Spring Hath Sprung

Normally, I'm a cold weather girl. I love snow. I love the cool crisp air and seeing your breath for the first time. I love snuggling under blankets and drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows. I love putting on layers to cover up parts of me I don't want the world to see. When the weather starts to improve, I dread the day that I have to expose my pasty white skin to the population, and I shudder at the thought of my cottage cheese thighs being visible to anyone else. I start to get envious of the smaller, skinner, more toned people around me who can de-layer themselves and be near perfect without effort.

But not this year.

This year, I am very excited. I cannot WAIT for the days to consistently be warmer. As soon as the morning chill has burned off, I throw open the windows and dust the sills to let sunshine flood my living room. I bundle Natalie up and walk her down to the mailbox, carefully shielding her sensitive little eyes from the glaring sun, but still getting her a little dose of that wonderful vitamin D.

She is the reason I am excited. I am thinking about all of the wonderful walks we'll have around the neighborhood this spring and summer. I'm thinking Dave and I about taking her and Sammy to Valley Forge Park for picnics. And I'm thinking about finally being able to take my daughter out and show her off to the world. Sure, Facebook and other online sharing sites are great and have given her an instant celebrity status, but I want people to actually SEE her. I want to put her in her really stinkin' cute spring and summer outfits and parade her around, watching her eyes fill with wonder as she takes it all in. I know there is a lot to see in our little house here at 22 Queen, but there is so much more out there for her, and now that she's finally getting a little bigger and developing, she's going to start discovering it all. I want to take her to the shore this summer and dip her little feet in the ocean, and let her squish her toes in the sand. I want to take her to the zoo and tell her about all of the animals. I want to watch her get bigger and become best friends with her big fluffy brother.

There is so much I want to do with this little girl, and I'm so excited that she's here and we can start doing it now that it's getting nicer.

Don't get me wrong, I'll always be a cold weather gal... but I think the abundance of snow this winter really burned me out, and I'm ready for that sun.