I am constantly looking for buds on our trees as well. During our cold and outtage, I'd take a break and go to my little inside plants growing in their little greenhouse and think of Spring. I'm trying a new thing this year and am growing pots of those mixed wildflower seed boxes you usually spread on the ground and sow driectly, but starting early indoors. They are like a little lawn of green differing foliage and really give the old grey cold Winter mood a boost. I wish I had filled every window sill with them now, and luckily they made it through the thre days of outside temps we had inside.

What a joy it must be with your boys. It's funny, we decided not to have children, being horriblly selfish, but when I was young I always had this feeling I would have one son. Must have been an odd day dream unless you count an aging chihuahua as a son (which I sort of do). But still, it must be fun to watch your children grow from infant to young men. I bet they have a blast running out there. This blog will probably be so precious to them when they are older, as we only had photo albums, they will have endless images, videos etc. Funny to think of what the future old people will have to 'look back on'. Now I'm waxing sentimental, so I'll stop.

My hens always lay in the same box too, though lately my polish has been laying on the floor of the chicken house? You never know. And some of the quail have begun to lay in their run, which I heard is actually more the norm for them. I found a little cluster under one of the upturned pieces of bark I give them to 'play in' it was sweet, like Easter morning, but of course they won't sit on them, I wish they'd go broody, but it was just breed out of em years and years ago I guess.

Is big smokie a favorelle? Or if a mix does he have favorelle in him?