Robins and Tulips

My sweet husband brought me tulips last night. It was a dreary grey rainy spring day, and his tulips really brightened up my evening.

My mom taught me a trick when it comes to tulips. If you've ever brought a package of tulips home and put them in a vase, they immediately droop down. If you want your tulips to stand upright, here's what you do: Gently unwrap the bottom inches of the wrapping to reveal just a portion of the stems. Put the flowers into a vase filled with water, with the top still covered in it's wrapping and the bottom exposed to the water. Leave them in the vase this way for an hour. Then, after an hour, take off the wrapping completely and your tulips will remain upright. The reason for this is that the stems will drink up the water and help them form to the shape of the vase, rather than being pulled by the heaviness of the flower head and drooping.

Tulips are a wonderful sign of spring. They are growing a little taller in my garden every day. Another sign of spring? Robins! They've been feasting on all of the worms that are wiggling in the warmed and wet soil. Have you ever noticed how worms have a definite smell? We came home the other evening in the dark, and when I opened the car door, I could smell the worms before I saw them wiggling all over the driveway.



Last night, I finished stitching this robin project (Elizabeth Foster of Elizabeth's Designs). I left the penny here to show how small this project really is. Normally, I don't like to stitch projects that have small linen counts...it's so hard on my eyes! But the small stitching made this project so much sweeter and more delicate. You can see a close-up here:



I'm going to finish this project into a doorknob hanger. I'd like to find a little delicate lace to edge it with, and maybe add a little velvet ribbon.

The birds are singing and the sun is shining. I think I'll go purchase some pansies for my front porch pots today.