Spring Comes to the Marina

Southall Marina is in it’s last long ugly days of winter. It never looks worse than it does this time of the year and especially at low tide like in this picture. With all of the salt marsh grass dead and even flattened by wind, the scene is bleak. However, there is a good side to this! If one looks carefully at the base of the grass it is turning green! Spring is coming. The pear trees in the parking lot are all in bloom and daffodils and forsythia are everywhere.

Even the ducks and herons are convinced spring is here. The white herons finally came back a few weeks ago. However, even 3 weeks ago the male ducks were courting. In fact, we almost were chosen as a nesting place by one of the females. Eric went outside one morning as momma duck was sitting on the dingy with her head poked down one of the holes in the cover, checking out our accommodations. Luckily she decided we were substandard. You can’t imagine the mess a nest of duck eggs make, not so much then, but once they hatch. We’ve seen firsthand nests on decks, in cockpits and even inside sail covers.
And the final sign of spring – cat stretched out full length in the cockpit, catching rays. No more accurate barometer of the changing season than a happy cat.

We went to Richmond on Monday to pick out house details. I had worried that it might be difficult, but we actually enjoyed the experience. We also went to see Maddie and Zachary and celebrated his 3rd birthday. Tomorrow we’ll do pictures of Play-Dough. A big hit. Maddie was more interested in the plastic vegetables.