New life springs eternal

Feeling slightly philosophical, considering my new prego status, and the arrival of my favorite time of year. Just in case you're not familiar with the pregnancy process because you're a) not an OB, b) not a woman, or c) never been pregnant, I'll be using this blog to document my new journey into parenthood. Oh my lord. Already, this horrible writing is an example of how pregnancy decreases your brain power and how the hormones make you distracted and forgetful. I will find documentation of the statistic somewhere. A pregnant woman's brain actually shrinks (and thankfully returns to its previous size after delivery) Suck, suck, suck! But I digress. This is a flighty-minded time of year anyway.
Spring in KC is terrific. I must consider that I've not experienced spring in many other places, but compared to other seasons in KC, spring's the winner (followed closely by fall). Although I still have a child-like magical attachment to the fun of summer, here in the midwest it's usually just blazing hot & humid. Don't even get me started on my hatred of winter. Well, I'm started now. Once Christmas is over and the Plaza lights go off, I have no use for the months of January & February. So boring, so much cabin fever-just ask how I got pregnant.... Many apologies to MLK Jr., Presidents Washington & Lincoln, and St. Valentine, but your holidays are minor distractions to help me through the mind-numbing misery of a midwest winter. I don't even want to think about how it was for the settlers here 200 years ago.
But spring! Spring is hope, a fresh start, new life! Call me a sap, but some things are cliche for a reason. The signs are everywhere. I love new spring flowers. There are daffodils everywhere in our neighborhood. They're such a cheery yellow. I was even surprised to find some in the backyard that I had no idea were there. And I've been obsessively tracking the growth of the tulip bulbs I planted last fall, watching in awe as every day, the leaves grow taller from the earth. Now, I can't wait to actually see the blooms. I think the chicken wire I buried over the bulbs was well worth the extra effort, because I saw the neighborhood gangs of squirrels furiously digging in my beds all winter. But, I think by the current sprout count, all the bulbs were left safe in the ground.
The animals know it is here. I can't get my normally reasonably obedient dog to come inside without a struggle. She seems to love keeping constant vigil over the backyard, and I know she will have more to keep track of as all of the suburban wildlife rears their babies. We have tons of squirrels and birds, and I'm just waiting to see the bunnies. I'm sure Gretchen will keep tabs on them all, as she did with the loose dog that was running through the neighborhood this morning! I heard her barking out back and went to see what was getting her so excited when I saw a cute black & tan dog moseying around the yard. Inspired by my friend Megan's recent success with pet rescue and reuniting a German Shepherd with it's owner, I left Gretchen in the backyard, and went to the front to see if I could get this dog to come. As soon as I whistled and patted my knees, he came happily bounding over. Fortunately, Bodie had tags, so I could immediately contact his owner, who had already been frantically driving around searching for him. I let Bodie in the house since he had current rabies tags so he wouldn't wander off until his owner arrived. He immediately made himself at home, bounding up the stairs and helping himself to Gretchen's food. I was amused, Gretchen was not! :) But it didn't take long for his owner to arrive, and he recognized her as soon as her car pulled in front of the house. Reunited and it feels so good.... So hopefully I have built up some positive pet karma for myself in case Gretchen ever gets lost. Happy springtime stories, and life continues, including the tiny one in my abdomen. More posts to come on that....