We’ve had a week of decidedly un-April weather, with nothing but sunshine and warm temperatures. I’d be complaining about it more, but happily there are lots of residential trails near my new job, so I went on a few short walks over lunch to take advantage of the weather before it gets too hot and summery. I’ve also been slowly discovering all the best places to pick up lunch, since I’m not particularly familiar with Bellevue. I have yet to find a gem like Deru Market from my days working in Kirkland, but I’ve at least found good Thai restaurant with a cute bubble tea shop next door - a good start!

I love the transitions between seasons, and one of my favorite changes during the transition from winter to spring is the moment when tiny, brilliantly green leaves being to unfold. Streets lined by bare branches for  months will suddenly erupt in a vibrant, pale green. This year, I seem to have missed that transition. After yet another hectic week of work spent almost entirely indoors, it suddenly looks like summer. The shock of green when I walk out the door is still as surprising as ever, but I'm sad to have missed that first splash of new foliage. After spending most of the week indoors, I was happy to get out for some trail work with WTA Saturday morning - even if it did mean getting up early! This time around, I'd signed up for an all-women work party, so for the first time, I left Andy at home for some solo trail work. Since it was on the same trail Andy and I worked on in January, I had a pretty good idea of what I was in for. Last time, we'd spent our day building puncheon through a swampy stretch of trail (aka mud pit). Thankfully, it hadn't rained nearly as much in the week leading up to this work party as it had in January, so the area had dried out. Not to worry though, I still managed to get plenty muddy over the course of the day!