easy Monday

We're taking it pretty easy here on Earth Day. Just glad the sun is shining.

in like a lion

They say March comes in like a lion, and out like a lamb. I guess that doesn't always apply in Minnesota.

We got a few inches of snow yesterday, and though it's warm and feels like spring today, the yard is once more coated in white. I was wondering why the tulips hadn't shown up yet. I guess they know something I don't.

Winter can't last much longer. Soon enough,this little family needs to get out in the sunshine and explore the neighborhood. We don't mind a few more days chilling inside, though. Just staying in our pjs, taking it easy.

loving Minnesota

The foot in the rib cage thing is resolved, for now, but baby is sitting in such a way that I think we're going to have the same problem today. I know it's good that baby is head down with its back along my left side (we all know that's a good place to start labor, right?) but it's rather uncomfortable. When we saw Clare last night for a checkup, she informed me that this time in the pregnancy is when women feel the most full and large with child. Soon the ligaments at the bottom of the uterus will begin to soften and loosen, letting the baby down a little bit. So yes, while it's good that the kid is in a good position, the baby is also jammed up into my diaphragm and I could really do without that. I'll go to yoga this weekend and swim some laps. Hopefully that will help me stretch that space out a little bit. Dave and I are also doing a yoga for labor workshop this weekend, so I'm excited about that.

In other news, it's friggin cold.

Partly Cloudy

1°F Feels Like -18°F

I needed the car every other day this week, so Dave definitely got to drive today. I just wished I hadn't picked the coldest day of the week to be standing waiting for the bus. Since my jacket doesn't close over my belly, I wear layers to make up for it. Then I get really hot under my collar and cold everywhere else. Also, I chose the route that takes me through the University of Minnesota. I normally wouldn't go that way but it was really cold and I missed the bus going the other direction. University students are not the most considerate, and while I didn't honestly expect someone to offer up their seat for me, I was kind of hoping. It didn't happen. Alas, this isn't the worst of it. It's supposed to get up to 5 degrees today, tomorrow the high will be zero. Yay for winter!

the last shovel

Snow is falling in Minneapolis, and I couldn't be happier. Dave has been doing the lion's share of housework recently, and I was sad that he hasn't left any of the shoveling to me. Tonight I finally got my chance as he put some finishing touches on the new stair banister. The peace of a fresh snow is so wonderful, and I'm glad to live in a city that gets a real winter. I like to get out before the neighbors start up their snow-blowers, spewing grey smoke and roaring down the sidewalk. The love of snow-blowing must run deep, since our neighbors on both sides (who normally won't stop for a simple hello) will take the time to clear our walk for us.

I don't think we've had snow like this before Christmas for a few years, so it's nice to be looking out at a landscape of white instead of the dead grass and garden remains. I've always said I'm more of a winter person than a summer person, though the last few summers have been so fabulous they've nearly eclipsed my love for winter. During the July and August heat this year, I yearned for a time when I could hunker down, hide behind the sweat pants and blankets and enjoy the winter weather. Mother nature is delivering, and I'm delighted. The world can through wrenches in my path (family turmoil, a broken furnace) but nothing can ruin the fun of shoveling freshly fallen snow.