It's been a while...

So, it turns out, that a couple of months have sailed by between posts. Um? Where exactly did that time go? All of sudden we are in the 4th month of this year and it seems a bit unreal that February and March just flew by the way they did.

Not that I am complaining. Finally it appears we are coming to the end of this insane Canadian winter. Word on the street is that it is the harshest winter Ottawa has had in 20 years or more. Luck had it happen when we arrived! To be honest, it was everything we were expecting. Those ridiculously low temperatures, the snow, the ice. The actual reality though, has been exhausting.

For five months we have endured not being able to be outside for play, or even to really enjoy the snow sports - it has just been too darn cold. When you have frostbite warnings, that 10 minutes of outside exposure will lead to frostbite, you just can't take little kids out sledding, or skating or skiing. February and March were really wearing on all of us - especially the kids. Pleas for being able to go to the playground, reluctance to put on snow gear, a realisation that we have had two winters in a row and no spring since November 2012, and a fear that spring may never appear just had us all feeling down. I felt uninspired to write and so my blog has laid silent and still, waiting for winter to pass.

Never ending winter. 12th March '14. 

Here in Canada, going away on a break from winter is a big deal - and almost everyone, as some stage flies south for a break from the cold. And so, desperate for warmth, we flew down to Florida for a week's vacation. Never have we looked forward to warm vacation weather they way we looked forward to this. And it was reinforced by the squeals of delight from my children at 3am in the morning (yes 3am) as we exited Orlando airport to the vision of flowers and grass outside the arrivals area. We craved sunlight and warmth and slip on shoes and the lack of need for jackets. And we got it.

And then we came back to Ottawa last Saturday and woke up on Sunday to another 15cm of snow. Seriously? Thoughts of an eternal winter crossed our minds and Florida suddenly much more distant than just the day before.

Yet! 5 days later and suddenly the temperatures are steadily hitting digits above zero, and the 10 day forecast predicts some double digit days. So now, ever hopeful, we are really looking forward to basking in the colour green, the smell of flowers, t-shirts, slip on shoes, playground action and moving jackets and boots into the basement.

I have never looked forward to spring as much as I am this year and finally, it really does look like it's arrived.

Finally - grass! April 3rd '14

Jen x