Seasonable

I've never liked spring. It always seemed a muddy, windy, chilly mess. But now I realize the problem was my location. Spring can be done well and can be beautiful. Here, the sun comes out, the grass and flowers spring instantly to life, and the air becomes soft and warm. Humidity lurks around the corner like a puma, but elects to hold off. In short, no one does spring like the mid-Atlantic.
This realization made me ponder a great gift that bopping around North America has given me: the enjoyment of each season in the location that does each of them best. Here's my highly individualized and opinionated list:

Spring: Mid-Atlantic, as previously mentioned. I will also note that we had the foresight to embark on our inaugural east coast camping trip a couple of weekends ago, and it was timed perfectly. No wind (first. time. ever.), not too hot during the day, nor too cold at night. Anna had a blast and Isaac complained the whole time, mostly about being bored because no one was playing with him constantly. Despite this, he had fun I think. Mostly fun with the axe and the fire, but that's the way it goes sometimes. He also managed to fall into 6" of water and completely soak himself from hat to shoe. He waited to complete this feat until we were at the furthest point of our hike. As a result, I have this memory of him riding daddy's shoulders, wearing only Anna's graciously donated sweater, with a little bum peeking out from underneath. The point is, spring is a good time for outdoorsy stuff around here, although the ticks and poison ivy continue to terrify me.

Summer: For my (flight) money, it's Alberta every time. Warm without being oppressive, and the evenings cool down down dramatically which is better for sleeping. Gorgeous thunderstorms, but rarely a whole day filled with rain. Sunsets late into the evening (10ish), although I do have a beef with the sunrises (4ish). You can grow giant pumpkins with that much sunshine, and many do. Lakes, rivers, hills, trees, flowers, mountains, and tiny tiny bugs. I love Alberta. Counting the days until our return.

Fall: The Northeast, of course. Brilliant BRILLIANT trees. It looks like someone painted them. Much has been written about the beauty of the trees, so I won't expound on that. What I will say is that autumn also brings with it relief from the oppressive summers, which was a big deal when we didn't have central air. The fruit orchards are also without compare. Apples, peaches, plums, pears.... outstanding.

Winter: This is tricky, and it really depends on what one wants to do during this season. The best vacation I ever had was in early December on our honeymoon in Cancun. Being between the Thanksgiving and Christmas visitors, the resort was uncrowded while the weather was still perfect. But we didn't live there, of course. The best winter living is Colorado. Like snow? It can come down in buckets for all your skiing, snowshoeing, fort building, and snowball throwing needs. Sick of snow? It will be mostly gone in a week or so. Not enough snow? Head for the nearby mountains, where it stays all through the season. The temps rarely get too cold (again, this is an individualized assessment; and I'm from Canada) and there's usually a few spring-like days to beat the January/ February doldrums. Of course it can get really cold, which is a great excuse for snuggling by the fire with hot cocoa.
Of course my Dad, who hates the white stuff, would say that Yuma, AZ is the best place to spend winter. He is entitled to his opinion. Even if it's wrong.


Obviously I am partial to the places that I have lived. But I do think each of them has a shining season, and I'm glad to have experienced them.