flowers and bees (no birds!)

 What a beautiful weekend we had ~ perfect for getting some yard work done! Saturday was spent at my mom's house. Hubby power-washed her deck for her and then we all went out to lunch. Sunday, we mowed for the first time this season, dug out a lot of weeds, sprinkled grass seed in bare spots, and started on the mulching. In this photo, hubby is digging out some of the pachysandra ground cover that has overtaken the stepping stones. That stuff is a bear to dig out - has very strong roots.

 We also dragged the old ladder out of the garage and put it on the south side of the house. This was a ladder that a neighbor was throwing away last year, so it was a freebie. I need to buy some more annuals to fill out the rung space. I'm heading up to a new-to-me garden center this afternoon!

We had a couple of envious window watchers. (The butterfly at the bottom of the screen is a magnet. It's for covering up holes in the screen.)

The lilac bush as it is now. In a couple more weeks, this bush will be exploding with fragrant blooms. 

Starting early Sunday morning, our neighbors two doors down were working on cutting down a huge tree in their back yard. We have no idea why they were doing this. Maybe the tree was diseased, who knows. Last month they cut down a beautiful, healthy maple tree on the side of their house. Now they have no trees at all on their property. I just don't get it.

 Meanwhile, back indoors, I made a delicious spring salad: brown rice, red quinoa, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, baby spinach, fresh parsley, radishes, scallions and feta cheese. I'm sure sugar snap peas and/or asparagus would be good in this salad, too. The dressing was simple: olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. Makes a delicious light lunch or accompaniment to grilled meat or fish.

Later in the afternoon, we visited with some friends. I love the explosion of color in this spot with the tulips and azalea. 

Our friend is a beekeeper and the three hives are literally abuzz with activity right now. Our friend said he can actually smell the honey when he stands next to the hive. I'll take his word for it!

He got this close-up shot for me.

He even painted the sides of the hives with flowers. A guy of many talents and interests! He is dating one of my best friends right now.

Well, it is later in the afternoon and I'm home from the garden center. I bought some more pansies, coleus, gerbera daisies, and a few varieties of lettuce.

Here's what I absolutely fell in love with: Bougainvillea. I didn't know what it was at first, so I took one of the plants down to look at the tag. I was surprised to see what it was because Bougainvillea is usually a tree or bush. They also had this plant in pink. I didn't bring one home because of the $35 price tag. Mother's Day is coming up so I might drop a hint. ;-)

Here's a close-up of the flowers. They don't even look real!

I'm headed back outside now before the rain comes in. We just got a severe thunderstorm warning and the clouds are already rolling in. Looks like cool temps and a lot of rain for us the rest of the week. How is spring going in your world this week?

Sharing with At Home With Jemma - Spring Garden Party.