Spring!

We had weather in the 70s last week. This meant long evenings in the park after work/school, sleeping with the windows open, and watching baseball in the evenings. It reminds me of those days as a kid toward the end of the school year when going to bed on time and getting all the homework done just wasn't that important. I was all the more appreciative when we skyped with Rachel and her girls on Saturday and they showed us the snow in their backyard and the snowman they built on April Fool's Day.

And a moment of digression, here. Skype is the answer! It is so hard to find time to catch up with far-flung friends, especially those in other time zones who have kids. But, with skype, Grace can be involved instead of insisting that she get to talk on the phone and then not say anything. And, she loves to see other people via skpe. With Rachel and crew, she was so excited to see "the kids" as she kept calling them, but was pretty bummed that she couldn't reach their toys. Plus, I love seeing "the kids" too.

Anyway, back to spring. And the birds are singing their happy little, sunny day hearts out as I type this. We love the park, especially when we don't need jackets. Even better when it's light late enough that Daddy can join us on his way home from work (yea, we're the family that is still there when others are coming back after dinner; and sometimes Grace eats cookies before meals, too).

If I had a dollar for every time someone has said to me lately that Grace has really become a little girl, I could pay for her to go to college, or maybe lunch. Nevertheless, these next few make it so clear. . .

This is what happens when you ask her to say smile and say "cheese" (if only she wouldn't squint!).

Imagine her delight when she saw Daddy coming across the park to catch her on the "big slide." She still jumps up and down and giggles when he gets home. Those two.