I did not chronicle Spring last year, and now I’m sorry I missed it. I’ve been saying since the beginning of January that there’s been flocks of robins all over, so Spring is going to be early. I know Puxatawney Phil did not agree, but maybe since I’m west coast things are different. Most years the robins show up around March/April. About three years ago my neighbor was housebound and kept asking if I’d seen any robins yet, every time I visited. And then she passed away in March, without seeing the robins, which arrived late April. So now I always watch for robins and think about her.
So this year flocks and flocks descending in January seemed unusual. Except here we are in the first week of February, and I’m outside and the temperature is 66 and I spot this:
Six inches of tulips in the first week of February? It has to be close to unheard of. And yes, I checked around and found six inches worth of daffodils, too! I don’t think the flowers can be wrong, can they?
The lilacs are pretty minuscule, so I guess they’re no indication.
And look at this weird bug pod. Can someone tell me what it is? I usually find these along the bottom of the house, hidden behind shrubs. If I smash the pod, it’s crispy and made up of lots of air sacks. What the heck is this? Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Any help would be appreciated.
Sandra Spencer 
The pod in the rabbits ear maybe praying mantis. A friend of ours found one and put it in his truck to take home and find out what it was. I think he forgot about it and a week later his truck was full of tiny praying mantis. I find those all over but never get to see the tiny praying mantis. Just a guess.
I will leave them alone, then. I like preying mantis, even though they seem sort of creepy. And they get so big around here! They are fun to see, at a distance.
I agree that that is a praying mantis egg sack. They are fantastic natural pest control for your garden.
It seems like every year the flowers start coming out, then we are hit with a cold spell. Usually they aren’t affected, but sometimes we lose that plant. 63 is so warm for February! We are expecting snow today and tomorrow.