Hello Spring, Goodbye Michelin Woman

We (ahem…Steve) mowed our lawn today, so it’s official: no more snow!
Cue the confetti and the lawn chairs!

I’ve been waiting twelve whole months to share this note—because this one’s a favorite.

💛💙❤️

This Minnesota girl is feeling hopeful!
Just listen…
Do you hear it?

It’s a sweet, breezy melody that sounds like hummingbirds humming hope — bringing lightness, sweetness, and a whole lot of gleefulness.
And it’s just warming up.

Over the next few weeks, that hum will swell into harmony — giggles, outdoor music, and delicious slurps from icy beverages.

You’ll hear it.
If you live in the Midwest, open your windows, lean out the screen door, and listen.
If you aren’t a blizzard → road construction → mosquito resident, just tilt your head toward Minnesota. We’ll send the signal.

It’s happening …
It’s The Annual Switch.
At last!

Bulky parkas with frayed zippers and hood drawstrings are officially switching places with jackets in buttercup yellow, sky blue, and cinnamon spice.

The bins have been opened. The coats have been swapped.

From trailer parks to farmhouses, cul-de-sacs to city apartments, voices everywhere are rising in one jubilant shout:
Thanks be to God—it’s time!

Even the most reserved Scandinavian-Lutheran girlfriends—yes, even the ones who can’t imagine clapping in rhythm to a hymn while sitting in the church pew—are doing The Switch Happy Dance in their kitchens.

Goodbye, bulk.
Hello, springtime.

We’re no longer shielding our faces from -30° windchills and sleet. (And let’s be honest: “chill” was never the right word. “Windfreeze” is more like it.)

No more cushiony coats for icy sidewalk butt-landings.
No more three-layered mittens, tight-wrapped scarves, or boots that could double as ankle weights.

Now?
We’re flinging open the Rubbermaid tubs and embracing scarves that flow instead of bind.
We’re trading wool socks for sandals and letting our toes spread out like they’re on vacation.
(Deep bows to my girlfriends who could wear the stylish 2-inch heeled boots and stay upright when walking the skating rinks we used to call parking lots.)

In lighter jackets, our arms can actually bend.
We can turn our heads and see something other than the inside of a hood.

Goodbye, Michelin Woman.
Hello, Spring.
We’ve missed you.