Tag Archives: spring

Weather Conundrum: SOL25 Day 5

The calendar says that spring is a couple of weeks away, but the weather seems to be putting us all in a state of confusion. Of course I made it worse on myself by heading to Kona, HI during our February break and feeling all the summer feels: warm water, warm weather…no need for a jacket, even in the evening. Flowers were in bloom, the landscape was lush…no wonder people call it paradise.

Orchid and tropical plants in bloom in Hawaii in February

Here at home in Southern California, we’re often accused of having only two seasons: spring and summer. Where I live it never snows, but I’ve been zipped up in my down puffer jacket all week. When the highs are in the low 60s and wind is blowing hard off the ocean, it feels cold. Rain (rare in these parts) is beginning as I write and expected for the next few days. I know, I know…weather is much rougher in other places and I acknowledge that I have it easy here.

I started this post because I had noticed that it seems that spring has sprung around here. Our blueberry plants in the backyard are in blossom with fruit beginning to ripen. Trees are beginning to bud and Trader Joe’s has their daffodil bunches piled up so we can all have a vase of sunshine in our homes. I just heard on the news that the Carlsbad Flower Fields are open and the ranunculas are in bloom while the meteorologist reported a winter weather warning and the snow level down to 4000 ft (which means we’ll have snow in the local mountains)…and just to add to the weather conundrum, Daylight Saving Time is back on Sunday and we spring forward!

So tonight we have hunkered down with chili and cornbread while the rain begins a gentle pitter patter, a backbeat to the sound of my keyboard. I’m going to enjoy this little winter interlude and sip hot chocolate while wrapped in a blanket for a few more days before barreling full-speed into spring and all the craziness that is spring in schools. Is my weather conundrum solved? Probably not!

Welcome Spring! SOL24 Day 19

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If you want to know when it’s spring, don’t bother with a calendar, just walk into my first grade classroom. The energy is palpable. Those babies that entered the classroom at the end of last summer are growing into knowledgeable and sassy almost second graders. They are readers and writers and fact collectors extraordinaire (although fact-checking is not yet in their realm of expertise). So what do you do at the end of conference week when it feels like the classroom is fitting like last year’s t-shirt–way too tight? Head out to the garden…with iPads in hand!

We’d been out in the garden with our notebooks earlier in the week–observing carefully in the spirit of Jane Goodall. So on Friday I asked students to go back to the place where they observed earlier in the week and find three photos to take. I reminded them of the photography techniques we had learned and set them loose to explore. There was the insect on the screen that first caught students’ attention. The lizard almost created a need for crowd control as these little paparazzi swarmed the cold-blooded sunbathers against the brick wall. They photographed strawberries, broccoli, fruit tree flowers, aloe, and who knows what else.

Yesterday, we studied the poem, Things to do if you are Rain by Elaine Magliaro. We noticed her action words (polka-dot sidewalks, freckle windowpanes…) and did not miss the metaphor of the rain tap dancing on the rooftop. After choosing one of their photos as the subject, they set off to write their own Things to do… poems. And since it’s mid March, I asked them to include three things in their poems: action, a comparison, and some metaphorical thinking.

We ran out of time…which I should say was intentional planning on my part. It wasn’t, but I am reminded of the value of time away from a draft if you want the young writer to really take another look and make the piece better. Using my poem as an example, we read it carefully, looking for the action, the comparison, and the metaphorical thinking. Then they went back to their drafts to finish them and to make them better. And they did.

O took one of those infamous lizard photos and wrote a short but sweet piece.

Things to do if you are a Lizard

Climb up walls like a snake.

Climb up on a sun on a bright green stem.

Run fast, fast, fast, fast!

Grow back your tail.

G found a flower in one of the garden beds, stretching a bit further with her words.

Things to do if you are a Flower

Reach for the sun

get picked into a bouquet

Blossom in spring

Be in a wedding and shine like the sun

Enjoy your life

Share life and health and happiness

Shine like the bright yellow sun

Tap dance in the breeze like a bird’s chirp is music

Send invitations to animals far and wide

to pollinate and see you bloom into

the prettiest flower

F is one of those quick-to-get-done students and thought he had finished yesterday. Today’s mini lesson was the perfect nudge to get him to push himself a bit further–although there’s still some room for growth.

Things to do if you are a Strawberry

Be red and shiny.

Let yourself grow!

Don’t let bugs eat you!

Have a big family that lives on a big bush.

Your petals help you grow and get washed by the rain.

The strawberries are like red poinsettia flowers.

Red strawberries shine like rubies.

Red roses are like ripe strawberries.

And of course, I had to get in on the fun!

Things to do if you are a Yellow Broccoli Flower

Shoot towards the bright blue sky

Soak up the sun in your bright yellow flowers

Sway in the breeze like you’re dancing the tango

Send invitations to the pollinators: Party at Broccoli’s house–all are welcome

Shed your petals and become part of a child’s healthy dinner

As I finish this post, the spring equinox announces that spring has sprung. Welcome Spring! (Although the first graders have been feeling your presence all month!)

6 Word Photoessay: SOL24 Day 17

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On this day that celebrates all things green, my backyard beckoned. I headed out with my camera, zoomed in close, taking delight in evidence of spring as the days lengthen and temperatures warm.

Nature’s mathematical miracles spiraling toward spring

Tulips: SOL23 Day 28

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I love tulips! They seem to scream spring. Thank goodness that our local Trader Joe’s offers these seasonal blooms for a reasonable price.

On Sunday I bought a bouquet of yellow blooms to take into the classroom. Since I had planned a project where my students would draw and paint a tulip still life, a splurge of bright yellow flowers seemed just right. And add to the equation that it is parent conference week, I couldn’t not buy them, right?

So now they are sitting in a mason jar on the table in the classroom. When I walked in this morning, the first thing I noticed is that they had changed since I left yesterday. Tulips seem to dance and sway, even as they sit in a vase with no wind around at all. I love to watch the blossoms open, becoming rounder and more dynamic.

I’m enjoying these little bits of sunshine as I teach and as I talk with parents. And with rain expected tomorrow, I’m thinking I will appreciate them even more. Two days of sunshine and warm weather are teasing thoughts of spring…and with spring break just a few days away, spring is on the brain.

So why do I feel the need to justify the purchase of a bouquet of tulips? I don’t hesitate to splurge on a latte now and then. I think I need to treat myself to a few more flowers–maybe especially for the classroom–to bring that spring feeling inside and to make each day feel more special and more festive.

Signs of Spring: SOL23 Day 22

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There are those out there who would say it’s ridiculous to look for signs of spring where I live–they might even say there are only 2 seasons here: spring and summer. But those people would be wrong.

It’s funny, but since the “official” change of seasons on Monday, it seems like signs of spring are everywhere (in spite of A LOT of rain this week). The tree in front of my classroom has pulled on its gorgeous light green dress of leaves…that green that seems only visible in early spring. Just a week ago I was noticing a few leaves popping…and today, it’s showing its full glory.

The succulents in my backyard, those that don’t get very much attention at any time of the year, are suddenly showing off. While always pretty in their own succulent right, right now they are sporting new buds and blossoms-to-be.

The air too is different. Even though storms have still been rushing through, the temperatures are noticeably warmer and I find myself opting for lighter jackets and relishing the warmth of the sun on my shoulders when it pokes its way out from behind the clouds.

Are you experiencing signs of spring in your part of the world? What do your signs looks like, feel like, smell like, sound like, maybe even taste like?

Spring Fever: NPM #1

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Even with the best of intentions, my first poem for the first of 30 days of National Poetry Month is posted on day 2! Blame the road trip I set off on yesterday and the many other distractions that accompanied that start. But, alas, here is the poem…and expect another later today to “catch up”.

Spring Fever

The temperature is rising

infecting us all

even in masks

We’re itching

to be outdoors

running

playing

lazing in the sun

Like cats we look for

that puddle of light

that will evaporate

the cold and dark

of winter’s shadow

And create

a tunnel of green

straight into

Summer!

®Douillard

Jacaranda Season: SOLC #25

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It’s jacaranda season. The time of year when the trees burst into purple flower, spreading cheer and news of springtime.

While the trees are not native to our area, they are iconic in our area. I even just read that they are the official (non-native) tree of San Diego (as of 2000). Apparently it was Kate Sessions (the tree lady) who brought these beauties here and made sure they were planted all over the city.

In full bloom, these trees are beautiful. They are fragrant and their color ranges from bluish purple to these in my neighborhood of the more pinkish purple variety. My eye is always drawn to them as I turn the corner to drive into our neighborhood.

They’re messy…but such a beautiful harbinger of spring in our area. There are places in our city where the ground will be covered in these purple flowers as the blooms begin to drop.

Cue music: imagine Prince and Purple Rain. The city becomes carpeted in purple, like our own version of the yellow brick road. Raining down from above, purple blossoms are everywhere. They fall into your hair, stick to the bottom of your shoes, and cast a magical hue as spring begins to shift to summer.

It’s jacaranda season! Spring is here!

With a Repeated Refrain: NPM20 Day 22

SOLC Day 21: Spring Has Sprung

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The sun rose early today, spreading its energy and light around like confetti, creating a party-like atmosphere, lightening the heaviness of this difficult time. And it’s the weekend! Even though there is work to do, today I’ve tried not to work. I’ve read, watched some mindless Saturday television, Facetimed with my grandsons (oh, to be 4!), walked on the beach, and even braved the grocery store.

I can feel that burst of energy coursing through my veins, running through my marrow, clearing my mind and unwinding that tight knot in my shoulder. There are so many people out today. The neighborhood is teeming with walkers (keeping their distance, of course), dogs, and bicyclers. I noticed someone up the street blowing bubbles for their children to chase in the front yard. The folks in the cul de sac near us had their patio furniture spread out into the street to allow for socializing with social distancing. I waved to the mail deliverer as I picked up the package on my front porch and my husband was profuse in his thanks to the grocery store employees who were doing their best to make shopping in the time of coronavirus as enjoyable as possible.

And the beach was glorious! We had another negative tide this afternoon, exposing a huge stretch of walking beach. While some white clouds hunched along the horizon, the expanse of blue dominated the sky. Wildflowers are blooming, adding their brilliant yellow to the usually monochromatic palette of endless shades of blue.

Rain is in the forecast for the next couple of days–and while we always seem to need rain–I am selfishly rooting for sun. Once spring has sprung, I don’t really want to push it back into the box! (Although I do admit, sunny days seem to be harder for people to maintain their social distancing!) Hope you’re also finding some ways to enjoy these first days of spring and a bit of downtime to recharge your batteries.

Tiny Celebrations

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It’s easy to get involved in all the chores and duties of life and leave the actual living behind. Loads of laundry, stacks of dishes, the carpet that needs vacuuming, stopping by the gas station after work, the quick trip to Trader Joe’s for cat food and yogurt… In that blur of activity, a focus on what matters most can easily slip.

For me, that’s where my camera comes in. When I head out with my camera, even if it is only out into the backyard, I start to pay attention to the beauty and life around me. I find an appreciation that might otherwise be overlooked.

Today, instead of a walk after work, I headed home. But even though time was short, I knew I needed time outdoors, so to the backyard I went. The ground was pretty muddy from all the rain, weeds sprouting where grass used to grow. Plants in pots have gone crazy, with succulents growing large and lavender beginning to blossom. I leaned in, zooming close with my macro lens. I love the way that this close up shot brings the lavender into focus, blurring the background into a beautiful abstract painting. And I was delighted by the bokeh effect, scattering the light behind the lavender without using any special effects.

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As I walked along the fence line, I noticed some blossoms on the pear tree that we thought had died. The drought has taken a toll on our yard, killing most of the lawn and any other plants that were not well established. This young tree is showing some signs of life…but is certainly neither robust or likely to bear fruit any time soon. But the blossoms are delicate and dainty–reminders that spring is on the way. Time outside helps me find focus and reminds me that there is more to life than daily chores. Tiny celebrations make all the difference!

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I read an article I found on Twitter the other day about the power of five post-it notes to make you happy, confident and successful. I feel like I can achieve the same effects with my camera. Look closely and find something beautiful, something unusual, something funny (like this photo of the little girl hula hooping in her tiara and long pageant gloves)

…all reminders of what life has to offer when you make time everyday to appreciate the world around you.