Florida Spring

I have said many times now that one of the very, very positive things of living in Florida is the weather. Since we moved down here, the weather has been to die for. Sure, we had a couple of chilly days in December and January. But I use the term "chilly" loosely, to refer to days with temps in the 60s or high 50s. You know, temps that would have made me jump for joy and dig out my bathing suit back in New York. So even while our fellow Floridians were griping about the cold, we were all IT'S NOT SNOWING THIS IS GLORIOUS. I know we'll join the ranks of wimpy Floridians again soon enough (I tease!) but this year, it has been divine. And now we're comfortably settled in to objectively warm temperatures, so everyone is happy.

Of course, we have not been taking this beautiful weather for granted. We have discovered that Ellie loves playing outside, so in addition to our many beach trips that I have shared with you ad nauseam, we have been spending lots of time enjoying the great outdoors.

 My pretty girl enjoying a little evening play time in the backyard

We have started taking daily walks in the morning to start off our day...

Out for a morning stroll

...and have been bike-riding whenever we can...

Biker babe!

Ready to ride!

Stopping to smell the roses, so to speak (or more accurately, to enjoy the lovely scenery and perfect weather)

...we have played in the sandbox...

Daddy, Ellie and Achilles playing together

Ellie in the sandbox

...and in the dirt a little bit...

Playing in dirt and eating rocks. Good times.

Meanest Mommy ever won't let her actually ingest rocks. Poor baby!

...spent LOTS of time crawling around on the deck...

She moves just as quickly on concrete as she does on carpet! She just ends up with more scraped knees as a result.

Chasing a bird

...and had some fun with the rocks lining the patio, and did some Cozy Coupe-ing...

VIDEO: Ellie playing outside, including filling her onesie with rocks

Putting rocks in a bag

Cruising in her Cozy Coupe!

...smelled (and picked) lots of gardenias...

One of my favorites.

...shared some Q.T. with Achilles...

The kids catching some rays

Keeping an eye on the backyard

"Hi, Achilles!" He just can't seem to shake her.

...went to a "sprayground" in Dunedin with friends...

She loved it.

...and spent lots of time downtown.

Left: at the Pier with Grammy; Right: Hanging out with Mama

My love in the grass with the Pier behind her

I have really been grateful for such nice weather and the ability to get out and stretch our legs. Ellie loves all these outdoor activities and being able to let her crawl through the grass (or at the beach, or in the backyard) has been great as she also loves to explore. I know soon the weather will become oppressively hot and outdoor time will have to be limited to mornings and late afternoons to avoid the most severe heat of the day, or, will have to involve lots of water play. But we're certainly not complaining about any of that, and at least for now, Ellie is having a ball!