So if the design doesn't give it away, I have a secret to tell... (sssssshhhhh)

I have issues.

And the #1 person smack in the crosshairs 24/7 is my loving husband (he knew what he was getting into), the Significant Other, otherwise known as the guy who listens to Dave Ramsey too much and therefore won't let me get new windows until we can actually pay for them.

He also won't let me get a new deck, new porch, new garage door sans hole, new floors, new bedroom furniture and remodeled bathrooms. But who's counting?

Anyway...

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(that's Tim on the east side of the pile)

(we have neighbors! who knew?)

Got to be a hero today. And the day before. (With Kristie and Mike.) Work stuff. But it was cool.

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Watership Down (by Richard Adams) is my favorite book. Has been since 7th grade. So last night I about busted in half when Colton said he wanted to read it - and he's already 50 pages in. And he loves it!

Wow. This must be how Archie Manning must have felt when his boys said they wanted to play football.

I'm such a geek. And now I've grown another one! (He took the book to daycare with him today, and was talking about it the whole way.)

So every year on his birthday (today!) I post about my little brother, Nate.

He passed away back in 2003 - and I usually write something about the car crash, or maybe a funny anecdote from growing up with him.

Not this time. Today I woke up to the sound of birds outside my window. It was such a beautifully unexpected sound (SD has been a frozen tundra lately). But whaddya know? This morning, birds.

Abbey crawled in next to me about 6:30am and we listened together in the dark. It was a great way to start the day. (Later Eric stampeded in, hollering, and no more birds after that.)

He whispered later; "Mom. I bet they were just finding food. Then they went back to their shelter. You know, six more weeks of winter?"

So in honor of spring - and how much I loved my brother - found this Flickr slideshow on the subject.

IMAGE: Kristie took this shot last month of a cardinal checking himself out in her rearview mirror. I've since thought she should submit it to some photo contest - but until she does, thought I would use it for this post.

Here's to spring!

Postsecret + YouTube:

My sweetie-pie niece turns 2 today! So this post is for Mollie (and any other parents of young kids who feel like looking):

Here is an all-inclusive site: parentingtoddlers.com.

Some other light reading: Let's Talk Potty Training ... Why Does My Toddler Eat Dog Food ... Coping with Difficult Behavior ... and my personal favorite ... How to Quickly Diffuse a Temper Tantrum. (Those last two my husband could probably use on me...)

Oh, and a few things you WON'T be doing for a while: The Chicago bar and nightclub scene ... and Relaxing on the couch.

Behold Ab's custom-designed gift bag for her friend. Pretty cool, huh? (There may be too many stickers, but she'll learn restraint later.) I think she's gonna go into the biz... although when I told her how someday she could illustrate pinto beans or something for a client's package design, she didn't seem too enthused.