Springtime! Outside!

It's springtime here in Germany, and that means the flowers are starting to bloom, trees are starting to bud, and the weather is becoming downright gorgeous.  We've had temps in the 70's the past few days (or at least mid to high 60's), the sun has been shining for at least part of the day, and the breeze is cool without being cold.  Perfect weather to enjoy being outside.

I used to daydream about having a baby to take outside when the weather is nice, to sit on the lawn and play.  In my little fantasy, the baby would be happy to be enjoying the fresh air with Mommy.  We would play, maybe look at a book, and in the end the baby would fall asleep on the blanket in the grass, snuggled up under my arm, and I would look at the clouds or read a book of my own while enjoying the sunshine-y day.

Now that I have a baby, I could not wait to make this a reality.  The first day I tried this, she was already having a super grumpy day.  So when she just laid there like this:

I thought it was just because she was having a bad day.  When she started crying, I thought, Well, this is no different than what she's been doing all day today, poor girl, and we went back inside.  I was convinced it was not because she hated the outside, and was determined to try again later.
Yesterday, the weather was beautiful and my baby was super happy.  So I packed up a laundry basket with my big playmat, toys and a book for her, her bumbo seat, a blanket, my nursing cover, water and a snack for me, and a book for me optimistically thinking maybe she'll take a nap outside (another of my favorite spring and summer activities) and I can lay down with her and read my book.  Then I put her in my sling and walked out.

For a few minutes, we sat there together, feeling the spring breeze on our faces and basking in the sun.  She was happy and content.  I took her out of the sling and put her down on the mat on her tummy, which is her favorite way to play right now.  Then I grabbed the camera ready for her normal tummy-time smiles, and ready to capture our playing outside on film.  Instead, I got this:

Apparently, my daughter hates playing outside.  She likes walks.  She likes being in the ring sling outside.  Just not on the ground.  Can you hear the sound of my shattered daydream?  Hee hee.  I guess we'll try again at a later date.  I think it's kind of funny, but I can't believe how much she hates the outside right now.  We'll keep trying when she's a little older, but for now we'll be content with tummy time in the house.