Springtime joy

Remember those Peanuts comics telling you that happiness is a warm puppy or a big bunch of dry leaves? What I especially like about these drawings is that they make you appreciate the small things in life.

So every now and then I try to do the same. To share a little happiness. Back in the winter of 2009, happiness to me was a warm fireplace, while some months earlier happiness was rediscovering one of my butterfly shots, as it made me realise just how fantastic summer in little old Denmark can be.

Right now, on this particular April Saturday, happiness is springtime. We are enjoying one of the first really sunny and almost warm days of 2011. On such a day, you don't have to do much else than simply look out the window, and a smile immediately appears.

So: Happiness is...one of the first beautiful spring days following a long winter.

The picture today is obviously from Paris. Here spring sprung a little earlier than in Denmark, giving us the opportunity to enjoy European springtime when we went there in March.

Sicilian Summer!

Not really loving all the rain in Denmark at the moment, I'm already reminiscing about our fabulous summer holiday in Sicily two weeks ago. So here goes: A couple of pictures that I feel capture some of the amazing essence of the Italian island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea.

A little something to look forward to

Now, in case you didn't notice from my last post, January here in little Denmark far up north is often quite dark, rainy or even sporting snow (no pun intended). But what it does offer - except for a good reason to curl up under a blanket with a movie and a hot cup of chocolate - is some of the most beautiful mornings on those cold and clear days.

Still, winter CAN get a liiiittle too long - in other words (and to quote miss Olivia), you start longing for those su-ummer ni-ights - and days. It's moving in the right direction, though. Days are getting longer and we see more light during a day, so, though it is still freezing cold, spring is closing in on us, and so are those summer days and nights (tell me more, tell me more...).

So today's post is meant to be a teaser. A little something to shake that winter-weary head of yours and dig out the memories of summer days passed to remind you (and myself) what this little northern country also has to offer.

Remember those summer days, which may be few but then are even more blessing, when the sun shines on us, when the evenings are mild, when everything is in bloom, and when butterflies like the one above flutter around us. Got the image in your head? Good! Now, hang on to that for the next couple months, and before you know it, summer will be here again.