It May Be The Hodgepodge

Welcome to another week of Wednesday Hodgepodge-ing. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then be sure to say hi to your neighbor there. Here we go... 

1. Let's compare this May to last May. What's changed? What remains very much the same? 

I looked back over my blog from last May and it seems life is not all that different than it was one year ago in terms of the month itself. As far as what has changed in the last year, the biggest would be my oldest daughter's geography. 

She and her hubs and kids were living in Cincy last May, moved to the UK for six months, and are now living literally right down the road from us in SC so that's one big change. 

The grands are all a year older and so are we. 

2. What's something you may do this month? 

I may visit a farmer's market. They're opening up in our area now and that's something I like to do this time of year especially. We have a few weekend happenings on the calendar already, but hoping I can make it to the market some Saturday. 

Our town has a Thursday night music thing, where they close the main road and there's a band and food trucks, and it's just a fun night out. It runs April-October, but we haven't made it to one yet. Hoping to get there in May. 

3. Mother's Day is approaching (in the US of A)...in what way(s) are you like your mother? 

I've always been a lot like my mom. For starters we're both stubborn-ha! I'm gonna own it because it's true. We both love Jesus, books, shoes, beautiful gardens, and time in the kitchen. We see motherhood as a calling, we're independent, and we love our people and also our space. 

My mom will turn 95 on her birthday this year, so not all of these are part of her life now, but they're definitely what I associate with her and how I picture her in my head. 

4. Did you have a favorite book as a child? What was it and why was it a favorite. 

I had several favorites...Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, Charlotte's Web by E.B. White, Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne,  and Crow Boy by Taro Yashima are definitely at the top of my list. My mom read aloud to my younger sister and I all throughout our childhood, well past the point we could have read those same books ourselves. 

Growing up we had a formal living room and a den in our house, and we never played in the living room. That space was for grown up gatherings and holidays, but my mom would read to us there which made the time feel extra special. 

My sister and I would sit on either side of her on the couch and through those books we developed a real and lasting love of reading, as well as a shared language and a closeness with our mom that carries weight. There are several expressions from the books I mentioned that we still use today. They gave us lots of 'scope for the imagination', and if you don't know that expression then you've never met Anne. With an e. 

If you've never read Crow Boy by Taro Yashima, check it out. 

5. Are you more of a tortoise or a hare? Explain. 

I have always been a hare, but these days I'd say I'm 'a little more tortoise. I'm savoring slower mornings and a slower pace in general. Pretty sure people might still say hubs and I are a couple of hares though. 

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

In honor of Mother's Day I'm linking to a post I wrote back in 2012, a sort of ode to motherhood. You'll find it linked here -K is for The Keepers.  

Happy Mother's Day to all the mommas reading here today...

...most especially to my own sweet girls who are now mothers themselves, and who continue to teach me so much about so many things.

"For all the things my hands have held, the best by far is you."-Author unknown

Hey Y'all~It's Monday

Good morning friends. I hope your weekend was grand. Ours was busy and delightful. Delightfully busy I guess you could say. Did you watch the Derby? 

On Friday the 'kids' furniture was delivered to their new home. My son-in-law had to be in Charlotte all day for a medical thing (work, not illness) that was scheduled before they knew when the furniture was arriving, but we rally here. 

The in-laws picked up the grands first thing and took them back to their house for the weekend, then I went to my daughter's house to help with the unpacking. Hubs stayed at our house since we had scheduled a whole house clean for that day because...

Saturday we were having 32 people here for a Derby party.

We like it complicated. 

My daughter and I unwrapped at least 100 pieces of glassware, and managed to get most of the kitchen unboxed so the movers could take the empties and filler with them. I went to pick up lunch for everyone and got back to her house in the middle of a crazy hail storm. Insane! I was a little worried about my car but think it survived unscathed. 

My daughter's house is a mere four miles from my own house but hubs said we had all rain, zero hail. The lake can make the weather wonky (er). 

Meanwhile, at my house every nook, cranny, window, and corner was being dusted, mopped, wiped down, wiped off and vacuumed. These girls did the most fabulous job and there is nothing better on a Friday afternoon than walking into a sparkling clean house. We normally do it ourselves but given the timing of the move/party we decided to call in the professionals and it was worth every penny.

Friday night we checked out a newish place for dinner,  a distillery with a charming western vibe (the owners are former rodeo competitors). Hubs and I shared a salad and a pasta and both were delish. The 'kids' joined us as we were finishing up and my daughter and I split a chocolate dessert which was fun. 

For some reason the cake looks ginormous in this picture, but it was just a normal serving. We got home around 9 and hubs cranked up the Big Green Egg to start the BBQ we would be serving the next day. 

We had eighteen pounds of meat (three pork butts he'd seasoned that morning) and knew they would take about 16 hours to cook, cool, and shred. 

It's a whole big process which hubs manages like a boss. I'm just here for moral support and the end result- 

Saturday we were hosting a Derby party and the sky kept us guessing as to whether that would be indoors or out until pretty much the last minute. The plan was for outdoors, but we had some rain in the early part of the afternoon and the forecast wasn't the best. Our dining space is covered and so is the main seating area, but the grilling area is not and neither is the waterfall patio. 

The party was starting at 4:30 and at 4:15 we finally felt like it was safe to uncover the furniture and bring more chairs down to the lower patio. I put a six foot table there too so people could spread out. 

And they did. 

People were everywhere and it was so much fun! 

The new space worked out really well, comfortable and cozy and it felt exactly as we hoped it would feel. 

Hubs made his famous mint juleps and we put some red roses around and I have some fun little picks and table runners and a horse poster to add to the festivities. 

Everyone brought appetizers, salads, or desserts to go with the BBQ, which was one of hubs best...so good! 

The race itself is short but definitely lives up to its billing as the most exciting two minutes in sports. You know what our highlight was? About an hour before the party ended my daughter and her hubs walked in. 

Hubs said his heart leapt when he saw her from across the room, because it was just this unexpected moment we both were able to recognize as our new normal. We have never lived near enough for us to say, 'hey we're having a party, why don't you come?', and now we do. 

On Sunday hubs and I were supposed to drive over to TN to attend the funeral of a college friend. We hadn't been traveling long when we got a call that the service would need to be rescheduled due to a separate family emergency. Such a hard thing for these folks to navigate and I really feel for them. 

We turned around and stopped for breakfast at a place we like, then I changed into comfy clothes and watched movies and napped the afternoon away. Hubs was out getting the leaves off the driveway, moving chairs back where they belong, and carrying a table to the attic, but that's the hubs. 

I took the day off because a day off is sometimes needed, and today was that day.

I hope you had a nice weekend too. Hop over to the Hello Monday link up hosted by Holly and Sarah to add your own recap and see what others are sharing there too.

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 601

Here are the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (May 7th) to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. Let's compare this May to last May. What's changed? What remains very much the same? 

2. What's something you may do this month? 

3. Mother's Day is approaching (in the US of A)...in what way(s) are you like your mother? 

4. Did you have a favorite book as a child? What was it and why was it a favorite. 

5. Are you more of a tortoise or a hare? Explain. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Share Your Shelf-April

Hello friends and hello May. Since the first day of the month is also the first Thursday of the month, it's time to Share Our Shelves. This link up is hosted by Tanya-Marilyn-Joanne-and Jenn. Hop over to add your books or see what others have been reading lately. 

I didn't read as much in April as I normally do. There was a lot of nighttime blogging in April in an effort to keep up with the A-Z Blog Challenge, plus there was just a lot going on here. Which I know I say every month, but April was extra and I had less time to relax with a book. 

I read three books and one was almost 700 pages, so maybe that should count double? Here's what I read in April-

 

1. Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo

Julia Ames is a woman in her late 50's living a seemingly comfortable life with her husband Mark and their two grown children. Her son unexpectedly announces he is going to marry and then quickly become a father, and her daughter is headed to college. Julia grapples with all the things women her age grapple with-parenting, relationships, regret, purpose. 

Julia's everyday ordinary is interrupted one day by a chance encounter with an old friend, an older woman named Helen Russo. This encounter forces Julia to confront some unresolved issues from her past and the story proceeds from there.  The timeline jumps around some (but it works) from present day to the early married years, to raising children and even back to Julia's own childhood. As a wife and mother she struggles to communicate with the people she loves including her husband, her children, and especially her mother. There are hints of childhood trauma which Julia acknowledges have had a lasting impact and lots of dysfunction in that particular relationship. 

I thought the book was just okay. In my opinion it needed editing and I didn't love the main character, which of course is going to make me love the book less. Claire Lombardo is an excellent writer but this one felt long given the story told. There was also a sense of gloominess to the story that I didn't care for. I gave it three stars. 

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

Recently I went through my Goodreads list of 'want-to-reads' and deleted a few titles that no longer held any appeal. I also found a few that have been on the list for several years, that I never got around to reading. I decided to try and read one of these 'oldies' (not classic old, just been on my list a long time old) each month. Saving CeeCee Honeycutt has been on my list since 2012. I didn't even realize I'd been on Goodreads that long. 

This is the tender story of 12-year old CeeCee Honeycutt, who has grown up in Ohio caring for her psychotic mother. Her dad is basically absentee and checked out. In the aftermath of a tragic event CeeCee's great aunt Tootie arrives from Savannah to take charge of CeeCee, and a new life begins for the young girl. 

This is a simple, but poignant tale, uncomplicated yet moving. There's no big buildup to something you didn't see coming, but it is sweetly told, well written, and just an enjoyable read overall. I gave it four stars.

The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins 

As I mentioned last month, I'm trying to read at least one classic novel each month this year, and The Woman In White was the one I chose for April.  A blog friend (Maria at Memorable Moments and Modest Missives) reminded me of this book in a message she sent me, and I hadn't thought about the novel in years. So glad to have rediscovered this gem...thank you Maria! 

The Woman In White, written in the mid-1800's, is one of the earliest examples of detective fiction, and  incorporates many Gothic elements like mystery, suspense, and deep dark secrets. The story holds up very well some 160+ years later. I've said this same thing each month about whatever classic it is I happen to have read, but the language in these novels is exquisite. 

Now for the plot...Walter Hartright, a young art teacher living in London, comes across a woman late one evening, dressed all in white, and in a state of distress. He learns later she has escaped from an asylum. Walter is headed to Cumberland to work as the drawing instructor for two young ladies at Limmeridge House, and when he shares this bit of news with the mystery woman he's surprised to learn she knows the house and speaks very highly of the deceased Mrs. Fairlee, who was the wife of the former owner.

Current residents of Limmeridge House are Frederick Fairlie, the quirky and reclusive uncle of Laura Fairlee. Laura and her devoted half-sister Marian Holcombe, also reside at Limmeridge House. 

Hartright finds that Laura bears an astonishing resemblance to the woman in white, whose name it turns out is Anne Catherick. As the story progresses we learn Anne had lived for a time in Cumberland as a child and was devoted to Laura's mother (Mrs. Fairlee), who first dressed her in white.

Walter's relationship with Laura, the family's complicated history, and the actions of the mysterious Sir Percival Glyde and his friend Count Fosco lead to a series of revelations and events that challenge sanity, identity, and the power of the human spirit. 

The mystery of the woman in white unfolds at a pace I absolutely loved. In pieces, but pieces big enough to keep you wanting more of this almost 700 page novel. Five stars for me. 

Have you read anything great this month? If so please share. Happy May everyone!