Dear Spring

Dear Spring,

     I am sorry you have been delayed. I was so looking forward to greeting you today when you arrived. I hope you have not met with any misfortune.

     At the same time, if your tardiness is on purpose, I must point out to you that this is a serious breach of contract. The calendar clearly states that today is the first day of spring. You have an obligation. I do not mind that you visited already for a few days in January and in February; I have had my hopes set on your arrival for your three-month sojourn for so long. I have anticipated and prepared. Do not let me down!

     Of course, perhaps you have been put off in recent years by my blossoming friendship with autumn. Let me reassure you that nobody will ever replace you in my heart.

     Please come soon!

                                                                                   With warmest wishes,

                                                                                    Jody

Little Boy

My little 4-year-old is so cute sometimes that he makes my heart melt. Sure, he still thinks he's the boss; he and his sister had an argument about it just the other day. But. . .

Our memory poem for February was Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken," and little boy memorized it, too. I wish you could hear him recite those words I'm not sure he even understands: "Two roads diverged in a lellow* wood, and sorry I could not travel both. . . "

Those sorts of things make my heart do flip-flops.

Now. Last week my baby boy moved out of our room and into his own new big boy bed. The mattress came in a box, and it was a big family occasion to watch it be unpacked and expand. Kids were bouncing around so thickly in that room that a good picture with no kids in it was hard to come by.

The mattress-- all rolled up

Unrolled and mostly inflated

We let the bed air out for a night before tucking him in it for the first time. He half broke my heart and half cracked me up when he said, "Mom! I don't need you to tuck me in! I can do it myself!" We tucked him in anyways. 

Very Fun Box

He loves his new bed, but I think he's had a lot more fun with the box it came in. That box entertained the little ones for at least an entire afternoon. In addition to crawling in and out of it, they also used it as a slide. I heard lots of imagination floating around that day.

In many ways, my son is growing up, but the little boy in him still crawls in bed with us in the morning to cuddle. Thank goodness.

*I'm sure many in my family remember a time when my cousin Becky was similarly too cute for words when talking about her favorite colors-- "red and lellow."