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Signs of spring at last! Although most of the property is still under a spotty covering of wet snow, the south-facing slope around the house is clear, and we have snowdrops up and ready to go. Not flowering yet, but they will be within a couple of days.
More than that, we managed to get the house fairly warm within a few hours of lighting the fire, so we can look forward to staying overnight in the house for the first time since late October. Oliver seemed happy to be there; despite heavy rain and temperatures only a couple of degrees above freezing he played outside for nearly three hours. When we eventually forced him to go inside - kicking and screaming the whole way - he was wet through to his nappy, but healthily tired and ready for a snooze. Something in the environment must have affected his mood - when we got back to Riga he demanded the television (not unusual), but instead of Bob the Builder, his usual choice, he opted for Bambi!

Unfortunately, the disappearing snow also revealed all the things that we did not do at the end of last year, most notably clearing the autumn leaves. The vegetable garden now has layers. Somewhere, way down at the bottom and out of sight there is, I hope, some fertile soil waiting to spring into action. Above this is a far thicker layer of weeds than I remember from the autumn, then rotting leaves (sadly, not enough for an effective mulch) and then snow. The snow is all that stops the area looking like untended wasteland. Ironically, the snow is the only layer that will disappear without any input from us. The herb garden is showing some signs of life. The thyme survived the winter, and will, I think, look fine when I clear the ubiquitous oak leaves and birch twigs from it. Unsurprisingly, with temperatures of nearly thirty degrees below, the oregano did not live. I am hoping that the chives will spring back to life over the next month, and will report further as more of the garden reappears. In the meantime, I must think about starting some seedlings at home.