The Arrival of Spring

As most bloggers, journalists, and most everyone are pointing out, spring has arrived. It's absolutely gorgeous outside. (Though, that does mean I've lost my bet with my mother that we would get at least one more day of below thirty degree weather. I now owe her a Chocolate Martini. I suppose I'll just have to buy my own Vodka Martini so that she doesn't have to drink alone.) It's so nice outside that we grilled out. Hamburgers (with crushed black pepper and salt), topped with pan-fried onions (done to golden brown perfection) and tomatoes (we actually found some in the store that smelled like actual tomatoes), cooked corn (just the frozen kind, it's been so long since we've had that. I forgot how good corn is), and black pepper kettle chips. It was delicious. I'm now looking forward to the days of hot weather where I sit outside in a tank top and skirt, drinking wine (or a Long Island Iced Tea) and grilling because it's just too hot to cook inside. While I don't have any photographs of our food, I am going to share (a lot of) pictures from something else I enjoy. Running our dogs at the public hunting grounds.
Lichen on one of the most wonderful oak trees. It's still very small, but that tree has so much character. I admit, I have a strange affinity for trees.
The moss is growing and thriving again. I loved that there were still leaves from last year laying on top of it. Of course, my dog wanted to know why I was kneeling down. He trampled the moss. Poor moss.

This is my dog. Cute, huh? Needless to say, he and the other dogs got baths when we came home, but did they enjoy the run. Usually we only walk along the ridge at the beginning of the path. I decided to take them to the back area, which meant going through some pretty swampy areas. This was at the beginning of the low-lying part of the path. It gets a lot more wet. As in, I stepped in the wrong spot and the water came half-way up my calf.

It was a foggy morning and I found some pussy willow covered in dew.

This is our oldest female dog right before she and the others started hunting frogs. In the winter they hunt mice. In the spring, frogs apparently. She and the other female dog (not pictured) are trained to hunt pheasant. Unfortunately, the pheasant population in Wisconsin is dismal. They are also quite good at hunting sparrows in the backyard. I once laughed while telling a guy that I saw someone teaching their dog to hunt squirrels on my university's campus. He didn't think it was funny. Apparently he fed those squirrels.

The Red-winged Blackbirds are back. Soon I'll be riding my bike along the country highways with these birds screaming at me to get away from their territory while I make my slow, arduous way up a steep hill. It's not very good for my personal morale, you know?

And, finally, some more trees. I do love when the seasons change.