Out and About - April

♫Here, There, and Everywhere♫

The first nine days of April just dragged on, and on, and on as we awaited for little Olivia June's arrival.  In the meantime, we went shopping for plants and brought home eight Forsythia to plant along our property line....

Ft. Frederick Market Fair

Ft. Frederick in Maryland was built during the French and Indian War in the late 1750's after the British were defeated in Western Pennsylvania in 1754.  It was a place for British soldiers to garrison and where settlers could take refuge during the many Indian attacks spurred on by the French.  You can read more about its history HERE.

We arrived at the Fort for an entirely different reason:  Shopping!  Each Spring for the past 20 years sutlers (people who followed an army and sold provisions to the soldiers) have set up tents to hawk their 18th-century wares in this bucolic setting.  Everyone--men, women, children--dress in authentic clothing....

(To enlarge photos, click on them)

Peter Rabbit and Friends

♫Spring Charm♫

It's a beautiful Spring afternoon with all the pinks and different shades of green emerging from the brown and gray.  All the villagers have come out on such a fine day.  They are gathered around Squirrel Nutkin to see the pictures of their lovely English countryside in Susan Branch's exciting book, A Fine Romance.... 

artist: Susan Branch

You can read more about Susan's visit to Hill Top Farm where Beatrix Potter's little friends live.

First Steps

♫First Steps♫

Usually I choose the songs for my posts by their titles after I've written the post.  I figure if the title matches my theme, then the composer, who titled his piece, probably felt what I hope my post conveys.  This one, Primi Passi, translates to First Steps.  It's headed a blank post for over a year now because the words to match have not come..... until today..... because today, I'm in a mood.....  A north wind is blowing in colder air after having 80 degree temperatures the first two days of the week.  Rain has been falling since last night greening everything up overnight it seems.  This is certainly the First Steps of Spring.  I just hope the impending frost tonight won't damage the flowers already in bloom....  

Waiting for Color

Spring is getting here, slowly but surely.  I looked up that idiom.  It means "slow but unstoppable." I sure hope so!  When I use it I mean, "Surely, Spring will come, won't it?!"  Except for a few daffodils and other Spring bulbs things still look pretty brown around here.

In the meantime, I thought I'd play around with my photo program and see if I could make a slide show of flowers over the years from my garden.  Turn up the volume and make it full screen to get the full effect....

                
I hope this helps tide you over until Spring comes to your part of the country.

Grandparents

♫Sunrise Sunset♫

For those who know I'm waiting for my first grandchild to be born--Not Yet!  This post isn't about me, but rather it's about MY grandparents and grandparenting in general.  When I was born in 1950 my father's father was 65 and his mother was 53.  We called my grandfather Papaw.  This is the only photo I have of him with me in it, taken when I was probably 2½....

View Outside My Kitchen Window - April

♫Far and Away♫

This ↗ is where my thoughts have been of late--far and away--as I contemplate the view outside my kitchen window....