Chag HaAviv

Passover is also known as Chag HaAviv, Festival of the Spring, and with good reason. No matter when in the secular calendar Passover falls, be it mid-March or late-April, that is when Spring seems to occur. We spent Passover in its entirety at my parents' house, as we do every year. We had a fabulous time. I especially enjoyed sleeping in an extra hour every morning while my dad fed and entertained the kids. It was so nice to spend so much quality with our family- and so much of it outdoors!

Highlights included:

Seders (complete with our kid-friendly seder on the afternoon before the second seder):




Playdates with friends (including blogger friends- say hi to CBHM's Z and E!):



The National Zoo:



----> entire lion family!

When we got home we found that Spring had indeed sprung at our house while we were away. The blossoming tree that we played under the week before we left was now covered in leaves. Bushes that had previously been bare were now in bloom. The water that had accumulated on top of our pool cover was full of tadpoles, some of which have metamorphosed (that is the correct word, I looked it up!) into frogs that croak in the evening. And, once again, there is a nest right outside the kitchen window. Spring is here to stay! Until, of course, Summer arrives, which is even better :)