The last magnolia photos (maybe)

Okay, so I have a problem...

I clearly am addicted to taking pictures of plants and flowers, and I would say I could stop anytime I want, but I think that would be a lie. So here you go...

The "Honey Tree" is almost in full bloom!
Our rhubarb, if only it knew it was about to become a delicious strawberry rhubarb pie.
Lilac, my favorite!
Bleeding hearts, I think these and weeping willows are in a competition to see which plant can be the most depressing (while also being quite lovely of course)

Not feeling herself

This is her more serious "philosophical face" it's about as contemplative as you can expect from someone who drinks from the toilet. This is her pouty face, I think she has the puppy dog eyes down to a science.

I think Fiona is upset about my new job, and how it prevents me from spending the whole day rubbing her tummy and letting her in and out. She's also trying to figure out how many of her people are supposed to be at home (all the coming and going seems to upset her and she'd like it if we all just stayed put). Last night she didn't even eat her dinner till I came home at ten, which means a full bowl of food was sitting there for five hours in front of the dog who normally woofs down all her food in five seconds. Poor pup, maybe she's just sick of the democratic primaries and wants it to be decided once and for all. Either way, I'm hoping it's nothing a trip to the lake and a slim jim can't fix.

The greatest place on earth!

The "John Deere-A-Saurus"
Mama and babies, just in time for mother's day (she wasn't a fan of me taking pictures of

her little girls, didn't she know I'm not Annie Leibovitz?)

Hellooooo! Think he's related to Mister Goat from India? Maybe it's his kid brother (some puns were not meant to be resisted!)

I haven't been posting as much lately (or sleeping, cooking or running as much for that matter) because I started my new job and it's a bit of a handful. I'm working for an answering service (something I didn't even know existed before I took this job) and at first it was really overwhelming because I handle several hundred accounts, each has it's own unique protocol or strange rules, and every day comes with difficult clients (I've worked at a coffee shop though where the people are cranky and caffeine deprived, that's a whole different type of difficult). While I'm finally getting a handle on things and the job is becoming more fun (it is the ultimate in vicarious living and as a life-long people watcher this is in a way my dream job) there was a really rough patch in there and there was at least one day where I really didn't want to go to work. Luckily for me, half way through my twenty minute commute there is the ultimate in pick-me-ups... Smiling Hill Farm!!

A local family run business, Smiling hill sells all types of dairy goods (my favorite cheese is the Rosemary Waltz), including flavored milk like strawberry, chocolate, blueberry, banana, vanilla and coffee. We buy all our milk, half and half, and cream from Smiling Hill (either at the store or from the grocery store) and in addition to getting to buy local the milk comes in awesome glass bottles. Returning the bottles to the store makes a great excuse to buy lots of cheese, and (here comes the best part) get a milkshake! Their ice cream is phenomenal any way you scoop it, but my favorite form is as a super thick frappe and this has been my guilty indulgence lately (I pretend to not notice that it's made with whole milk!) So on this day when the idea of work just seemed like way to much, I decided to bribe myself with a milkshake (knowing full well it probably wouldn't even last the drive) and as an extra bonus for me, the animals had come in that day. Challenging the milkshakes for the title of greatest thing ever for cheering me up, comes baby animals, and every spring and summer Smiling Hill gets an assortment of unbelievable cute goodness for a little petting zoo. So what are you waiting for? Go to Smiling Hill and check out the yummy goodies and the adorable goodies (just remember, no matter how cute the lambs are the are NOT for eating).

A dangerous assignment

I know the amount of photos I have taken of the gardens in the last couple days is starting to border on obsessive, but I'm just too excited about all the blooming signs of spring! Going outside to capture yet another day in the life of the magnolia aka Honey Tree, I realized the shrub at the top of the driveway was in full bloom. Normally I steer clear of this shrub and it's inch long thorns but I didn't think a couple of pictures would hurt. As I set up my first shot, I realized there was a huge bee in the picture, stepping back I saw that the whole shrub was actually abuzz with some of the fattest bees I've ever seen. Rather than running inside I decided to brave it out and try to get a few good pictures of these chubby and very busy little pollinators at work.