A Texas Spring

Spring is in full force here in Texas.  It started in early March and has been going strong since.  I absolutely love spring here - quite possibly my favorite season.  The cold dreary winter is gone.  All those dead, brown plants bloom into striking greens, yellows, pinks and purples.  And not to mention the weather!  Sunny, breezy and 75-80 degrees?  Yes please!

Well, there are some things you can count on when you're talking about a Texas spring.  First, as any weatherman will tell you, thunderstorms are the norm.  And when I say thunderstorms, I'm talking loud rolling thunder, howling winds, pounding rain and often hail.  Last week we had one just as described.  We were on our way home and saw some crazy lightening displays off in the distance.  About 10 minutes after getting home, the rain started.  Then the hail came, pelting our walls, windows and patio furniture.  It was so loud and hard it sounded like people were trying to break our windows - yikes!

Our little hail collection forming outside the back door

Aside from crazy storms, spring is also a time for blooming plants.  We got adventurous and decided to plant some beautiful flowers in our front bed.  Of course, midway through planting a friendly neighbor stopped by to let us know that rabbits in the neighborhood just love to eat flowers.  Oh well, we forged ahead.  Turns out having a pretty garden isn't as easy as planting and watering - at least not for us.  About half our plants are dying.  We're working on a remedy but haven't made our minds up yet.

Our flowers just after planting - now they are dying 

The one successful plant - a great rosebush (planted by the previous owners)

To many sports fans out there, spring = baseball season.  This year we've spent many a weekend afternoon watching our beloved Horned Frog baseball team.  The stadium is great, our seats are shaded and there's a fun atmosphere at the games, plus they have the cutest bat boy in the world!  We're just hoping they make it to the regional, super regional and on to the college world series again this year!

View from our seats

And what says spring more than love?  I'm talking weddings people!  This past weekend we were lucky to share in the nuptials of great college friends.  More on it later, but until then - here's a picture from the big day:

The beautiful bride and I