Go home, weather.

We've been doing fairly well dealing with this winter, I think, given our west coast origins. We aren't THRIVING, but we're coping, which is probably the best that can be expected of us.

And then on Sunday, it rained and rained. OH HOW IT RAINED.

And I didn't even mind, because I am from Vancouver we know from rain, and it is springtime and it's SUPPOSED to rain. That's how things grow.

And even though I checked the weather network and saw snow predicted for Monday, I looked at the clearing sky on Sunday night and thought, Maybe it precipitated itself out. I mean, it rained a lot.

And then we woke up Monday morning to snow, and more snow falling.

It was STICKING. And we were like, Ha ha this is fine, we can cope with this.

And we put on all of our gear and went to the park and did what we had to do.

And we've been painting and baking and reading and I've never hated the inside of my house so much, and yet never been so grateful for how much more space we have here, for our garage, for our den in the basement.

Joel was on call yesterday, and this morning I woke up to snow again, both on the ground and falling, and pregnant hairless cat says it best.

I just...I cannot. I am out of patience. I am out of resourcefulness. I am out of enthusiasm.

I am also, thankfully, out of snow.

This afternoon the sun came out, and the snow melted, and it was SO WARM.

I texted Josie all, WEATHERRRR, and it was the opposite of every other time I text her all, omg weather.

Tomorrow is supposed to be 14 degrees and mostly sunny, and I was kind of just hanging on until then, and I like to think I would have lasted but I'm grateful not to have had to chance it. Things got pretty murdery-feeling around here for a bit.

(If the weather network is lying, and it snows tonight, I will literally die.)

A week in review.

This is my gardening dress, because it haves flowers onnit. Now I need to do some raking. Raaaaake, raaaaake, raaaaaaake.

I cannot read this book because the monster is too scary for me. No, I can just cover him wiv my hand. Now he is not too scary.

Can you eat some of my cere-rohl, Daddy's Giraffe Hand?

You can have this big great bite. Mnnnmm nmmm nmmmmm mnnnnm.

I'm going to have MONSTER FINGERS.

Roaarrrr.

ROOOOAAAAAAAWWWWWRRRR.

Her little downy feathers.

One day she's going to have a full head of hair and I'm going to be like, Remember when she just had that fuzzy little ducky head?

And she used to wake up from her nap and it would be like

And I used to just BITE her in the back of the neck all the time?

These are the days.

We hung out ALL DAY FOR THE WHOLE DAY and it was amazing.

Yesterday was our anniversary AND Joel had the day off and that has never happened in the history of ever. (He worked the old Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday call shifts last week, so Monday was kind of his 'weekend.') We were going to go to the art gallery because that's always open, holidays be damned, but the power went out over half of town, so we couldn't open our garage door to get the car out. LUCKILY WE HAVE BIKES. Remember those? Because I badly didn't want to walk. I haven't been on a bike since October, but it wasn't the worst.

You have to pedal around the protuberance, and your thighs still sort of mash your lower belly on each up-stroke, but anything is better than walking at this point. The power was out at the art gallery, too, but the conservatory doesn't need power because NATURAL LIGHT, so they let us walk around there and sniff their monstrous Easter display.

Eventually the power came back on and we got to check out the exhibits. This is a frog riding a rhino - with a butterfly on its nose - while stabbing a snake.

I need it in my house.

We wound up in the coloring room (as we always do) and Eleanor made Joel draw monsters for her, because she is a tiny dictator.

The afternoon got rull warm so we went to the park and did Park Things

and I can't remember the last time we were at the park for more than an hour and it wasn't an exercise in endurance.

Eleanor needs new shorts; last year's dukes are borderline indecent now.

We went to a tapas bar called Duck Duck Goose for dinner, and had spiced mushrooms,

duck poutine,

and crispy gnocchi,

all of which Eleanor approved of heartily.

We walked around the corner to Calories for dessert, but they were CLOSED, and the Crave Cupcakes and Cookies across the street was closed, too, so we went to the Broadway Diner where Eleanor and I once shared some excellent chili fries.

We'd been hungrier than we thought (and than tapas is really capable of coping with) so we shared a burger, and then each got a slice of disappointment pie.

Even when lemon meringue is awful and clearly from a three-day-old factory box, I still love it. Joel's banana cream pie was straight-up turrrrible but when is it not, really.

Eleanor refuses to be undignified about certain things, and eating is one of them. Sometimes I am like, Child, just get the food into your mouth somehow no one cares how. Joel gave her his plate of crust-crumbs and she was having trouble scooping them but GOD FORBID she just handful them into her mouth. You have to pick them

and put them on the fork

and then you eat. Like a person.

So happy anniversary to us, and happy spending it all together. Eleanor kept insisting that it was her anniversary, too.

Seven and feeling lucky

Seven years ago today Joel and I were not winning any high jump competitions but hey, check out my garter.

This time last year we were living in Calgary and remember how bald Eleanor was in those days?

Sometimes we'd take jaunts to Drumheller with Aunty Boo and Uncle Darren to see the dinosaurs

and sometimes we'd go to BC where Eleanor had constant fever and rash and we were at the clinic like four times because we are never not sick when we go to BC.

And then the Bow River flooded and everyone we know was evacuated except for us.

And then we took a trip to Saskatoon to find a place to live because we were MOVING TO SASKATOON.

Which was too bad because Calgary had a truly amazing zoo

and we had some fantastic friends there. HOWEVER. Saskatoon has amazing festivals.

Many of which are food-based.

And we have a proper house here, with a garage and a garden.

And parks and pools just EVERYWHERE.

And some pretty alright friends here, too.

And we went camping and it was full of sunshine and dirt.

And then we went camping again and it was full of rain and mud and also a weird amount of elk.

And I did the Color Run and armpits are like color magnets.

And Tante Tina came to visit

and Grandma and Grandpa came to visit

and Eleanor took up piracy for an evening

but Joel and I ate all her pirated candy.

And then we visited BC but we missed our Early Morning Flight and had to take a Late Evening Flight and I thought Eleanor would lose her mind but she was actually great that entire trip and didn't get sick until the very last day.

And then it snowed and...just...winter forever.

That was a serious edge Calgary had on Saskatoon, the chinooks and the sudden weeks in January where it'd be 10 degrees out and all the snow would melt and you'd all get a reprieve. This year the only reprieve we got was the MUCH REQUIRED week we spent in Mexico.

Oh yes and also I got pregnant again. As one does. Look how reasonable-sized I am there.

And then we had Christmas and Eleanor turned two

and winter.

SUCH WINTER. So we went to BC where the winter is rainy but habitable.

And then to Edmonton where the winter is equally as bad but there are indoor things to do that we hadn't totally exhausted.

And then it began (slowly) to thaw and we could do things like ice skatering

but the PROCESS of a Saskatoon spring is simultaneously exhilarating and demoralizing. I am more exited than any of you about today's 14 degrees

but it's supposed to snow again on Thursday. And Sunday. MY GARDEN IS GOING TO LIVE ON THE WINDOW SILL FOREVER.

But. Seven years after we promised to always stay married, Joel and I have lived in six cities and made almost two other people, one of whom is amazing and one of whom needs to keep her pointy fetus elbows out of my kidneys, and are (most importantly) still married. Which is not nothing.