Closeups

 I got a new lens for my camera (50 mm), and decided to experiment a little with it. First subjects: Desert Boy and Desert Girl, of course! The one above ended up being a little fuzzy.

 I decided to change subjects. Desert Girl can be so expressive.

 I sure wish I had all her energy.

 You can just see that she's an imp. She is still in her Emzilla stage (a.k.a rearrange continuously a.k.a. mass destruction). Our house is not pretty. At all. The last few days I've given up and we are living in total chaos. Well, a bunch of teenage boys would probably be worse. Like when my husband was a teenager. He seems to like chaos quite a bit, at least if that means he doesn't have to pick up.

 She has managed to perfect the "Who, me?" look.

 She has her sad moments. And when she says, "I so sad," you can't help but smile and give her a hug.

I also found out that a 50mm lens can get you close enough to see more than you probably want to see on a gritty little desert face. Like her eyebrow look?

Most of the time the kids get along well, which is a real blessing. We've been trying to spend more time outside.

Here are the signs of spring we've seen/heard/experienced so far:
-side-blotched lizards scurrying out of the way of our bikes
-mourning cloak butterflies sweeping down to the rocks
-American robins and western meadowlarks singing their mating songs
-Tiny bits of green grass pushing up in the lawn (but no flowers yet)
-Killdeer and spotted towhees making noise
-The need for an allergy pill due to something in the air
-plenty of mud to track into the house, van, and anywhere else we go

What signs are you seeing/hearing/experiencing?