Despite my grumpy resistance – actually, I think it’s fear of the rug being yanked out from under me, once again – it seems that Spring is slowly making its way to Ottawa. I can tell because the kids left this morning wearing a wildly divergent variety of outerwear: light jacket with snow pants for Gal Smiley, full snowsuit with rain boots for the Little Miss, winter coat and boots but no snowpants for the Captain. It’s the time of year when the mud room spews a thousand levels of warmth and wetness protection into the whole house.
Yesterday I picked up the kids from school in my usual massive parka and Frankenboots, but it was sunny and calm and there was that smell in the air, and the kids were all running around with open jackets and hair whipping around behind them (even the Captain, who has grown out his hair past the point of The Beatles and into the realm of Iggy Pop). And although I tried to give them all dire warnings that this Spring was fleeting, that snow would surely come again, they were happy and I smiled in spite of myself.
So today I broke out the cute ankle boots, and my still-a-winter-coat-but-shorter-and-sassier jacket, and hummed a little Adele as I shopped for Easter candy at the grocery store. I took the school-pickup sled out of the back of the van and stowed it away in the garage and I bought some sidewalk chalk at the store and even I had to admit, it seems Spring has Sprung.
I’ve been putting off writing this post because it’s the 1400. WordPress does this thing now where they tell you, every time you post, how many posts you’ve made. This one is number 1400 and that seems big and momentous and I felt like I should write something Important To Mark The Occasion, but I couldn’t think of what. I thought maybe I should do some sort of celebratory giveaway, but everything I thought of seemed lame, or else so nice I would want to keep it for myself, which kind of defeats the purpose. So I was stalled.
As it turned out, all I really wanted to do was write about how Spring is peeking its head up, and it’s about time, and although I tried to fight it, everything really does seem fresh and new and exciting and hopeful again. Even 1400 feels like a new beginning.
TurtleHead 
Whatever you do, don’t even THINK about washing your kids’ snowsuits yet; that is just inviting the winter gods to smite us again.
Congrats on the 1400. And spring can come anytime, with mud and wind for all I care, as long as it DOES arrive. Tomorrow I’m digging out the rake so I can uncover whatever spring flowers are trying to make their appearance under the dead leaves in the front garden. 🙂
1400! Wow, that’s a lot. It’s “spring” here too. Hilariously, it’s like 8 degrees and in the past four days I’ve seen DOZENS of people in flip flops, shorts, t-shirts, and even tank tops. OUTSIDE. There is still SNOW ON THE GROUND.
I dropped Eve off at piano lessons on Monday and it felt like spring even though there were still massive snowbanks. And then I went to pick her up at school today and as I pulled up to the curb there was NO MORE SNOWBANK. And yesterday I was extremely cranky but I think it had nothing to do with the weather. And soon we will meet for coffee and we will not have to vault snowbanks to do it. I am so happy I met you however many posts ago that was (that’s right, I’m drunk on spring – I LOVE YOU MAN!)
Congratulations on 1400 posts! That’s amazing–you’re an inspiration!
And I think after the endless winter we’ve had here, celebrating the arrival of spring is a perfect way to mark the occasion.