It was warm with a wee shower of rain. And without hesitation, as though the grass had been crouched on its toes, clover eyes screwed shut in concentration listening for the sun, feeling for the moist warm showers, the fields leapt up and grew green. In a day.
There is still not enough grass to let the animals out into the fields. 
But the suddenness of the green is magnificent. The animals are trying to be patient.
Their Waiting Rooms are big and sheltered but no-one is pretending to be thrilled. It will be a few weeks yet before we get the required 6 – 8 inches of grass. But we still have Mississippi hay so we are good. We want enough grass for the whole summer.
The lawns are suddenly green though, enough to lie on.
Little Boy Blue is a stunningly dependable pup. He sat on the verandah whenever I was inside yesterday, popping out into the garden for rest stops then puddling back up the steps to his bed. The first night, even though I toileted him, he had a few accidents at the verandah gate so last night I left the gate open to the garden. He popped in and out by himself and was tucked up in his bed fast asleep every time I checked. I have never let a pup make this kind of decision before. He has Big Dog in there with him so I think this is helping. TonTon has never been trustworthy enough to leave out at night, so this is a good sign that we may have found the guard dog for the farm that we have been looking for to take over for Cooder who is so deaf now he does not even hear me calling him in to dinner. I have to take his food and go and find HIM.
No wonder Blue slept all night, he had a very busy day. He had to follow me everywhere I went, and if my footsteps crossed with Johns he would follow him. Though he is still afraid of the noisy barn and prefers to wait outside, he investigated the garden as I worked, stole things out of my pockets and ran away with them, then helped dig out weeds.
It is important not to accept behaviour that can become a problem later on even with a very young pup, and especially with this bright bossy breed, so the digging in the garden and chewing on my fingers and knocking over of weed buckets was gently discouraged. But the cuddles and running was encouraged! Look at that face!
I have decided not to teach Blue to retrieve. This is Ton’s game and I want Blue to have other work. Plus, it has been hard to get TonTon to focus on herding when all he wants to do is retrieve. He is very good at finding Daisy and bringing her in for the milking twice a day (not hard in the winter) so this will still be Ton’s job too. There are still plenty of jobs for Blue.
The peacock pen was finished and Tui, Pania and Kupa, who have spent the last two days watching it being built, just walked straight in. After all, up high in the barn is their favourite place to be. When the weather is good the big doors are opened so they will also have sun and lots of fresh air. I hate to shut them up. But it is only while the gardens are fragile and it really is a huge unused space in the summer. And Kupa will not be in there for long we hope.
And look at this …
Daffodils came out yesterday too. Literally. What a day! Good morning!
Have a lovely day. I wonder what today will bring?! See you tomorrow.
love celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
57 responses to “A little bit of green popped through yesterday”
Well today looks like a good one for you… and I just love the look of Blue… think he’s gonna be a real fun dog to have around….
Good morning Celi cute little boy blue
Wow! It seems like only yesterday you guys were covered in snow! Gotta love nature 🙂
(G’day from Down Under 🙂 My friend had a blue dog … His name was Barnsey cos he was a working class dog!)
morning kate! have a good one!! c
What a glorious daffodil! Beautiful
Celi, you are such a wonderful writer. That first paragraph made me smile right out loud! Daisy and Queenie lying down look like they are waiting for Godot (or the grass to grow, whichever comes first…). Blue is so adorable I want to pick him up and squeeze him. Not for long, though, he’s going to be a bruiser from the looks of it! So happy to see your daffodils. I uncovered my garlic yesterday and bought some English Daisies to plant in my dooryard garden. It got into the 70s here yesterday. Ahhhhhh, Spring! Finally!
good morning c.
looks like the little blue one is loved by everyone already =)
Have a wonderful day,
cat
i could watch blue all day. what a face!
That Blue is winning my heart. Sweet, sweet puppy. And, oh, that daffodil, exactly what I needed to see on this gray gloomy morning in Minnesota where six inches of snow are predicted for Wednesday. Sign. I want (need) to see a swatch of green grass, a patch of sunlight.
Looks like Ton Ton and Blue are on better terms now – and what a grin that pup has! I’m not well up on dog breeds but I’ve never seen one like blue. Is it purely an American breed? He looks a big pup too, presumably he’s going to be Big Dog Mk 2!
Christine
You are a magnet for young animals and young humans – they recognise at once the spirit of one who cares in positive ways.
So glad the grass is growing – for you and us since we’re practically out of hay. Right now they’re able to graze since they have 10 acres to roam over. We’ll have to shut them into smaller areas soon. That Blue sure is something. Have a great day Celi!
Squish and Girl-child have been super-excited about Spring! We rescued two blueberry bushes and some flowering plants from a clearance bin and are gently hardening them to prep them for life in the glorious sun. I thought of you when we were choosing our new residents. We’re trying to “green” up the place. We haven’t found a tree yet, but we will.
The difference between dogs bred for work versus those bred to be pets is truly amazing. And that FACE! So joyful!
Hopefully Blue will ensure that Ton doesn’t get skunked this summer 🙂 Laura
He certainly looks like a happy dog 😉
So cheery to see those daffodils and bits of green even on a grey day! And your pup is so cute.Love your lyrical descriptions.