Here At Last

April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.
~William Shakespeare

Living in a country where we experience four distinct seasons is good fun. I really try not to take that for granted because we might end up somewhere someday where that is not the case.

It is funny though, I never enjoyed spring as much as I do now that I am married to Mark. Seriously. His appreciation for Lady Spring's magic has rubbed off on me.

For example, the other day we spontaneously spent a good hour taking photos downtown of budding trees that seemed so eager to bloom, and some fantastic shots of tulips in their prime.

He is right - something about the world thawing and then coming to life all at once all around you is wonderful.

Life is bursting forth whether we notice or not.

So, here are a few fun reasons why us Hardys fancy the spring:
1-Rain boots:
in vibrant, outrageous colours...for splashing in puddles of course.
2-The park:
spending hours outside without catching a cold, wearing no greasy sunscreen on, and very little humidity. Phew!
3- Weddings:
this is the beginning of typical wedding season, a time to celebrate and dance with friends.
4- Exercise:
this is the perfect weather for running!
5- Baseball:
the season has started - toonie Tuesdays anyone?
6- Centre Island:
the ferry is up and running!
7- The Ice Cream Truck is back from the dead:
AND let's not forget ice cold home made smoothies in blenders again...oh yeah.
8- BBQs:
mmm hmm.
9- Trench coats instead of heavy winter gear.
10- Everyone out-and-about, taking walks instead of watching more TV.
11- Lounging on patios again.
12- Drive-in movie theatres - opening very soon indeed!
13- Tulips.
14- More buskers, more street-art.
15- A rich emerald shade of GREEN everywhere. Especially immaculate Italian lawns.
16- And finally, this spring is particularly special as we're going to be in England and Finland for the rest of it - spending time with friends and family so very dear to our hearts. Having a little time for ourselves as well.
WahooOOoooo :)

Enjoy the rest of Spring - we'll be back to greet summer with you at the beach very soon!

For the Love of Justice

Today I am designing/putting together a sort of 'scrap book' for Saturday's event, called :
THE RESCUE of Joseph Kony's Child Soldiers.

Here are some details.

The 1000+ people that will come out and be 'abducted' to Queen's Park can express themselves in it, and then the coordinators of Saturday's event in Toronto want to send it to the organization themselves - Invisible Children. You may be familiar with their documentaries about what is happening in Uganda.

The whole event is going to be really powerful. If you're in one of the cities that is holding A RESCUE, please consider going. You can make a difference. Check this:

So, I am thinking about those children,
while Adelaide is asleep upstairs -
safe,
warm,
and within my reach.
My tears are falling for Uganda.
Today my heart is aching for Joseph Kony's child soldiers.

For you Toronto-folk, I hope to see you there. It will be easy to find me as I'll be the one doing a really big painting and getting people to fill the scrapbook :)