"I wanna see it painted, painted, painted, painted black"

That song by the Rolling Stones kept going through my mind yesterday and I wielded my spray paint can over and over our steel outdoor furniture. Rick and I worked together to get the job done. It's a necessary one that needs to be done every other year or so. Our furniture sits outside in the elements all year long and as time goes by, it starts to rust. Spraying it with good old  Rustoleum™  paint keeps it going. We've had the same two sets of tables and chairs since we moved in to our house in Fort Collins back in 1995. They still look great.

The weekend weather was pretty much perfection. Warm with plenty of sun. We got lots of outside chores done (or maybe I should say Rick got plenty of outside chores done) such as the first mowing of the yard and removing some stray tree limbs. I cleaned out the herb planter on the deck since we didn't want the oregano anymore because it takes over, and the thyme was not coming back as well as it should. Now we have a freshly planted sage plant and two thyme plants. Rosemary will stay in her separate pot for the summer as she needs to be brought inside for the winter. As soon as I can I am going to put tomatoes in pots.

We rolled figgy out in the driveway to soak up some sun. It has the beginning of beautiful big leaves already, and one fig! At least it looks like a fig, but it might me a very large leaf bud. We would have left her outside but our roof is being replaced tomorrow (partly thanks to Super Storm Sandy) and we were afraid that something might get dropped on her delicate branches. We thought it best to leave her inside for a few more days.

Lunch yesterday found us at the Warwick Valley Winery for a pizza. As we were sitting outside enjoying the sunshine, our pizza and a bottle of wine, the people at the table next to us pulled out a cell phone and proceeded to have a conversation with a friend on speaker phone. How annoying is that? I couldn't even hear my own thoughts so we got up and found another table in a different area. Enjoy the moment folks; call later!

We are so looking forward to Rick's mom's visit in late May. We're so glad she's coming! We already have tickets to this food tour in New York City. They are always so much fun and so informative. She has also requested a visit to the Freedom Tower which I have not been to yet.

Our trip to the cabin this year will be in September but I might have the chance to accompany Rick on a business trip in June to Cartagena, Colombia. What do you think, should I go?

P.S. Sorry for all the randomness of this post!

Spring it taking her sweet time this year, but how sweet it is! Every day when I look out the window my view becomes a little more obstructed. Gone is the bare starkness of rows of leafless trees. Now the trees are wearing fuzzy buds that light up when the rising sun shines through them. Soon our back yard will be enclosed in the green cocoon of summer. It happens every year but I still marvel at the process.

Every blooming thing has its own special season. The cherries are on the wane now (I'm sure you're glad for that!) but the forsythia and daffodils are still going strong. The crabapples and azaleas will be next although I have seen a few azaleas blooming. The lilacs will be right on their heels. 

So in honor of Spring's other predominant color, yellow, and the fact that the forsythia and daffodils will soon be gone, I dedicate this blog post to YELLOW.

Forsythia as a background.

And cherry trees (what else?) as a background.

Linked in to Weekly Top Shot

I love it when artists set up their easels on the grounds of Skylands …

Monday was a beautiful day!

A little chilly, but sunny. I headed out to Skylands to check on the progress of CrabApple Lane. No crabapple blossoms yet—the buds were tightly closed.

And I'm sorry I lied to you when I said the cherry tree photos had come to an end. I guess I should have said the photos of Branch Brook Park had come to an end, because Skylands was just beginning.

I'm so sorry …

 I love walking around Skylands. It's peaceful, the birds are singing, and you never know just what you are going to see.

Sometimes I go for the exercise; sometimes just for taking photos.

Either way, it's always enjoyable.

Is it any wonder I keep going back again and again?

Linking to Madge's Rurality Blog Hop

A short break from cherry blooms! I know I promised a Lytro Shot of the Week back when my blog went public again, but frankly, winter was not the best time for this little camera.

For those of you who might have missed the Lytro introduction, play with this photo! Click in the foreground on the main flower, then click anywhere in the background and the image will re-focus there. Hold and drag your mouse over the image to move it around and get a different perspective. If you want more information on the Lytro, follow this link!