Coming along

 Finally, it felt like we had progressed to spring.

​Actually with temperatures in the 80s, it seemed like perhaps the area had bypassed the season and went straight for summer.

While the spring plants were coming along nicely, members of the Applegate gang didn't follow suit.

​Sherman, the older St. Bernard, was lollygagging around.

I beeped his collar to tell him to "come."

​To my surprise, the beeping collar was a lot closer than where Sherman was last seen.

Apparently, Gus had removed the elder St. Bernard's collar and was headed across the field with it.

​The collar was retrieved with some difficulty and placed back onto the correct St. Bernard.

 While the other dogs had taken to the water to beat the spring heat, Gus still had a ways to come before learning to swim.

 He stuck to the streams and puddles and still managed to get just as muddy as the rest of them.

Meanwhile, frogs, brought out by the sunshine and warmer temperatures, paid no mind to the muddied waters and splashing canines.

Unfortunately a break in the May monsoon season, had left the wood frog tadpoles almost high and dry. I checked shrinking pool daily. There was still water, but not much. I hoped that more spring rains would be coming along to help fill the pool back up, as there was no way to really haul water back to the area.

While the wood frog tadpoles were on the verge of not doing well, area violets were coming along nicely.

It appeared to be more violets this year than in previous years. There were so many varieties and shades. They seemed to be everywhere, in the woods and in the yard. The only variety of which I was certain on the name was the yellow halberd-leaved violet. 

It was fairly easy to identify with its distinct leaf shape. The abundance of the delicate little flowers reminded me of my grandmother who would forgo part of the lawn mowing to let the violets grow in a certain part of the yard.

Just as the violets covered the ground, the trees were also breaking out in blossoms. It seemed like the apple trees had flowered overnight. Then after a few days, the warm wind was already driving petals off of the branches.

As the apple blossoms came and went, so did the tulips in the garden. The earlier tulips had already lost their petals as the stragglers provided pops of color here and there. I was always surprised at the varieties that came up. I had a tendency to plant and forget. I surmised that this is why when we moved into my grandparents' home, we saw flower bulb packages stapled on the old garage wall. I did, however, remember that I had added to my mom's tulip bed next door last fall. However, I couldn't remember which ones they were, as the tulips of the same variety that were planted in my yard had been consumed by Kyle, the goat.

Meanwhile, other woodland plants were coming along nicely. Wild strawberry blossoms dotted the landscape.

The bellworts had hung their petals out to dry.

Pink lady slippers emerged from the ground and started to bud.

Also in the orchid family, the downy rattlesnake plantain started to green up. However, it would be awhile until its tiny flowers appeared.

Also greening up, were the trees. The forest canopy started to quickly fill in.

In addition to the growth on the trees, the local bucks' antlers have started to emerge.

Kennedy, the goat, was also filling out due to the green spring grasses.

As for coming along nicely, that would be something he needed to work on.

​That's just the nature of things 'round here.