Finally some nice sunshine! The alders are beginning to leaf out, the tree tops are catching the lowering sun.

And it's that time of year for the skunk cabbage to start popping up. We had amazing amounts of rain over the past few days, and the swamp is over full and flowing.

The pond catches reflections of the trees and a little bit of sky. The ripples are what's left after the ducks took flight.

One of the very few tulips that has survived the deer this year. We really need a dog!!

OK - this is cheating a little - I took this picture on Tuesday, but wanted to show it here. This is the Maidenhair fern outside my front door, uncurling it's fronds in the spring sunshine.

A dandelion seedhead holds tiny drops of last night's rain - it went on to POUR this afternoon!

A pair of eagle cavort in the wind high above.

Nice today, stopped by Mutiny Bay boat ramp. The tide was coming in, clear waters washing over little seashells.

A mollusk eye's view of an empty shell in the sand.

The cherry trees are starting to bloom. Add the drops from this morning's rain . . .

We now have all of our color journals from the Yahoo Photo Art Journal group. The last two, Orange and Purple, came in this basket, which Catherine decorated with color photos. The basket was mailed in a clear Tupperware container, with Easter grass stuffed around it. I'm sure the Post Office got quite a chuckle out of that!

Here are the covers of the Purple and Orange journals.

The nettles have sprung up overnight! They're everywhere! Above, a close-up of the node where leaves come out of the stalk. Each of those little hairs can create a stinging red welt, even with the lightest touch brushing by. The sun creates interesting patterns of light and shade.

More fun stuff from the Fremont Sunday market yesterday . . .

PHOTOCRAWL at the Sunday Fremont Market! Some of the local members of our Photo Art Journal Yahoo Group met up for a fun day of taking photos and actually meeting the people we've been talking to for years. Gwen and Michele stand near the 'head' booth, complete with hand-blown glass bongs and a guy doing macrame. It was a blast!

Suze near the opening to the Fremont Hyper Market. Behind her, a little old man played the piano, and a passer-by stopped and sang some songs beautifully.

After about 100 photos each, we stopped in the Blue Moon for burgers: from left: me, Suze, Gwen and Michele. We used Gwen's and Michele's PoGo printers to print out some of our pictures. Gwen made each of us a small journal, where we attached photos and described some of our adventures. What a fun day! I'll share more photos tomorrow.

On this first day of spring, a dandelion has already gone to seed, here glittering in the sun.

The view from below a clump of madronna leaves - one with tracks from some insect criss-crossing.

Lichen-covered alder trees reach for the sky.

A closer view of the lichens growing on the tree trunks.

I've been waiting a long time for the light to be right for this shot - I usually don't get here when the sun is high enough, and still far enough to the east to backlight this clump of trees in the stream. So today it worked! The mossy log has been lurking there all winter like a fuzzy alligator. Doesn't seem to bother the wild ducks as they paddle by.

On shore, the horsetails are pushing up through the roadside debris, reaching for the sun.

It was very windy today - warm, but windy! We had a tree come down across the driveway, and a couple on the trails in the woods. Salmonberries blooming, things leafing out, maybe, just maybe, spring is really coming!

Visited a jobsite today - this little house is called the "Goldfinch", and this space will be the kitchen. Plenty of light will make it cheerful! Love the ladder, and the echo in the wall on the right.

The songbirds have returned this spring, making joyful noises beginning at dawn. Sitting by the window at my breakfast, the chickadees suddenly swarmed under the deck, chirping and hopping around. By the time I returned with the camera, they had moved on. But the view out under the porch roof proved interesting, silhouetting a little birdhouse/wind chime hanging in front of the wistera seedpods that need to be pruned!

A couple of days ago I picked some of my scented hyacinth, and have been enjoying the sweet smell. Today the sun came through the window, creating shadows and light on the white petals.

This primrose marks Amy's grave, and I had feared it didn't make it through the hot summer last year. But those roots held on, and there is even an offshoot poking up nearby. My favorite old-fashioned variety.

And this is the Madrona tree next to the primrose. The bark peels off over the summer, leaving a smooth underbark with great colors. Bits of dried papery bark still stick to the tree. Sometimes it looks quite hairy!

Suze and I took Gary to the airport, and I was excited to be a passenger and be able to take photos from the car. But, this was the only one I took - traffic on I-5 in the rain! Go figure!

The Shellenbergers: David, Barb, Gary and Suze!

Forgive the quality - this is one of my very few self-portraits, taken in the mirror at the Hair salon. Suze treated me to a haircut - it had been a long time!

Suze had her hair done, too - we had a good time, and came out beautiful!

 

Much cooler today, but the sun was out much of the time. Toward evening I hit the woods, looking for the light coming through the trees. Our little forest is growing up - the undergrowth is thinning out with lots of open space under the fir and alder trees.

  

This is pretty much the same view, but with lens flare. I love the bubbles under the sun - it looks just like the one Glenda the Witch of the North rode in on.

The willow tree continues it's spring song, with the catkins maturing into pollen-filled puff-balls.

So many plants are blooming - everywhere else the forsythia have been in full bloom for days - mine has finally opened, here shining in front of the setting sun.

 

Well, here's something different! A drop, but this one is sap oozing from the bark of a fir tree in the sunlight.

 

A lady was feeding the birds at the beach, and the crows were very happy!

  

  

Meanwhile, the eagle stayed out at the edge of the water, ignoring all those lesser birds.