Wow...I returned from a nice little vacation in Florida to...snow still on the ground! I know that spring is around the corner, there are little bulb sprouts all over the place, trying to get above the melting slush - at least they will have enough water this spring. I was looking at the forsythia on the way home, hoping for a few fat branches - nothing there yet, but SURELY we are just a mere couple of weeks away!

I can't wait to get into the veggie garden - last year, it didn't get near the attention I should have given it, and this year my garden-loving sister is here working with us, so I KNOW I won't have any excuses. :) The blackberry mother plant is huge, and we planted loads of babies along the picket fence last fall - maybe enough for cobbler this summer? Definitely some heirloom tomatoes (my children still talk about the little sweet yellow ones they ate like candy last summer), basil, green beans, okra, peppers, onions, squash, pumpkins, spring greens - time to get out the seed catalogs. And also - we are replanting a couple of perennial beds near the gazebo - loading them with herbs - I am always needing something in the kitchen.

As soon as the slush is gone and we can get out there, hopefully by early March, I will turn the compost in the soil and lay the pathways...I can't wait!

MORE SNOW - but hoping for an early spring!

More snow! Another foot of snow this weekend - that's more than 3 feet in a month - for Virginia, that is NOT very common....happens maybe once every 10 years or so...and the forcast this weekend? That's right - SNOW.

Good news is, I hear the groundhog may be seeing his shadow tomorrow, and I would welcome an early spring...there will be plenty of moisture for the tulips, crocus and daffodils to pop out big and happy.

This may not yet be the year for blueberry planting - hopefully our new barn/event space will be completed though! Tentative plans are for a 40x60 'barn' at the southern end of the Vineyard - big doors that slide open in good weather, or a cozy place in case of rain...we could hold events year round - up to 150 guests, with a gorgeous view of the vineyard and inn. First phase is just the basics, with bathrooms of course - then later I could even envision a commercial kitchen to make catering down there easier...and, as 'green' as possible of course! Still in the planning phases...but maybe ready for spring weddings in 2011?

In the mean time - so much to do with the gardens this spring! Lavendar varieties, more hydrangeas and peonies...anything with fragrance and flowers we love - the gazebo gardens are getting an overhaul this spring, along with the walkway to the backyard....I will post before and after photos when we get underway the first of March.