Spring is Here!

Yesterday, being St. Patrick's Day, would normally have been my night for Corned Beef and Cabbage. It's a meal that the rest of my family hates with a passion. So, once a year I am happily fed while happily making the rest of the gang miserable. I believe Myles was maybe 3 years old when he first complained of the aromas created from a crockpot full of corned beef and cabbage. We had been out all day while the crockpot simmered away. When we pulled into the garage, everyone gagged. Everyone but me. "What is that smell?" Myles asked, his nose pinched shut. MMmmmmm. "That's the delicious smell of corned beef and cabbage."

Well, this year I made a pot roast instead of the corned beef and it was not nearly as good. I did boil cabbage and potatoes to go with it, but it just wasn't the same. The boiling cabbage did still produce it's usual lovely aroma. Myles came gagging into the kitchen. "Oh, crap it's corned beef and cabbage night!" He quickly ran for the upstairs, passing his sister and telling her to brace herself for the stink. But, she doesn't mind the smell of cabbage. (That's my girl!)

A short time later, Myles came downstairs wanting to go outside to play. I suspect the upstairs wasn't impervious to the cabbage aromas because this is how he looked when he came down.

After dinner, the kids went out to play. It was our first really spring-like day and the kids were finally able to go outside and play. Up until now, it's either been freezing and 4 feet of snow has been on the ground or it's been warm-ish and the melting snow had transformed our yard into "The Great Mud Trap". And with our first day of sun and warmth came those darn Asian beetles. They weren't getting us down, though.

We'd been indoors for so long, our eyes could hardly stand the brightness of the sun. We feared we had transformed into vampires and could no longer be out in the sun.

It was so nice to be out of the house.

Today was just as nice and I decided to take the dogs for a walk. Thanks to all of the mud in our yard the poor creatures have been confined for quite a while and really needed to stretch their legs. Try as I might, I could not get Boris, our Great Dane, to cooperate with getting his harness on. He had to stay home. Fillmore (the tiny little devil dog), Savannah, and I headed out. Fillmore ran cirlces around us, drug Savannah through yards and across streets, tripped me about 800 times. He stalked Robins, chased leaves, and growled menacingly at the kids playing in the park. He obviously hadn't been out in a while. And I was glad to not be fighting with 2 dogs during our first walk in 5 months. A couple came walking up behind us and I had to shorten the lead on Fillmore's leash. He has the mistaken belief that he is a ferocious beast. He began to flail about and growl, while I was nearly hanging him by his leash, trying to let the couple pass us.

"Oh, is he hoping we'll stop and play with him?" the lady asks.

"Um, I think he's trying to be ferocious," I tell her.

"Well, should we make our faces look really fearful, then?" she laughs.

It's at this exact moment that Fillmore wriggles out of his collar and lunges for her. I don't think she had to fake the fear on her face. Savannah and I both dove for him and he quickly dodged the both of us. He then performed some evasive maneuvers that I had never seen before in his attempt at both freedom and lady mauling. Savannah managed to nab him and I quickly lassoed the collar back over his head. It was tightened up and he was back on the path, running in circles, stalking leaves, and tripping me. I forgot how fun it is to take the dogs out for walks. Next time it's Boris's turn and I may not make it back alive.