winter is weird – it’s hard to hang outside when it’s below zero.  everything hibernates, is hidden.  so much of our immediate surroundings has changed since our return from arizona.  not because we were away, but because of the onset of spring!

sometime between then and now we’ve managed to save our lettuce from the eternally treacherous slug squad and made some decent meals while we were at it.

wild violet and garlic salad ^

dandelion tempura ^

and keeping in synch with the previous animal post, here’s our Resident Pheasant [who is actually a grouse, not a pheasant]

i’ve yet to locate her nest, but it must be somewhere between the house and the road, considering the frequency of her strutting up and down the drive.

here’s another shot of that toad getting destroyed – this shot is by regan, our resident photographer ::

this really seems to be our snake year.  just last week while cleaning up some crap wood by the oat patch, i saw this Narrow Fellow in The Grass.

such fortune!