Spring has arrived here in Richmond, and we couldn’t be more excited. Warmer days, fresh green leaves and blooming flowers—bring it on.
For anyone who hasn’t reached spring yet, here’s a little virtual dose of the season: a few photos showing what’s just beginning to pop up around our place. Small buds are already forming on the hydrangeas we inherited with the yard.
This year spring is extra fun because we’re discovering surprises on the new property — seeing the yard reveal itself in full bloom for the first time. The daffodils are everywhere already, and they’re putting on quite a show.
In case you don’t recognize this view, that’s the back of our house. It looks noticeably different from the original brick ranch facade at the front. The addition has a distinct 1970s vibe compared with the 1960s front — they were built only about a decade apart, yet they feel worlds away. We hope to harmonize the styles someday; maybe inspiration will strike in a dream. (Once I dreamed about tiling our old shower with white subway tile and later actually did it, so you never know.)
Even our dog Burger is ready for the season—he’s eager to get outside and start months of backyard bug-hunting. Here he is staring longingly out the living room window. The bushes in that view make Sherry itch to trim them, so yard projects are already on her mind.
Temperatures here have been fluctuating between the mid-50s and upper-60s, and we even saw a few days in the 70s recently. That weather makes yard work climb up our to-do list — especially since we started tidying up a few weeks ago. We also owe you a proper exterior tour of the house, so stay tuned for that.
One downside of spring’s arrival is a tree growing right at the front of the house. It’s very close to the foundation…
…and it reaches up the side of the porch, its branches arching over the walkway to the front door. We’ve suspected for a while that it may need to go before it causes damage to the house, but it’s so charming that we’re torn.
The tree is especially lovely covered in white blossoms. Those flowers make it hard to want to remove the tree now. Unfortunately, given how close it sits to the foundation, saving it could be difficult — we expect a messy root situation when we start digging. And while we’re at it, does anyone know what kind of tree this is? We haven’t been able to identify it.
Despite the little tree dilemma, we’re ready to soak up spring. Time is flying — Clara’s first birthday will be here before we know it — and the yard will be a big part of our plans. Maybe she’ll be a great mulcher someday.
Are you getting spring fever where you are? Are temperatures warming and flowers appearing in your neighborhood, or is someone still shoveling snow?