Yeah, I know. I'm a slacker-ass blogger. But in my defense, this happened:

Once spring hits, as it did several weeks ago, I find myself putting every available moment into the yard. And this time around, I have a willing accomplice, who has been working with me on a variety of gardening projects.  I read an article recently about a study that showed that a mycobacteria, found in garden soil, affects serotonin release much like antidepressant medications. All this time I knew having my hands in the dirt did wonders for my mood, by I never knew how literal that effect was.

But it's not just the gardening. I also have a wedding and honeymoon approaching. And, not being young adults embarking on a new life with the financial backing of parents, we are doing the work of it ourselves. It will be a small ceremony, but there are still a million details required to pull off even a simple wedding. That means my fiancé and I have made a ridiculous number of triple chocolate cupcakes (now in the freezer) and tested countless batches of mini-quiche recipes. We've bought clothing for our kids, who will be our attendants, a suit for my fiancé and dress for me, table clothes, vases, glasses, napkins and so on for the reception. Cases of wine and beer and champagne are stacked in the garage. The backdrop at the little church-turned-theater that will be our wedding venue is a stained tan tattered fabric and so we cut panels of silver satin and gray tulle to cover it. As I sewed the layers together I felt like I was creating a wardrobe for a Quaker ballerina.

And there is still much to be done - more food to be prepared, flowers to be made into arrangements and bouquets, vows to write. And, of course there are kids to be taken care of and full-time work schedules. And it continues to be prime gardening weather in spite of all the other obligations. All this is keeping me too busy to post about everything I've been doing. And, more to the point, too busy to visit all your blogs.

So I finally had to admit to myself that I need to put my blog life on hold until the wedding is behind me, we have returned from our trip and I can be the sort of reciprocal blogger I want to be. I will see you all in June when life settles back into a more normal pace.