100th Post

I didn't intend to title this post "100th post" but the website keeps a counter when you sign in and when I saw it I was pretty surprised that Greg and I have managed to keep this blog, our family journal, alive to make 100 posts! I thought that was pretty cool, hence today's title. But what I really planned to write about is the weather......

That is, I think it might finally be spring! You can see that I am hopeful by my choice of blog header photos! Don't get me wrong, I have actually enjoyed winter. Living in a tropical climate for a few years left the northerner in me pining for cozy socks, crackling fires, hot chocolate and fluffy white snow. And I think a winter in Massachusetts was the perfect way to ease back in. No offense intended to our New England friends who really do believe winter is rough here, but we really haven't found it to be that bad. Granted, they do get freezing rain here and various other kinds of winter precipitation that is pretty much good for nothing except making roads dangerous and downing power lines. I'll give New Englanders some toughie points for dealing with that every year! But in terms of intensity of cold and duration of winter, it rates as "mild" on my winter scale. Let's see, I was able to ride my bike throughout all of November and my last ride was pretty close to Christmas AND I've been on (and off) my bike again for about the last two weeks. So, that means that Massachusetts really only has 2 NO BIKE months out of 12. That feels almost tropical!

Massachusetts also gets great snow. It doesn't snow very often here, but when it does it is a doozy and there is plenty of snow for cross country skiing. We had one such dump earlier this week, as Greg described, and were able to finally get out on our new xc ski gear on Bedford's conservation land trails. But it was short-lived and the snow is no more and everyone is out on their bike. I saw alot of tri-bars and pain faces out there today so that means that people really do believe that spring is here.

We enjoyed the 50+ degree weather by taking Kai out to visit a farm, complete with new spring baby goats. I think he enjoyed the animals, although he started to moo when he saw the mules, sending them into a frantic identity crisis. But don't worry about our kind, furry friends. I do know a livestock psychologist and passed them his card before we left. Kai's favorite part of the farm by far, and of spring so far, was the mud. He completely and thoroughly enjoyed stomping as hard as his little rubber booted feet would stomp in every muddy puddle and sloppy walkway that he could find.

I think the truest evidence that spring has sprung was found when we got back home to our house. Back in the fall I planted some tulip bulbs in memory of my Nan who died in October. I mentioned to Greg as we drove past the nursery where I bought the bulbs that I wondered if any would grow. Well today I noticed that they are bravely poking their little green heads out of the wet earth. I know we may get another snowfall yet, but those bulbs are a sure sign that old man winter is on the way ooooot!