possum mum?

 We've had a pretty regular visitor for the past few weeks.

Every night, we hear a tap-tap-tap on the porch, and this little guy takes care of the extra cat food.  Don't you think she's unusually rotund?  Dare I say...possibly pregnant?!?

Possums have the shortest gestation period of any mammal...thirteen days...so I am on the lookout for babies every night, just in case!  

It's been really cold here.  I've been trying to get the spring garden chores done, but yesterday it dropped into the 30s, with hail.  More frosts...

...but everything perks up in the chilly sunshine, and our regular flowers seem to be plugging along in spite of less-than-ideal conditions!

japanese anemone

foam flower

columbine

lily of the valley

jacob's ladder

Even though I have an excuse, I don't like seeing the beds overrun with weeds.  This back bed has filled in with the usual perennials...

 ...but it's in a sad state, compared with how nice it's been in years past, early May.

It's completely overgrown, and I'm still in the process of planting new seedlings on the far edge...slowly...whenever the temperature edges into the mid-50s.

I'll just have to keep going as weather allows.  Hopefully it will be warm enough to start my tender annuals soon!  I'm going to try something that I've never tried before...direct-sowing the seeds into the plowed beds.  I usually start everything, even easy things like sunflowers, in mini greenhouses.  But it's A LOT of extra - and unnecessary - work, I think.  We'll see how it goes!  

Inside, the usual work...with a bit of help...

...and a little play, with even puzzle-averse Todd pitching in on this 2000 piece monster!

Here's hoping that it gets a bit warmer soon so that we can get outside and stretch our legs.

Have a great week!