We seem to have a mating pair of blackbirds in the little green area in front of our house! They've been hopping around, nearly oblivious to our comings & goings, all day today. Hopefully our cat will not notice them.... The male blackbird has sung one lovely song that I was lucky enough to hear. I've never before noticed them making any particularly pleasant noises, so it was really a treat. I've included a couple of pictures of a male European blackbird (which really is black) and a female European blackbird (which is more of a mottled, dusty brown - excellent camouflage). We've also had a busy chickadee (which Max calls a koolmeisje and which my bird book insists is a tit) who seems to believe he's a bee. He's been busily sticking his beak into our unfolding apple leaves/blossoms, hopping from one leaf cluster to the next. Has anyone ever heard of this behavior?

Yesterday, the younger two kids and I cleared out the worst of the accumulated winter debris from our front garden, and tried to weed. We made a good start. I saw that my mint, oregano, and sage are coming back up from the roots. Hooray! Today we got some savory (pictured) and rosemary. I've never had any luck growing rosemary, but I was feeling optimistic. LOL. I also picked up a few new lavender plants to try to cheer up the ones I cut back (too far?) this winter.

I'm not much of a green thumb, but I do love watching things grow. My Gramps was a gardener - or what today would be called a landscaper - in Bar Harbor, and I used to love to putter with him in his garden when I was a kid. My mom can also make anything grow. My Dad tried his hand at bell peppers and tomatoes this winter in Florida with great success. And I can't leave out my brother, who has managed to make grass grow in the desert! So I guess it's something of a family hobby. I would love to have the room to grow fruit - particularly blueberries and raspberries. Someday!