This year we went to Anza Borrego State Park to see the blooms. With Siena and Bella loaded up for a day out, we headed south east. It was quite a journey and longer than we remembered, but still as beautiful when we got there. It was amazing getting to see Siena touching the flowers and trying to understand what they were. So many delicate flowers in array of colors. Bella was overwhelmed with a new place and experience and decided to smell all of them. Our puppy was thrilled to be out with the family for the day. 
The flowers were great, but there might have been something even better about the trip for me. The smell of the orange blossoms. When first moved to California and made this same trip, the orange blossoms were in full bloom and the sweet smell was amazing. I remember just how much Lisa loved that aroma (her first time smelling it) and how she talked about it for weeks after our visit. So when our second stop for flower viewing was across from an orange orchard, the smell of the orange blossoms hit us as soon as we opened the car door. Lisa immediately lit up and fell in love with sweet aroma all over again. For me seeing the smile on her face and watching her enjoy the smell sent me back eight years in time. Some things are perpetual in life, my wife’s beautiful smile and look of joy she gets enjoying the fragrance of the orange blossoms in spring are two of those things.
The cliché is that you should stop to smell the roses, but for me the orange blossoms will do just fine.
