A breath of fresh air

One of the advantages of having a job with the government is that when all the bigwigs get to go to funeral services for former a president, the little guys and gals on the totem pole also get the day. I am not trying to dishonor President Ford in any way, or make light of his death. I just want to express my gratitude for another day with hubby home.

Today is one of those winter days one can't help but love. It's comparable to an autumn day in the upper midwest. The sky is a clear blue, with few clouds in sight. The sun has shone for a majority of the day. In college, days like this could calm me or invigorate me as I walked across the Quad, back to the dorm, or over to the BSU. The breeze is cool, but not frigid.

Hubby, Baby-Bear and I went for a walk this afternoon. One neighbor was in her driveway with her 6 year old son, who was adopted from Russia almost 2 years ago (or maybe 3). Their house is for sale and under contract, and I'm going to miss them. (They are joining the exodus to the county a mile away with the better school system. Why people didn't just buy down there in the first place when homes were less expensive there is a mystery. At least our neighborhood resale average is good. And to be fair, there are more new homes available now than there were even a year ago. Though none of them are in our price range in the size we would want.) They were trying to get a remote control car going.

Baby bear became bored while we stopped, and had a grand time toddling down the sidewalk holding our hands. She looked so cute in her new blue jeans, coral/striped sweater, and with her silver fake-fur-lined vest over the sweater. So big.

Some of the rock pink that I planted on the cliff last Spring apparently took. The stuff looked pretty dried out when I planted it, but my parents got it really cheap on clearance at a nursery, and knew we needed erosion control. Anyway, as we walked to where the sidewalk ends, I saw a few of those tiny fuscia flowers blooming about 7 feet up the hill. Apparently they think it's Springtime already. The image of life in the midst of dead grass, weeds, and above a cliff that has been cut away is refreshing. And for those of you who want a ground-cover that even those of us with a brown thumb can't kill, rock pink might be just the thing.

The dishwasher hums, the laundry rolls, and hubby and baby bear nap. Among the other things I still hope to do today: vacuum downstairs, hang up my clean clothes, make a couple of phone calls, and clean off the kitchen counter.