And then there was rain........

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open the windows

let in afterstorm cool air

a new storm comes in

 

We did have rain right after I blogged yesterday! We had a severe thunderstorm come in and it dropped 4/10 ths of rain overnight. Thunder, lightning and rain and tornado warnings for our county - fortunately none locally.

This morning I opened up the house to let the cool air in and another storm rolled up with lightning, thunder, hail, and rain that dropped 2/10 ths.  So we've had a half inch in the last 24 hrs - wonderful. Now the furnace is running to bring the house up to a decent temperature! The joys of spring in Montana.

Rain and Spring







May 19th - finally some rain

Bluebirds are nesting

Lilac in full blossom

Lilac

Honeysuckle weighted down with bloom

Black-Headed Grosbeak

My lovely visitor - Lazuli Bunting

Well - we had almost a week of rain off and on - got about 1" so we are still well below normal, but the  moisture and hot days (80'-90' the week before) brought forth spring!  The air is full of the aroma of blossoms; the post office doorway is framed by two lilac trees:

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the smell of lilacs
in the post office doorway
letters with perfume

The birds are coming through on their spring trip too, the Bluebirds are very busy and such a sweet couple. Mrs Bluebird takes a rest on the fence and Mr. Bluebird sits by her side flying to the ground now and then to feed her.  Also seen are Rufus-sided Towhees, Lark Sparrows, Black-headed Grosbeaks, and my favorite the brilliant Lazuli Buntings. I put ordinary bird seed in the feeder for the summer but they are all enjoying it and get feisty about their territory.

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lazuli bunting
flash of blue in pounding wind
hope in a dark world

At Hanging Woman Creek Bridge I call up the mud swallows and they fly around me squealing their greeting or warning. You can find a video of the swallows at my blog for Memorial Day 2010 (May 31st). The Carp were spawning this morning, roiling around in the water so spring is here. I must assume that there will be no more frost and take a trip to the greenhouse this week to get blooming flowers for my containers and who knows, maybe we'll get more rain along the way.............

Spring - sort of

 

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rabbits take a rest

from mating activity

rest on the rock wall

 Today is a lovely spring day in the 70's and not much wind. I was able to work outdoors, and that was nice.  I de-rusted a metal outdoor table and tomorrow I will spray paint it to look like new!  While waiting for the rustoleum to work its magic I sat in my chaise longue and caught up on a couple of magazines; simply delightful. 

So far the weather this spring has swung wildly back and forth .... 83' to barely above freezing. We are still having frost most mornings. The spring flowers are pretty feeble because of the drought - see the photo of the Star of Bethlehem at the top of the page - normally about 4-5 blossoms will sprout from each plant. None of this slows the rabbits, however. I am constantly amused by their antics as they chase each other around the house at top speed. While I was in my chaise a big chase took place around the garden several times.  The male finally gave up and hid under the propane tank. Poor female will probably get "jumped" from his hiding place. Guess that's where the saying "mad as a March Hare " comes from.