Spring equinox brings light but not much warmth to Chicago. While it is traditionally a time of rebirth and liberation, it's a fairly theoretical notion this far north. Having a full 12 hours of sunlight, though, does help! There are hints of regrowth here...

For a spring vacation and a celebration of our fourth anniversary, Don and I headed south to St. Louis, where spring had definitely arrived. The famous arch is cool to look at, but not recommended to visit unless you're totally free of claustrophobic and acrophobic tendencies!

We stayed at a very cool B&B called Napoleon's Retreat in the Lafayette Square area. The buildings here are far older than what you would see in Chicago since they didn't have anything quite as bad as the Chicago Fire.

The Missouri Botanical Garden is gorgeous, particularly the contemplative Japanese garden. It would be great to visit it as the seasons change...particularly if the ubiquitous screaming children found some other place to play.