Spring is Here!

I might be slightly optimistic, but I do believe that spring is just around the corner.  The air smells like damp earth and awakening plants, the cold 30 degree winds nip rather than bite, the birds are chirping louder than they have for months, the sun is rising before I do, and check out what I discovered yesterday:

The daffodils are coming up!  My heart did a little happy dance when I spotted them.

In just a few weeks, stark, bare branches will soften with a green haze, the daffodils will turn their cheery little faces up to the sun, and the famous Washington, DC cherry trees will be drenched in showy blossoms.

**happy sigh**

I have been perfectly content to stay inside the past few months, but I'm slowly starting to feel like a caged animal.  I'm also starting to feel an inexplicable need to sink my fingers into dirt and plant something.  I might temporarily satisfy my need to plant by re-potting my dwarf pomegranate tree.  Look how nice it currently looks:

We bought the pomegranate tree from the colonial nursery in Williamsburg, VA last June as a souvenir.  Pomegranate trees need warm temperatures and plenty of sunlight in order to survive - the tree received plenty of both over the summer while sitting on the edge of our balcony.  I unfortunately had to bring the tree inside during the winter months and I thought the tree wouldn't survive for several reasons.  Our condo faces east, so the tree only received a few hours of direct sunlight every morning.  In order to maximize the amount of sunlight received, I had to set the tree right against the cold window.  In addition, Domi chews mercilessly on plants and many of the branches started to die due to an insect infestation. 

The tree more than doubled in size from June to September, but I had to cut back some of the growth over the past few months due to the dying branches.  However, now that the days are getting longer and the insects are finally dead, the tree is looking happy and healthy again.  I can't tell you how proud I am of myself and the plant for making it through the winter!

On a side note, the quilt project has stalled.  I can't decide on a pattern and size.  I'm going to think about it while I do some much-needed spring cleaning this week, and I'll hopefully have a decision by Friday.  In the meantime, I updated my previous post with a couple of more details about the fabric.