Spring is growing on me.

It's great to see all the growing things burst to life at this time of year. I don't think there's anything more restful than relaxing with a book within earshot of a tree in full leaf rustling in a warm breeze. All the flowers starting to show themselves, vegetable seedlings growing noticeably bigger by the day...of course, it also means a yard full of pesky dandelions and other weeds, but we seem to be over the worst of those.

Our predecessors left us with a number of gifts in the flower department. The corner of the front yard sports daffodils, irises, and lilies, meaning it's pretty well covered, flower-wise, for most of the growing season. More lilies can be found around the house, both in front and back, along with some hostas and even a rosebush that occasionally produces a rose!

I've added to the bounty a little bit with more hostas, Japanese ferns, a hydrangea, and a pussy willow. I also reclaimed several small redbud trees from the tangle of weeds that they were in before. I want to do far more this year. I have flower seed packets; all I need do is clear out more flowerbeds. Some are in place but choked with weeds and invasive vines. The yard is definitely still a work in progress...emphasis on the work. So much of it, in fact, that it's hard to know where to start. And where to find the time to work on it, especially with our flooring project looming.

But one thing that I at least feel as if I have down a little bit this time around is the vegetable garden. So far I've planted peas, beets, lettuce, and spinach. Indoors, I have tomatoes, basil, parsley, peppers, and broccoli started. The time when I can my seedlings outdoors is fast approaching.

This year, I grew a few dozen extra seedlings, mostly basil, to give away to my co-workers for our annual chili lunch celebrating Earth Day. I got them started at home and then brought them in a few at a time to soak up the afternoon sun on my office windowsill. Now most of them are in good homes, hopefully to prosper!

It felt good to give away plants to people who might not normally grow herbs of their own. Now they'll see how nice it is to have fresh basil right to hand. And how easy it is to grow!

A quick race report

On Sunday, I ran the rescheduled YMCA Spring Running Festival 10K. It was rained out on the weekend before, and they picked a good rain date! The weather was beautiful--sunny and cool. It's a famously hilly course, so I went into it with no real expectations. I ended up with a 47:46, good for third place female and first in my age group. Looking back, I've run this course once before, in 2007, in about 48:30. So it's good to be faster than that so early in my "comeback"! Still a ways to go, but progress!