Signs of Life

This past week has been especially draining at work (hence my absence from blogging), so I was extra glad when the sun came out on Friday and the temperature skyrocketed into the 50s this weekend... maybe even 60. Balmy! It's amazing how the weather can lift your spirits. I've definitely got me a case of spring fever. 

We worked out in our lawn a bit this weekend, moving some limestone rocks around for our landscaping (more on that some other time). I also watered all the bushes and shrubs we planted last fall, and imagine my excitement when I saw this: 

I have no green thumb by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm pretty sure these are little buds on our burning bush?! After several months of paranoia that none of our plants would come back in the spring, this was a big relief.

Then, I was even more thrilled when I saw these:

Last Easter, my mom gave me a pot of tulips and a few months later I planted the bulbs next to the sidewalk in front of our house. I had read that potted tulips don't always grow once they're transplanted outside, but I figured I'd give it a shot since I didn't have much to lose. I had almost forgotten about them, but now we have ten little tulip plants that have started to sprout! They're only about an inch tall right now, but I haven't ever really grown anything from a bulb before, so I'm pretty proud.  :) Any tips for growing tulips, or are they pretty low-maintenance? I'm thinking I may have to transplant them somewhere else because their current location gets a lot of shade.

I have a few more projects in the works that I hope to post about soon, if I can ever get motivated when I get home from work! Maybe now that winter finally appears to be on its way out, I'll be a little more productive!