Spring? Could it be?

At the risk of jinxing things... Today finally felt like spring!! It was 53 degrees, the warmest it has been in a long time, and sunny!!! We still have snow in the shady parts of the back yard, but I walked outside this morning and was amazed at how comfortable it felt. I quickly got a shovel and cleared off our second-floor deck, and we ate lunch outside! It was GLORIOUS!

And, shortly after we sat down, a CARDINAL flew out of the woods and landed on my new bird feeder! I was beside myself-- the cardinals are the main reason I bought my feeder last year, and then another one this year. I have been trying to lure them out of the trees for a while now. And there was one, right in plain sight! And I didn't have my camera!! I ran back inside to grab it, but it flew away the minute I came back out. I did see where it went, though, and got this really terrible picture. Yup. A red blob in a tangle of branches. But it's the only cardinal photo I've gotten so far! I think I am going to sit out there and watch the feeder tomorrow, haha! I got lots of chickadee pictures, though. They were very happy with the feeder! While I was trying to take photos of birds, the kids were enjoying being outside without the need for hats or mittens! Maya wore a hat, but she ALWAYS wears that hat these days. She even sleeps in it. So it wasn't because she was cold or anything! They had to wear their rain boots because of the snow around the swing set, but most of the yard was grassy. I brought out our picnic blanket and basked in the warm sun. It felt SO good!
(and yes, Maya's boots are on the wrong feet. I told her, but she wouldn't hear it. And Gus had the day off work for Good Friday)
Oh! And I nearly forgot! I registered for another 5K this morning, and signed Nikos up for the corresponding kids' race! It's a 1 mile race, right here in town, and he is SO excited! But I wanted to get him some decent athletic shoes, so we went shopping this morning. He was instantly drawn to this pair, mainly because they had the letter N on them! Of course, it's the logo for New Balance. But in our boy's mind, it stood for Nikos! He is very proud of his new shoes, and wore them all day (except when I made him wear his rain boots). He also insists that they make him run extra fast. I can't wait to see him run in this race!!