Springtime is coming...

Dear Daughters,

Today I got out our paper lion and lamb that John and I made together for a craft when he was a little fellow and hung them on the fridge. We took a vote to see who thought March would come in as a lion and who thought it would come in as a lamb. John and his dad think that it will come in as a lamb and Asher, Cierra and I voted for the lion. None of us had seen a weather forecast but where we live it wouldn't matter--the weather predictions are only right about half the time! :)
When we lived in Indiana the child who was the first robin got a Baskin Robbin's ice cream cone for a prize. I drew a picture of a robin and hung it on the fridge and the first one to see it had to bring me the paper robin as soon as they saw it. It was a family traditon that they all loved. In Tennessee robins are not as rare a sight as they were in Indiana so the tradition had to be changed a bit.
I love daffodils and my husband brought me home a beautiful bouquet of them a couple weeks ago. I am an avid A.A. Milne fan and love his spring poem in one of the Christopher Robin books (and the illustration)

She wore her yellow sun-bonnet,
She wore her greenest gown;
She turned to the south wind
And curtsied up and down.
She turned to the sunlight
And shook her yellow head,
And whispered to her neighbor:
"Winter is dead."
~AA Milne

I already am looking forward to their blooms here in Tennessee. Those and the phlox are just a couple of my favorites. I love the dark green of the pines against the redbud trees, I love the pale green of the trees when they are first budding. I love watching the fruit trees and the Bradford pears bud and then bloom. I love how warm the air is on a perfect, sunny spring day. I can already hear the change in the birds songs outside. They know it is coming!
May is my very favorite month in Tennessee and one of the things that I love is stepping out of a church service and smelling the honeysuckle. For some reason you notice it the most as the sun goes down. Where we live they are in the ditchlines and the air is heavy with the wonderful sweet aroma.
I put my snowmen away last week and pulled out window goodies with paler colors and with flowers on them. My little rabbit with her umbrella over her shoulder, paler candles and a birdhouse.
One evening I went through my recipe files and pulled out the recipes for lighter foods, and desserts made with strawberries and lemon instead of caramel and chocolate. Certain foods go with the cold days of winter and other ones make me think of spring. I rotate my recipes with the seasons and hope it gives my family something to look forward to.
John loves science. He also loves planting things. He's been given the little flower bed by the carport and he and I go through seed catalogs and plan, then head to the greenhouse and make our purchases. This year we'll be in the process of moving just as John is supposed to be planting his garden plot. I've been thinking that potted flowers will be the solution and keep things as "same" as possible for something he looks forward to each year.
Spring is the season when new life springs up when everything looks dead. I'm very thankful for that. I'm thankful that God gives us this after the dark days of winter. Just as sunrise comes after the darkest hour of night, so spring follows the dark winter.
I hope that you're busy planning a wonderful spring for your family. Each time I'm tempted to skip something that we all enjoy I'm reminded that my children will only be this age one time and I ask myself what is it I want them to remember when I am gone. That gives me the motivation I need to do it one more time!
Happy "Almost Springtime" everyone!

Love,

Mom