Spring has Sprung in Missoula

It has been a very long winter in Missoula, and even spring has entered in stealth mode, giving us patches of warm, sunny days and then surprise sucker punches of snowstorms like the one that hit yesterday morning.  When I got up in the morning, the city was blanketed in a fresh coat of snow.  Thankfully it had melted off before the afternoon, but not before I stepped out to snap a few images.

Thomas and I often play a game of "what's your favorite season?".  His is invariably summer.  Mine is often split between spring and fall.  I like spring because of the newness of everything, and because when the maple trees start popping open and the lilacs start to bloom and the grass starts to thicken, Missoula becomes alive and bathed in a shade of spring green that finally makes me understand why Crayola dedicated a specific crayon color to it.  I like fall strictly because it reminds me of New England (minus the reds...I miss the reds), and I like to wear sweaters on a crisp, clear day.

Montana Spring Runoff:  Gardener-style... 

Crocus, undeterred by the snowstorm...

Lenten rose...

Future delphinium...

Future daffodil...

Future iris...

My favorite (and only) clump of purple crocus...not quite sure what happened to the rest of them...

Forgotten, unharvested onion...my friend says it looks like they're having a convention...

Volunteer tulips that took up residence in my vegetable garden about 10 years ago.  They must have been dormant bulbs in the yard and then when we moved the garden, they woke up.  They are a brilliant shade of red when they bloom, and I just haven't had the heart to relocate them elsewhere.  So I plant around them every year and wait until their leaves turn yellow before I cut them back.  Last year they nested next to the green bean trellis.  Not sure what will go around them this year...

Future raspberry...

Future strawberry...

Future honeysuckle flower...a favorite among our hummingbird population...

I love when the aspen leaves start to pop out.  They remind me of those big wooly-bugger caterpillars we find every so often...

The forsythia bush is getting ready to bloom.  I saved this bush years ago by hacking it nearly to the ground and allowing it to regenerate.  Andy has always said I should just dig it up and replace it, but I find great satisfaction in watching it heal itself and grow back much stronger.  I think the same can be said about people...

Thomas watched all of this from the comfort of our house.  He would tap on the window and then jump away when I'd try to take his picture.  This was the only shot I got, but I think it captures his gleeful personality.