my funny bucket hat with mushrooms, but the sun was so bright you can't really see them. A local shop had dozens of different patterns to choose from. This shot was taken adjacent to the nesting box which is getting some awesome action lately!
Woo hoo....this was the first time that we had seen them heading in with anything, so hopefully it will work. That said, other birds are still nosing around!
We have been out and about including an event at church called Common Ground where this Mother/Daughter duo made a baked potato bar for the group to enjoy.
Two of the ladies also shared their singing talents.
Leaving that night the sky was bluebird blue.
Another night, Bruce is engaged in a lively conversation with Tawny at Fairy Cross. Her husband is the photo bomb.
The folks on the other side of the table moved to Murphy from St. Cloud, Florida. I can't remember what he does, but she is a former middle school principal.
We have met countless educators here and even more countless Floridians.
Mary Beth and Mark invited us to their beautiful riverside home in the nearby community of Marble. They too are from Florida near Sarasota, one of many people we have met that have come from that side of the state. Apparently it is all about I-75. Anyway, not only was their home gorgeous, but look at their beautiful Bengal cat whose name I have forgotten.
This cat was so soft and I was delighted he came and sat with me. Although the day had been warm, sundown brought a chill to the air, so Mark lit the fire pit on the deck overlooking the river.
The meal was delicious as was the homemade three-layer cake Mark made with raspberry filling and white chocolate frosting. Amazing!!
Gosh it was so fun getting to know them. They moved up full time in November and are having fun when they are not working to improve their four acre property with 600 feet of riverfront. Plus they like birds and have a multitude of feeders!
Our Orlando Mary would be loving this that I see all over the place!
Time to head out, but before I go, enjoy this beauty.
your friend,
Gail
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