If yesterday was any indication, spring is definitely around the corner! It was a beautiful 80° in the afternoon. Sunny with a gentle breeze, Mr. FixIt and I pulled our chairs from the garage and sat basking the rays of the most welcome warmth. I noticed the spring onions are beginning to sprout here and there in the fields and I remarked it was time to mow over the pollinator beds in preparation for the rains that will soon follow.
The wildflowers and fall grasses had grown tall and thick before the first freeze. I spread wildflower seed around…shaking it down into the roots of the plants…and let the beds rest like that over the winter. Now I needed to get the riding mower out and mulch that all down and hopefully some of those seeds will make purchase in our rich West Virginia soil.
Mr. FixIt got the mower out, checked and filled the oil, and I added some gas to the tank. The mower started right up and I was soon out making the rounds…cutting the beds in such a direction as to shoot the seeds into the center. Once I made several rounds, I changed direction and mowed from the center outwards, distributing the mulch and seeds evenly.
It didn’t take long to finish. I did a quick lap around the far field checking for feathers and such to no avail. When I returned the tractor to the pole building, Mr. FixIt and I sat a while longer in the waning afternoon sun. We finally went back inside and it was time for him to head to the bowling alley. One of the members of their team has moved to Charlottesville and he will be bowling for her the rest of the season.
When he is gone, I have a few hours to myself. Rather than find myself down the rabbit hole of YouTube, I turned off the TV, grabbed my book and iPad, and headed out to the camper to read till he came home. If I’m out here, he’ll come out and spend some time with me before he heads back inside. I am continually grateful that I took out the dinette and installed the double recliner. It is much more comfortable and a sensible use of space.
I’m still reading The Pioneers by David McCullough. I am usually a voracious reader, but honestly, this is only the third or fourth book I’ve read since Mr. Virgo died. My attention span is not what it once was and I can think of about a million other things I could or should be doing besides slogging through a book. This one, while a bit of a difficult read, has held my interest due to the subject matter. It takes the beginnings of the Ohio Territory and speaks of Marietta, Belpre, the Ohio River, and the misadventures of Aaron Burr and Harmon Blennerhassett over on the picturesque island so named.
I checked our schedule for this week and we have no appointments. I have knitting this morning, then I’m going to head to The Farm for a couple of days. I’ll work on the taxes, finish my book, and do all the trip planning for the summer. I love my time at The Farm and I always come home refreshed and ready for the next big project at hand. I visited with the CO kids and my brother in video chats, so I’m ready to head into my week and hit the ground running.
☘️
”Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime; it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone.“
Zechariah 10:1 NIV