Spring is in the air

Spring is in the air, but not yet on the ground. The winter snow has melted and disappeared back into the thawing earth. The birds are returning from their winter homes, the sounds drifting through the leafless trees. The grass is still dormant and the trees have yet to bud. However, the warmth of 60 degree temps have us dreaming of the sunny days of summer yet to come. The transformation from winter snow to spring time has been amazingly quick. A mere three weeks ago we had just finished digging out from 24 inches of March snow. Now the snow is completely gone, the sidewalk cafes are open, people are out riding bicycles, and the more that 2 feet of ice that has covered the lakes since November are almost gone as well.

We have had a nice weekend of temps in the 60's both days. Not very sunny but warm none the less. Nik and I spent the afternoon yesterday cleaning out the many cardboard boxes that have piled up in the garage over the last few months. Last night we lost electrical power for about 45 minutes. Not sure what the cause was, but the whole neighborhood was dark. It was kind of fun to have the house lite up with only candles, while Catie and I played cards at the kitchen table. Rain fell steadily throughout the night and this morning dawned clear and warm.

Chris is doing well. She is more active each day. She still is using her back brace during the day, but not at all at night. She is walking at about 60% although her flexibility is still probably in the 25% range. Since she still can't bend over to pick things up off the floor, she has gotten really good at picking things up with her toes. Now if she could only sign her name with her feet I might be able to get her on late night TV!