Who else is ready for the signs of spring to arrive?

I think it was the colorful bouquet my husband, Mike, brought me on Valentine’s Day that made me start thinking about how soon trees and lawns will begin to blossom again.

Or maybe it was the dozen roses he brought me the next day, when Kroger had hundreds of them marked down to $1.

With flowers in the dining room and in the kitchen, it felt like the whole house was in bloom.

Perhaps it was some work my brother, Larry, and sister-in-law, Marie, just had done around their home that got me thinking about being outdoors. They had several dead or nuisance trees removed, and I watched as the workers sawed, trimmed, stacked and loaded limbs and logs.

Either way, I have started watching and listening for signs of spring. As I was getting out of my car on Thursday, for example, I noticed blue-green buds of my sedum plants poking through the soil and mulch in my flower bed.

That same day, I pulled in and saw a cushion from a glider had blown across the yard. When I retrieved it and returned it to its spot next to my lily pond, I saw that the ice on top had melted. At least a half dozen of the goldfish that have lived and propagated there for a couple of decades were swimming happily just beneath the surface.

I’ve also heard the calls of more and more birds in recent weeks. From Canada geese honking as they head north to cardinals and robins, I’ve heard several familiar songs.

Looking out the back window one day last week, I spotted a flock of starlings swarming on the ground.

It seems to be skunk season, too, as I have seen and smelled a number of them that have had unfortunate encounters with vehicles. I have also spotted a couple of bunnies in town.

Now I am looking forward to blankets of crocuses and splashes of color from tulips and daffodils. I am ready for bare branches to blush with pink blossoms or to take on a soft green hew as leaves begin to bud.

It’s almost time to scrub the porches so we can get out and enjoy everything that spring will bring.