Thanks to this weird, warm spring, my winter coat is already hanging in the storage closet. That's a very good thing! But my yard's winter coat also has disappeared prematurely, and that's not so good.

I'm still trying to do indoor spring cleaning, and already my outdoors is screaming for attention.

Walking around the house last weekend, all I could see was a multitude of chores: the leaves that fell after my last raking, the dead stalks in the garden beds, the peeling paint, the broken tree limb, the dog droppings that need to be picked up.

In a normal year, I could ignore my yard for at least another month. But now it's giving me a guilt trip every time I go outside.

Or even when I DON'T go outside.

At church last Sunday, our minister asked the congregation to greet each other by telling the person what we'd done differently the day before, because of the great weather. Hmmm. I had spent the afternoon inside, doing laundry and cleaning up the winter fur that my dogs are already shedding. Clearly, I was not properly rejoicing in the fine weather the Lord hath sent our way!

I resolved to ignore my yard yet another day and go for a walk around the lake instead. It was my Christian duty, I figured.

But my leisurely Sunday afternoon means all those outdoor chores will be screaming even louder next weekend.

How 'bout you? Have you tackled your yard yet? What's your least-favorite spring chore?