Who's keeping track?

Here in the Northeast, we're having unusually warm weather for March. It seems more like May. That's a problem. I (and many other gardeners, I'm guessing) am suffering a serious case of Spring Fever. I want to get out there and plant something! The Inner Me (who is WAY smarter than the Impulsive Me at the controls today) says it is much too early. "The ground is not warm enough; the seeds will rot; we'll waste the seed and have to replant," says She.

I've already worked out the compromise between the Sensible Me and the Impulsive Me: I'll just plant peas and spinach. And I can put lettuce in the hot bed. They won't mind if things get a bit cold over the next couple of weeks. Then I can start rooting out the grass that is encroaching upon the flower beds. That will get my hands sufficiently dirty.

Question: Who's keeping track of the peepers? "They" say that the peepers have to be frozen three times before it's really Spring. The other night when the dog and I were returning from our walk, I realized the peepers were having full rehearsal -- what a chorus! And I wondered if it was the first time of the season. Did I miss anything? Had they been out the night before? This is a question that occurs to me every year. Is anybody keeping track of the peepers? If only I could remember to do it, I might be able to figure out when it is truly safe to go ahead and plant things. Somebody remind me next year.

Saturday was National Quilting Day. Here's Val with the quilt she worked on last week. It took her two days to finish it up, but the end result was a very nicely done (and very large) quilt. She custom quilted it with a ton of S-I-D and a design she had marked on with chalk. It has a double layer of wool batting --  it quilted like butter, and it will be warm and cozy to sleep under! Nice job, Val!

More quilt, less Val: