Spring fever!

Well Halleluia! I'm thanking God for our beautiful weather today. Plenty of sunshine and 54º. As Steve Irwin used to say, it's "gaw-geous!" Now sure, you west coasters might be laughing your loafers off at that "warm" temperature, but for us "snowbirds" (thank you Florida, for that lovely label) a 50 something March day is reason to celebrate. Spring has sprung. I'm declaring it. Today's the day.

Here's a little ditty about spring fever. I want all you perfect weather folks (hello there, San Diego) to know that you are being cheated, chee-TEDD out of the wonder of spring fever. We snow birds usually catch it round about February.

Let's see. Christmas snow is lovely (though in Christmas snow years, I'm only about 4 or 5 years old). January is uh, cold. And long. And dark at 6pm. And boring. And did I mention long? None-the-less, it's a snow bird's duty to just man up and deal with it.

So then there's February. If you live in a 4-season climate and you're not fond of winter (a'la yours truly), then February is pretty much a duplicate downer of January. But,...BUT...by this time spring fever is raging within and you can practically smell March a comin' (in like a beast of a lion, but at least the gentle lamb's cowering behind). And as the fever burns and the musty smell of wet dirt becomes a reality, we tend to get very antsy in the pants for that first big transitional day of Spring. And when it arrives, oh my stars, it's a thing to behold.

The world literally springs back to life (pun intended). Teens get out and shoot hoops. Dog lovers walk their dogs. Joggers abound. Car windows are down and radios are cranked (Mercy Me or Casting Crowns just might be a blarin' from this gal's ride). There is such a sense of new life, it's nearly healing (I've heard some who suffer from depression say it literally is). And it can only be fully experienced (imho) if you've done your time shoveling driveways and managing dual clothing seasons.

Now being homeschoolers, I'm sad to say we didn't actually get to enjoy this day of sunshine. We had to do our work, eat lunch, then head out to swim lessons. But we did witness others enjoying it and we did feel the warmth of the sun on our faces. It's a start.

Oh, and we did see the Canadian geese making silly on the barely frozen pond behind us (waddle, waddle, slip, fall, sink. Waddle, waddle, slip, fall, sink). My 7 year old can' t remember what they're called to save her life.
"MoOOooom! The Canadians are back again."
Yes, she simply refers to them as "the Canadians," silly goose that she is (double intentional pun today; I'm on a roll).

And the ducks have returned as well (from across the road; what a rough migration trip that must have been). They hang out at some farmer's place when it gets too cold and then show up again on warmer days. They're a bit simple, ducks are. They waddle up to our fence out back, then make the short flight over it and land on their bills in our yard. One after another, they crash land, face first. You'd think one would get a clue from another. Nope. Ducks are dim. But they know how to get out and enjoy a spring day, just as any good snow bird does.