WELL, the first day of spring came and went with a little sun and a little snow, which has been typical for March. I know I’m ready to trade a little of the snowy, rainy showers for some April flowers.

And though I can’t promise sunshine from here on out, I can promise that our April Views & Voices, coming out Wednesday, will warm your heart and put you in the right frame of mind for spring.

Our “Secret Garden” edition focuses on new life of many kinds, including babies and plants. This month you will meet Helene Roberts of Shenango Township, who gives the gift of new life to those who struggle with infertility by being a surrogate mother or “gestational carrier.”

And rejoice with the family of Aubrey Ann Munnell, our cover baby, as they celebrate their miraculous baby who was born three months premature but is now thriving.

It wouldn’t be spring without the Penn State Master Gardeners of Mercer County getting in on the act, so they share with us –– through picture and written word –– various kinds of garden beds and how they can be created.

And The Herald’s own Kim Curry waxes florally poetic as she tells of her trip to beautiful Kingwood Center in Mansfield, Ohio. And closer to home, a visit to Into Antiques, Ellwood City, will bring you in touch with interesting antiques, tasty food and lovely gardens all in one trip.

And keeping flowers in bloom is the passion of Anne Bruening of New Wilmington, who uses a unique way to beautifully and creatively preserve bouquets and other floral arrangments.

Organic baby food recipes, tax tips, and belly cast art are some of the other offerings we have for our readers in April’s edition as well.

And speaking of readers, we truly appreciate all the feedback we get from them and are implementing a few of their ideas.

Because of the request of readers to know more about local restaurants, we are starting a dining guide within our pages, so that the magazine can also be used as a reference for area restaurants. And because we care about our local restaurant owners, the cost to be included in our dining guide is minimal.

We also received great feedback about our animal edition in February and will be running a new feature starting in May –– “Animal Tales” –– to share the stories of people in our community and their support of furry and feathered friends.

Another request has been to include a crossword puzzle, which we began running in our March edition. We also encourage businesses who are looking for a unique way of promoting their business to sponsor the puzzle, once again at minimal cost.

And finally, many readers have asked about those we’ve featured in the past, so also beginning in our May edition, we are starting a new feature –– “Re-Views & Voices” –– where we revisit past stories and the people featured to get an update on their lives and situations.

We just want our readers to know that we do listen and we do appreciate the feedback. We know this magazine travels (even to the Oval Office, from what we recently discovered) and we are proud to represent this area and the community of women and families the magazine represents. Be sure to thank an advertiser for supporting your magazine and thus your community, and keep the feedback coming.

Information: sherris@sharonherald.com or 724-854-5265