Keira is often one of the first to wake up in our family. She hops out of bed, scurries to her window to open her shade, and gets ready to start her day. I've been lucky enough to come into her room to catch a glimpse of her standing there in her jammies, hand on the windowsill, watching the sunrise.

My Keira.

Then she picks a book from her shelf and curls up on the family room couch, reading quietly to herself while I putter in the kitchen and make breakfast. And when I look over and see her, I realize how much she's truly becoming a big girl. Watching her grow, learn, and blossom is truly amazing, and I love being a part of that process.

Most recently, we've ventured into note-writing. On the flight back East, the girls were getting rather cross, and I had a lightbulb moment. I would pass them a note! It was always a good way to keep myself entertained when I was bored at school (sorry, Mom). Perhaps it would work now, too.

It was a little challenging trying to remember how to fold the paper, but my efforts were worthwhile. The girls' faces lit up when I handed the notes across the aisle -- Ellie's with a tiny drawing instead, and Keira's with a brief message. We passed back and forth, and the final hour to the flight went by quickly.

The inspiration wasn't purely my own. Keira's actually been producing a flurry of writing over these last few months. She has an entire stack of tiny notebooks that she's constantly using to scribble comments, write stories, and jot ideas.

So what does she have to say? Well...
She helped Felix list out all the repairs that we need to do this spring. Toilet? Check. Took care of that today!

Keira makes other lists, too:
But my favorites, now that I've introduced her to the world of note-writing, are the little secret messages that she writes just for me:

My Keira.

I confess that I don't remember much about spring break as a kid. Did we go on family vacations? Veg out at home? Sleep in late or cavort in the yard? It seems so blurry.

Yet now, I look forward to spring break. I ponder the numerous ways in which we can spend time together as a family, the places where we can go, the things that we can do. This year was especially meaningful to me as I feel like our children are finally at an age when the break gains meaning for them, too.

We spent the first half in New Jersey visiting my parents. Keira, Ellie, and Bryce thoroughly enjoyed recapturing my childhood, from hiking around Schooley's Mountain Park to devouring Dairy Queen soft-serve on the banks of the local river. It was such a strange juxtaposition of past and present, bringing together my childhood with theirs. I pointed out the small nature center where I attended summer camp, and we stopped for snacks at the General Store where it has stood and operated since1830. I also got lost trying to find WalMart (wasn't there a forest there before?), exclaimed in surprise when we drove by "Bert the Eagle" (what happened to the Liberty Tree?!), and bought an ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery instead of Carvel (miss those chocolate crunchies...).

The second half of the trip was spent in Virginia and Washington, DC. We visited Elizabeth, and I must say -- it was a blast seeing our kids playing together! We also went to the Museum of Natural History (mama's favorite place) and the National Air and Space Museum (baba's favorite place). Keira in particular was fascinated by the capital and all its history. For example, as we walked by the Washington monument and the gathering crowd of Tea Party Tax Day protesters:

Keira: Mama, why are there so many people?

Me: Well, these people are here because they're unhappy and want the chance to complain.

K: Why?

M: It's kind of like when Mama tells you that you can't watch TV, and you really want to. So you're angry and decide to complain to Baba. Sometimes the government does things that make some people unhappy, and they want everyone to know that they're not happy. It's one of the great things about living in our country. We're very lucky because we can say whatever we want, whether it's good or bad. It doesn't mean that we get what we want, but we can always speak our minds.

K: (glancing at the protesters) They don't look very unhappy. I don't get it.

M: Well, just because you can talk about being unhappy doesn't mean that you get to throw a tantrum. If you're a troublemaker or get too angry, the police come and take you away. So you have the right to say anything, but not to get crazy.

Or after we visited the Vietnam Memorial and then saw Iwo Jima Memorial and Arlington Cemetary:

Keira: Mama! Those are so many dead people!

Ellie: Where? I don't see any dead people.

K: No, Ellie, they're under the ground.

E: What? What happened to them?

Me: Well, those people were soldiers. That means that they loved our country so much, that they fought for us, sometimes to keep us safe, and other times to protect our rights. But it's a very dangerous job, so a lot of times, soldiers die.

K: Do you think I should become a soldier when I grow up?

M: (pause) You know, baby, you can be whatever you want, and if you decide you want to be a solider, then Mama would be very proud of you. It would take a lot of courage and mean that you are very brave. I would be proud of that.

K: But do you want me to be one?

M: (longer pause) Umm...To be honest, sweetie, I love you so much that I'd be scared something would happen to you. It's dangerous being a soldier. So if it was up to me, I would keep you safe and not have you be a soldier. But if you wanted to do it, then of course, I would love you and be proud of you. You should be whatever you want to be.

So our first trip to DC? Pretty awesome, pretty profound, and definitely a place to which we will return in the future.

Of course, only time will tell whether the kids actually remember our little spring break excursions, or if their recollections will grow fuzzy over time as mine have. But as a parent? I can tell you that my memory is going strong, and I've already started planning ahead to next April. It'll be awesome, I know.