Today we commenced work on our Spring Garden. We have noticed on our walks around the neighborhood that the bulb shoots are popping out of the soil, determined to grow into Spring flowers. The green shoots are such a welcome sight. Yippee, Spring is not far away!

When I was working on the Summer garden, the owner of our house Pam said that there were some bulbs in the garden that flower in Spring. I did not come across any bulbs while digging throughout Summer but thought I would prepare the garden for Spring just in case. I went to work removing the layer of mulch leaves to help the bulbs see the light of day. To my delight I uncovered a few bent shoots buried under the weight. They will grow straight now, much happier not to have to push through the mat of leaves. I then turned the top layer of soil, loosening the dense dirt to encourage growth. To the delight of Maya and Elle I uncovering lots of our garden friends, snails and worms. As we are new to bulb planting, without knowing, the Girls and I missed out on planting bulbs in Fall and so I decided that despite it being the end of Winter I would try planting some bulbs anyway. We went to the store and bought 15 bulbs. I planted some in the garden and some in pots, and if the cold weather hangs around for another six week or so, they should still flower. We will see what happens? As I said, planting bulbs is new to me, and so after a little research and some digging, we now have a Spring garden underway.

Ahhh…..the good old Brooklyn Children’s Museum! Well, it is not old actually it open in 2009 and so not yet two years old. This was only our third time going to the Museum, and while it is still a really fantastic Museum, that is very well cared for I noted on this visit it is not what it was when it opened. I can imagine it is difficult and costly for a Children’s Museum to stay in full flourish and so my judgement is not on those that maintain the establishment, but on those that use it. It is so important for Children to have respect while in places like this. Not to steal, not to break…and not to make too much of a mess! Largely I am sure things happen by accident…Lila ‘accidentally’ left with a butterfly wing, and Jacob ‘accidentally’ tipped the sand all over the floor…and so while my Children would be culprits as much as the next, I think it is a great lesson for visitors to be mindful of the value public museums. The Museum is large, and colourful and filled with natural light, and is built in such a way that it showcases diverse geography, society and culture. The sun was streaming in the the windows, making it seem so bright and warm and the Girls ran from the river, to the garden to the beach…then went to China, Mexico and the Carribien…Making it an action packed Winters day.

I took the Girls to the Museum to escape the Winter blues, and I desperately needed a parental ‘break’ but to be honest with myself I really had to work just as hard while at the museum – out of respect for the museum, so that it remains an awesome place to visit. I quickly ditched all ideas of reading a magazine while the Girls explored, and joined them in the enthralling activities. Having visited the museum before, I knew to pack a spare set of clothes. Maya and Elle love water play, the the museum has numerous water play exhibits. The Girls can play in water for the longest time, but should a drop of water reach Maya’s clothing then obsessively she requires (demands, stomps and pulls at the clothes) a dry change (thus these photos show Maya in two different outfits). Beyond the water play, we enjoyed the animals. The Museum has a good collection of both live and taxidermy animals. Would you believe it is home to an anaconda! We happened to be in the right place at the right time and Maya got to help feed some of the animals. Maya was beyond fascinated, with no fear. “Can I hold it?” she said about the green Basilisk lizard….and…”Can I feed the spider?” she said about the tarantula. Maya was not allowed to do either of these things, but she did get to stroke the lizard, and catch the escaped crickets for it’s meal, and she had front row seats for the spider. We spent 4 hours in the Museum, and only left when Elle was worn out, at $7:50 each (yearly family pass $85) it is money well spent!

I came across the Mini Boden Summer 2011 Preview Sale today. Boden always add to their range mid season, and so it is nice to have a sneak preview and also take advantage of the 20% off. Here are our picks…Maya wants the star tiered skirt and the fun beaded dress. Elle likes the embroidered summer skit and the dahlia strappy top.

Yesterday we were blessed with a Spring-like Winters day. A drastic change from the cold snowy days we have had plenty of. The sun came out and with it, blue skies and warmth enough to melt the enormous mounds of snow. We shed our coats and played in the park all day, climbing, swinging, riding the scooters, counting the ducks, and building fairy houses. After months of freezing frigid weather, the 19˚C (66˚F) was a sheer joy. The deprivation of warmth and light really has an effect. It is like the body forgets how balmy days feel, and then by magic they return and it feels so good! I have really come to appreciate the seasons, and how this day and age when one can often have what you want when you want it, the weather shapes our existence, our bodies, our feelings with an uncontrollable change. By living in New York, we are forced to go without the warmth and green throughout Winter, and then we have the magnificent experience of the spring, it is a sensational revelry. Yesterday was a brief taste of Spring, giving us so much to look forward to. Sadly it was an anomaly and today it is again cold and windy and once again the temperature has plummeted to Wintry lows…I am savoring the good feelings with the knowing that it is not long now until spring blossoms.

We are good at recycling in this house. I am of the sort that washes up take-out containers, storing them in the cupboard for a rainy day. I also can not bring myself to throw away ribbons or used wrapping paper or such, so when our valentines party was over and I sorted through the rubbish to recycle. I ended up with a pile of red cup cake foils, used on the muffins, sitting on the table. ‘We will do some craft with these’…I thought to myself. Maya got up the next morning to find them sitting on the little table and of course started playing with them. Before I knew it (and before 8am!) we had made this bouquet…which Maya then took to school. A flower for each of her friends…