Spring

Today was a fabulous day. I love the time of year when winter turns into spring. (Not that we really have "winter" in Phoenix, but I can still appreciate it!) The time of year when the short days slowly begin to strech out, leaving us warm, dusky evenings that are perfect for sitting on porches with glasses of wine and a good book, or for barbequeing with friends. The time when instead of rolling out of bed at 6 A.M. and stumbing to the shower in the darkness, it's already starting to get light and the birds are chirping. In phoenix at this time of year it is the perfect tempature at about 7:00 A.M., when I drive to work: mildly warm but with just enough chill in the air leftover from the night to make everything feel fresh and clean.

This morning, after leaving L with my father-in-law for the day, I drove to work with the windows down and my music blasting, just feeling good about life. And the feeling stayed with me all day. I felt productive at work, I had a great meeting with one of my bosses, and I started preparing for my schedule change next week. Also, our current daycare called me and told me that they would match our new daycares tution, so we don't have to move L to a new daycare! Like I said, it was just one of days where everything seems right in the world, and I truly attribute the start of this great day to spring. Seriously, sometimes I think that I suffer from seasonal affective disorder. As the weather starts to turn from fall to winter I have those first few weeks of excitement over the prospect of cute sweater and boots and scarfs, long dark night curlded up next to fireplaces with hot chocolate, comfy, soft flannel pajamas that just beg you to spend all day in them, and the holidays. But that truly only lasts a few weeks. Then I start to feel suffocated, and dark and trapped. (And at times can also be prone to dramatics) I hate, hate, hate waking up in the morning when it is still dark outside. And I hate it even more when I have to climb out of bed and it's freezing in the room. I don't like it when it's dark long before we even think about sitting down for dinner. I despise being cold in general. And soon the reality sits in that I like my summer clothes more then my winter clothes, and I can't afford cute new sweaters, boots and scarves anyway. and we don't have a fireplace to curl up next too, and while I do love the holidays they also tend to bring family drama and debt. Flannel pajama pants is pretty much the only thing that stays on my "what I like about winter" list.

Now, this hasn't been nearly as bad for me since we have lived in Phoenix. Like I said, it's not as though we really have winter. It's more like a chilly fall with really short days and Christmas thrown in the middle. But sometimes that's almost worse, because at least if there were a foot of snow on the ground and freezing tempatures and dark cloudy skies I could justify my feelings. Instead we get sunny days with cool to cold temps, winter on prozac.

But it doesn't matter. The days are finally getting longer, and our front porch is calling to me and L to go sit and enjoy the weather while we wait for S to go home. Thank you spring, for returning so faithfully each year. I miss you when you are gone, but your return is always a joyous occasion for me.