Luck Of The Hodgepodge

Welcome to this week's edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, and be sure to leave a comment for the blogger there before you. Here we go-

1. St. Patrick's Day lands on March 17th. Do you believe in luck? Are there things you do thinking they'll  bring good luck or things you avoid because they're considered bad luck? 

I'm not superstitious in the least so can't say there are things I do to avoid having bad luck, or vice versa. Some would call being in the right place at the right time lucky, but I believe God orders my steps and has a purpose for all the circumstances of my life. I might say 'good luck' to someone, but what I'm really saying is I'm praying God's best for you. 

2. Forest-lime-sage-mint-olive-emerald...what's your favorite shade of green? 

Green is one of my favorite colors and my favorite shade would depend on what we're talking about. If forced to randomly choose I'd say sage or emerald. 

3. In Ireland the meal on this day is often a hearty beef or lamb stew served with colcannon (mashed potato mixed with cabbage and leeks). In the US corned beef and cabbage is the more typical St. Patty's Day meal. Will you/did you mark the day with one of these dishes? Baked-fried-roasted-mashed...what's your favorite way to eat a potato?

Corned beef and cabbage is a meal we love and it's a once a year thing here so I try not to miss. I put cabbage, carrots and red potatoes in the pot with mine. 

My favorite potato is baked with salted skin and plenty of butter once it's opened. 

4. What color of the rainbow best represents your personality/mood today? Tell us why. 

Do you remember the colors of the rainbow by recalling the ROY G BIV acronym you might have learned as a child? It helps. I went down a rabbit hole reading about how color affects mood and found most thoughts ran along these lines-

red (love and strength), orange (joy and energy), yellow (happiness), green (growth), blue (sorrow), indigo (deep thoughts and imagination), violet (calm and peaceful) 

I'm going with yellow. I'm answering this question on Tuesday morning and my daughter1 and my 3-year old granddaughter are stopping by today so happy it is. 

5. Which 'lucky' quote resonates with you. Elaborate. 

 'Luck is not something you can mention in the presence of self-made men.' E.B. White 

'Diligence is the mother of good luck." Benjamin Franklin 

'Luck is where opportunity meets preparation.' Seneca 

'Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.' Ralph Waldo Emerson 

I'm inclined to go with the Seneca quote. I think opportunities come our way, but if we're ill prepared to meet them luck won't matter. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Not only did my daughter stop by but she brought these festive donuts to mark the day-

Our corned beef and cabbage meal was also delicious-

Happy Wednesday everyone! 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 645

Here are the questions to this week's Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back on Wednesday (March 18th)  to share answers with all the lucky readers. See you there! 

1. St. Patrick's Day lands on March 17th. Do you believe in luck? Are there things you do thinking they'll  bring good luck or  things you avoid because they're considered bad luck? 

2. Forest-lime-sage-mint-olive-emerald...what's your favorite shade of green? 

3. In Ireland the meal on this day is often a hearty beef or lamb stew served with colcannon (mashed potato mixed with cabbage and leeks). In the US corned beef and cabbage is the more typical St. Patty's Day meal. Will you/did you mark the day with one of these dishes? Baked-fried-roasted-mashed...what's your favorite way to eat a potato?

4. What color of the rainbow best represents your personality/mood today? Tell us why. 

5. Which 'lucky' quote resonates with you. Elaborate. 

 'Luck is not something you can mention in the presence of self-made men.' E.B. White 

'Diligence is the mother of good luck." Benjamin Franklin 

'Luck is where opportunity meets preparation.' Seneca 

'Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.' Ralph Waldo Emerson 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Top O' The Mornin' To Ya

Happy St. Patty's Day friends. Are you dressed appropriately? Everyone's a little bit Irish today, right? 

'May the grace of God's protection

and His great love abide

Within your home and within the hearts

of all who dwell inside'...an Irish blessing 

I do have some Irish in me and wore my green sweatshirt yesterday. The sleeves have big hearts at the elbow. Hubs and I have matching T's we'll wear today. He might not know we're gonna match, but we are. We have a call with our financial planner this afternoon and when we booked the time slot his admin reminded me to wear green. It's just a fun little tradition that's easy to do. 

My daughter bought a box of Lucky Charms for the kids to have for breakfast today, which is definitely a treat. Nana might have to indulge too. I'll be making my traditional once a year corned beef dinner with cabbage and red potatoes that we all enjoy, hubs will likely have a Guiness, and that's about the extent of our celebration this year. 

Let's talk weekend. Plus a day or two extra because I'm all over the place on my blog these days. 

Wednesday hubs and I had an appointment with our attorney in the nearby small big city. We've redone our wills and trust and needed to make it all official with our signatures, so we made a day date of it. Nothing says romance like signing your will, but it's good to have it done. 

It was a gorgeous day so we went to lunch at one of my favorite places right after. This little restaurant sits at the edge of a park and we asked for a table outside so we could soak up the sun.  

I had a yummy tomato basil soup with crusty bread and a lightly dressed salad. Hubs had a croque monsieur. The menu is French, and dining here makes me feel a little bit like I'm sitting in a European cafe. 

We walked through the park after lunch and stopped at a little dessert spot for a cup of gelato. It was breezy...

I had a mix of half strawberry-half marscapone, which essentially tasted like strawberries and cream and was super deliziosa. 

How many countries can I reference in a single post? 

Thursday we had a real estate errand to run and that took most of the morning, but at least it was a fun real estate errand. Stay tuned. 

Also, we're not moving. Carry on. 

Ain't no procrastination like tax procrastination, but I finally sent our organizer off to the accountant. Even mailing it was a headache. I drove to the post office that's a little further away because I wanted to stop at Publix on the way home and that was the direction I needed to go. I arrived at the post office and stood in line for fifteen minutes, only to finally get to the counter and discover I did not have my wallet. Bother. 

My daughter asked why I didn't just use Apple Pay, but technology is never my first thought and I was silently a little bit panicked wondering where in the world my wallet might be. I flew out of there and raced home. 

Which is where I'd left my wallet, but ugh. I had to go back  to the post office and stand in yet another line and I never made it to Publix. Once I got home we all loaded up in the car to take the birthday boy for his celebratory cone. 

I told the grands he would probably eat the whole thing in a single bite, two at most, but nope. He licked that cone like it was his last meal, and savored every bite. 

In other news, the little boy grands are playing baseball and you forget how completely inconvenient kids sport practice times are. Let me remind you...dinner time is when they are. And two different teams with zero overlap in the days and times so meal planning and execution has become a little more challenging. Thursday night hubs grilled two pork tenderloins so we would have leftovers for Friday night and that worked out well. 

The weather was fabulous and he made us pork fried rice on the griddle with the leftover meat, which was so good. 

He loves the view from his grill station. 

Saturday we did some chores around the house, watched some Tennessee basketball, and then hubs and I went over to our friend's house for dinner. He's Italian and made his family's recipe for braciole, which I'd never tried. He sent us home with some of the secret sauce and I need to figure out how to duplicate it. I think the sauce is key. 

We were supposed to have storms here overnight on Saturday into Sunday, but they mostly missed us. We did get some rain, which I'm happy about because rain this time of year helps bring the pollen down. We're entering prime pollen season here, and it's not my favorite. 

So what were you up to this weekend? Anything fun or productive? 

I'm linking this post today with Holly and Sarah and their weekly Hello Monday blog party. Hop over to share your own recap and read what other bloggers have to say. Sláinte!

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 594

Here are the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (March 19) to share your answers. See you there! 

1. I write the Hodgepodge questions so they'll post on Sunday, which sometimes throws me off in terms of what day it is. St. Patrick's Day will be celebrated on Monday, March 17th. Did you mark the day in some way? Wear green? Make a special meal? Watch or participate in a parade? 

2. Do you think luck plays a part in your life? Explain. 

3. Of the 15 green foods listed, which one is your favorite and how do you like it prepared? Any on the list that are a hard no for you? In general do you like fruits and veggies? As a kid did you eat them willingly or did you hide peas in your napkin hoping your momma wouldn't see? 

Asparagus, avocado, broccoli, celery, cucumber, grape, green bean, kale, kiwi, lettuce, lime, 

pear, peas, pistachios, spinach

4. What's something that makes you 'turn green'? (with envy or with illness... whichever way you want to run with it)

5. Did you spend a lot of time outdoors as a child? Doing what? Do you spend a lot of time outdoors now? Doing what? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Goofing Off In The Hodgepodge

Welcome to the weekly Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Here we go-

1. Did you celebrate St. Patrick's Day in some way? If so tell us how. Are you a fan of corned beef? Cabbage? The color green? 

We did celebrate, with a neighborhood get together in our clubhouse. Neighbors take turn hosting these once a month gatherings, everyone brings a dish, and it's a fun way to get to know new neighbors and also catch up with old. We had volunteered to host in March and even though it was a week before St. Patty's we went with a St. Patrick's Day theme. Everyone wore something green and brought an Irish dish to share. The food was so good! 

I made corned beef and cabbage for the event and am a fan of both. I only make corned beef once a year and this is the day. I love the color green, one of my favorites. 

2. March 22nd is National Goof Off Day...will you celebrate? Your favorite way to goof off? Last time you had a whole day to spend 'goofing off'? 

I'm retired so technically I can goof off as much as I want. That being said, I prefer to have some sort of schedule in my week, and am happier with at least a little bit of structure. 

What qualifies as goofing off when your time is really your own? My favorite ways to 'goof off' would be reading a book,  floating on the lake, and sipping iced coffee on the porch with my girls or a friend.

3. Something on your to-do list that has been there more than a month? Will this be the month you finally cross it off? 

There is always a fairly long list of the un-crossed on my ongoing to-do list, and quite a few of those tasks have been there a while. We're nearing the end of the month so not sure if any of the big things will be crossed off before the 31st, but I'm trying to pencil some of the more easy to tackle items into my calendar to be done this spring. Not this month, but this season. 

4. In your opinion, what emotion is the most beneficial? Which one is the least useful? 

Most beneficial-joy. Because it's possible no matter the circumstance or situation. 

Least useful-envy. Contentment is the secret to a happy life. 

5. What was your favorite thing to do as a kid? Elaborate. 

So many things come to mind...riding my bike hands free would be one. Except we didn't say hands free back then, we said 'Hey look! No hands!'. Other favorites were the hours spent playing Barbies, paperdolls, and with our dress ups. My mom kept a big box of dress ups in the basement and we loved to make up plays and also play house wearing those clothes.

There were a lot of kids my age in the neighborhood, plus my sister is just a year younger than me, so always someone to play with. Swinging high on the swings, games of HORSE at our neighbor's basketball hoop, tag in the front yard, roller skating and jumping rope on the driveway. 

Aside from school my childhood was very unscheduled. So many hours to run, dream, and play. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I like to see my grands growing up with imagination in the great outdoors too-

"We could have never loved the earth so well if we had had no childhood in it."

~George Eliot

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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 496

The Hodgepodge is back in action this week. Answer  on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. Did you celebrate St. Patrick's Day in some way? If so tell us how. Are you a fan of corned beef? Cabbage? The color green? 

2. March 22nd is National Goof Off Day...will you celebrate? Your favorite way to goof off? Last time you had a whole day to spend 'goofing off'? 

3. Something on your to-do list that has been there more than a month? Will this be the month you finally cross it off? 

4. In your opinion, what emotion is the most beneficial? Which one is the least useful? 

5. What was your favorite thing to do as a kid? Elaborate. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Lucky You! It's The Hodgepodge

Luckily we are still Hodgepodging here on Wednesdays. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post. And be sure to leave a comment for the blogger lucky enough to be on the list before you. Here we go-

1. This week's Hodgepodge lands on St. Patrick's Day. Will you wear green? Eat corned beef and cabbage? Drink green beer? Have you ever been to Ireland? Is it on your travel 'bucket list'? 

I will wear green because why not? I like green, it's one of my favorite colors. I bought a small corned beef so will cook that along with the traditional sides of cabbage and red potatoes. No green beer for me as beer is not my beverage of choice. 

I have never been to Ireland which seems crazy because we lived in a neighboring country. Hubs has been a few times for work, but sadly I was never able to accompany him. It's definitely on my travel bucket list though. 

Are we still allowed to have travel bucket lists or does that seem like the impossible dream right now? 

2. Something you think is 'worth its weight in gold'? 

As much as I struggle with and rail against it I'm going to say technology. The ability to Facetime my daughter and grandsons half a world away is worth it's weight in gold. And even though I think we're all weary of dialing in to those Zoom calls, meetings, classes, and happy hours versus the real thing, this year would have been so much lonelier without our favorite familiar faces on a screen. 

3. Something that makes you 'green around the gills'? 

Boating. Standing for too long on a dock that rocks and rolls. Roller coasters that rock and roll. Rides that spin and spin and spin. Also planes, trains, and automobiles on winding roads. Sometimes straight roads too. 

I think  you get the picture. 

Yes we have a boat. And I fly and drive and do all the things, but I also take my dramamine, wear my 'bands' and have an escape plan for getting to solid ground whenever possible. I'm lots of fun-ha! 

4. What puts a 'spring in your step' these days? 

My people. We'll be seeing the newlyweds in person in just a few weeks and the South Korea crew returns stateside this summer. Just thinking about it puts a spring in my step. 

5. Write a limerick using one of the following as your theme....March, St. Patrick's Day, Covid, 2020 and/or 2021, the color green, or life lately. Yes, you can do it. 

An ode to the year that was...

There once was a virus so strange
Our lives it did rearrange
We sheltered in place
Wore a mask on our face 
And longed for the day things would change

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Because today calls for a splash of green-

Happy St. Patrick's Day Hodgepodgers...and all who read here too! 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 412

Here we go again (still???)...answer the questions on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow to share answers with all your lucky readers. See you there!

1. This week's Hodgepodge lands on St. Patrick's Day. Will you wear green? Eat corned beef and cabbage? Drink green beer? Have you ever been to Ireland? Is it on your travel 'bucket list'? 

2. Something you think is 'worth its weight in gold'? 

3. Something that makes you 'green around the gills'? 

4. What puts a 'spring in your step' these days? 

5. Write a limerick using one of the following as your theme....March, St. Patrick's Day, Covid, 2020 and/or 2021, the color green, or life lately. Yes, you can do it. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Monday March Madness

Good Monday afternoon. I intended to say Good Monday morning, but it is Monday and when I sat down to blog I got distracted by
Pinterestall the things on my desk. There's still a pile, but it's smaller.

So anyway who is loving the madness of March? By madness I mean the NCAA basketball tourney, and not the crazy winter weather that's around. Not around here of course because our weekend weather was gorgeous. We text friends up north pics of us sitting outside in shorts and they text us pics of their patio furniture buried in snow. I do not miss the March snows.

Basketball! You don't even have to follow college hoops to enjoy the NCAA tourney. So many underdogs pulling off upsets and ruining my brackets but still so exciting to watch. I love it because any school can pull off a win and so many games have gone down to the wire.

Question-are you running heat or a.c at your house? It got warm here last night and I informed hubs I was not going to be able to sleep without opening some windows or turning on some air. We're trying to keep the windows closed until the pollen settles down and he informed me we don't run the a.c. in March. Huh? When did that become a rule?

I say when it's 77 degrees in the house we run a.c. no matter what the calendar tells us. I like it about 57 for sleeping but hubs thinks that's nuts so we meet in the middle some where. Also I turned on the a.c.

The view from my pillow first thing in the morning-

The post in the center is one side of a window frame but I didn't take the time to pretty up the shot. This is sunrise au natural.

Friday hubs and I drove to Asheville for the Vintage Home Show. It was a beautiful day for a drive and look whooo we saw en route just hanging out on the power line.

He looked me right in the eye and I gotta say it was a little creepy. I had my window rolled down and it felt like he might swoop right on in. He flew off instead and had an enormous wingspan. So cool!

In my opinion the Vintage show was just okay. It was really crowded and I did get a few ideas for the house but we didn't buy anything. We went over to Sierra Nevada for lunch instead because lunch is always a good idea.

If you've never been and you're in the Asheville area Sierra Nevada is worth a stop, even if you're not much of a beer drinker. They spared no expense in the build and it's absolutely gorgeous. Their food is wonderful too, and the setting makes it even better. Since it was such a nice day we ate inside then hung out for a while at the ginormous firepit out back.

Saturday Daughter2 and her boyfriend came out to the lake for St. Patty's Day and we went to a local favorite spot that was having live music and a food truck featuring Irish fare. They have one of those shuffleboard games, not a court but similar to an air hockey table, and it's my new favorite. I think I've talked hubs into getting one for the house.

Sunday afternoon daughter2 and I attended a fun event near the small big city which I'll talk more about later. Today let's discuss this picture she snapped-

My baby girl is sooo photogenic. Why do my eyes look so tired? I blame the pollen but I'm sure it's nothing a week at the beach couldn't fix. Or a heavy concealer. Or a nice pair of sunglasses. And also maybe a smallish nap. We had a splendid afternoon and not to sound like a broken record but this weather! Fantastic!

We watched a lot of basketball all weekend long, and the 'kids' played a little cornhole too. You have to zoom in to get the full effect, but my daughter's face in this picture makes me smile. She takes her game playing seriously.

Definitely her mama's girl!

Now I need to wrap this up...hubs and I are off to see a movie because it's Monday and we're retired empty nesters. Ha! Take that Monday!

Hodgepodge A La Mode

Slowly but surely getting back in the groove here at home. More slow than sure, but that's how cross country travel always goes. In the meantime here are my answers to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Here we go-

1. Best place you've been lately?

Here-

The Evergreen State. There will be a blog post just as soon as I get my act together in The Palmetto State. 

2. What's something you should say yes to today? Or this week? Or even this year?

Today? A cup of tea. Or a nap. Or maybe both. 

This week? Making a start on the spring cleaning. I'm feeling motivated. After my nap I mean. 

This year? More writing. 

Do I say that every year? Seems like it. 

3. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day in any way, shape, or form? If so tell us how. In Western cultures the color green is typically associated with jealousy, nature, good luck, and growth. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word 'green'?

As far as St. Patrick's Day...some years I make corned beef and cabbage and hubs will drink a Guinness. Does that count? We've never been to a parade or party on the day. When I hear green I think spring aka nature. It's greening up here nicely and there will be plenty of yellow too. In this part of the country we accumulate pollen the way northeasterners accumulate snow. 

4. What's a product or service you love so much you'd happily be their spokesperson? Tell us what makes you such a fan.

I thought of all kinds of answers like J.W. Marriott hotels, Pimms, Ann Taylor, Minted, and England Tourism, but how about we go with something simple and delicious (see I really could be the spokesperson)-Palmetto Cheese. I used to make my own pimento cheese but this one tastes homemade and is every bit as delicious with none of the work. I could even find it in my NJ supermarket so it's not just a Southern thing. 'Palmetto Cheese...the pimento cheese with soul.'

5. March 14th is Pi Day. How are your math skills? What's the last thing you did that required math of any kind? And most importantly do you like pie? What's your favorite kind? With ice cream, whipped cream, or please hold the cream?

I'm okay at math but I think we all know words are more my thing. The last thing I did that required math was just this morning as I sorted out the checkbook and recorded receipts from our trip out west. Words are way more fun. 

And I like the second half of this question better than the first-ha! 

I do like pie, but it's hard to pick a favorite. Cherry or coconut cream would both rank high on my list. Also I don't have a list but if I did they'd be near the top. I'll have a small dollop of ice cream on the cherry and my coconut cream pie recipe is already topped with whipped cream so no need to add anything else to that.  

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Most of my random thoughts today relate to my trip to Washington so I think I'll save all the extra words for a Thursday blog post. See you there! 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 344

This is my first day at home after a week of west coast travel which means it's entirely possible this week's Hodgepodge will reflect my jet lagged sensibilities. Answer the questions on your own blog then fly back over here tomorrow to share answers with the universe.  Here we go-

1. Best place you've been lately?

2. What's something you should say yes to today? Or this week? Or even this year?

3. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day in any way, shape, or form? If so tell us how. In Western cultures the color green is typically associated with jealousy, nature, good luck, and growth. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word 'green'?

4. What's a product or service you love so much you'd happily be their spokesperson? Tell us what makes you such a fan.

5. March 14th is Pi Day. How are your math skills? What's the last thing you did that required math of any kind? And most importantly do you like pie? What's your favorite kind? With ice cream, whipped cream, or please hold the cream?

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Top 'O the Mornin' to Ya

Happy St. Paddy's Day! Do you think I'll be the only blogger using that title today? Are you Irish? Do you wear green anyway? Is corned beef and cabbage on your menu or maybe a sip of green beer? I'm pretty sure that's the American-ized version of the holiday, but we play along.

I have some Irish blood running through my veins, and hubs has a heaping helping in his. Mostly we enjoy Irish food and people, so we like to mark the occasion. Saturday we met a few friends for lunch at a nearby Irish pub, which was lots of fun.

This is my favorite Irishman-

...and I think some of us were more into the spirit of things than others-ha!

I was happy to have someone else cook the corned beef and cabbage, which is a once a year meal for me. Delish!

The thermometer read a balmy 54 degrees on Saturday, so a nice change from where we've been
and are today. The pub sits on a lake and we kind of held our collective breath watching a group of
knuckleheads people pulling a sled out there. We noticed a swan swimming along the shoreline, and if a swan is swimming it means there's water where there once was ice, right?  Should you walk out in the middle of a lake that isn't frozen at the edge? I tend to think not, and thankfully nobody went for an accidental swim.

After we left the Irish pub we stopped at another favorite local spot, where hubs and I shared a piece of Guinness cake. It was a rich deep chocolate, and really light and moist. Do you know what it wasn't? Low calorie! The Irish don't count calories do they?

Course my real favorite green is a little something called spring. Not happening here at the moment, but she's still got four days to get here.  I suspect though, that this year she's going to be fashionably late.

Happy Monday, and today "May your troubles be less and your blessings be more, and nothing but happiness come through your door." (Irish blessing)

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 166

Welcome to another week of Hodgepodging. Answer the questions on your own blog, then scoot back here tomorrow (Wednesday) to link up with all the other lucky people joining the fun. See you there!

1. Do you have an interest in learning about your family's heritage? Why or why not? If you know a little bit about your roots, share an interesting piece of trivia or a fun fact about someone who goes way back on your family tree.

2. Branch Rickey, the baseball exec credited with signing Jackie Robinson, is quoted as saying-

"Luck is the residue of design."

Agree or disagree? Why?

3. In the town where you currently reside, what's your favorite green space?

4. Who is your favorite comedian?

5. March is National Nutrition Month, and almost everyone needs to improve their diet in some way.  What about you? How can you improve your nutrition on a daily basis? Will you try?

6. Which of these green expressions have you 'experienced' in recent weeks -green with envy, green thumb, green around the gills, or give the green light? Explain.

7. Where is one place you don't mind waiting?

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

A Little Bit Of Linus and A Whole Lot of Nothing Much

Hello blog.  It's been a while, but not a whole lot to report or maybe too much, which is why I've been avoiding you. I've eked out the Hodgepodge these past couple of weeks, but that's about it, and I'm determined to say something here today.

Even if that something is essentially nothing.

Who thinks I've spent too much time curled up under my super soft blankie watching mindless television on our overly comfy couch? Do you remember the blanket I got at our neighborhood Christmas party? That blanket y'all! It just might be one of my all time favorite gifts ever.  I don't actually drag it around the house with me, but somedays I'm tempted.

So the weekend. You know the drill-ridiculously cold temperatures that make you wonder why you thought dinner out on a Friday night was a good idea. On the bright side we did not get the foot of snow originally predicted, and instead we got a whopping none. I'll take it. We still have a couple of feet on the ground, frozen so solid you can walk across the top of the 'grass' without falling through. I'm pretty sure I'll be posting photos here in June of the 'big rock candy snow mountain' at the top of our driveway.

Here's the boardwalk in tinytown-

Also, there's a lake out there, and benches in front of the water. 
You'll have to take my word for it...

...or you can wait til July and see for yourself.  

I always say March is the hardest month of the year for me. I won't utter a word of weary complaint about snow in January or February, in fact I love it. But then you flip the calendar and it's like the word SPRING literally pokes you in the eye. It's March, and I need winter to begin tapering off. When you can't see so much as a blade of grass it's hard to imagine that happening, but it will. The earth will not be restrained by a little thing like a snow mountain. Seasons changing are one of God's very best ideas, don't you think?  

We do have a couple of fun things on the calendar which helps, because I need something to look forward to in March. Also, last week I managed to book a couple of small getaways for later this spring, and just seeing the reservations written in my datebook makes my heart feel lighter.  

We watched some of the Oscars last night, hubs would say too much, and I'm inclined to agree.  I thought the show really dragged. I think Ellen DeGeneres is so funny, but even her bits felt like she was working too hard. I did think there were some beautiful gowns, and Charlize Theron is my pick for best dressed. She has the most amazing bone structure, and her hair, makeup, jewelry, and gown were flawless. I loved absolutely everything about her look.

I stayed up too late for a Sunday, but I was thinking we'd at least wake up to the couple of inches still in the forecast, and my 6 a.m. boot camp would likely be cancelled. Where are those snowflakes when you need them? I dragged myself out of bed and the whole ride to the gym I kept thinking how next weekend we spring the clocks forward, which means the 5:15 alarm will actually feel like 4:15. Daylight Savings Time is all a big mind game isn't it?

Last week I had a board meeting at my house and I like to always have a little token of thanks for the volunteers. Usually I make something relating to a holiday or season, and then try to be clever in wording the tags. This month I made these-

I did something similar last year for my daughters on St. Patrick's Day, only for theirs I used Mason Jars.  FYI-it takes a whole lotta Skittles to fill up a Mason Jar. This time round I got smart and used pretzel bags. They are just the right size and hold the rainbow shape. The gold 'at the end of the rainbow' is actually four Rolos, which I think are like gold in their own way. Also, for anyone trying this at home, it seems a bag of Skittles contains a disproportionate number of red and orange as opposed to yellow. I used two big bags of Skittles for eight treat bags, and had to monitor the yellow. There's less purple too, but does anyone actually like the purple?

So that's a little bit of nothing too important on this frigid, but thankfully (unless you count what's already on the ground) un-snowy Monday. I almost feel like digging in to my Spring Cleaning list, and maybe I will, but before I do there's this-

Sunrise from my front porch. If we didn't have winter, would I still have this? Maybe not.  And just when I feel bone weary of the cold gray winter skies God reminds me,"....for everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven." March on!

Spring Fever

So how's spring treatin' ya so far?  Are you sick of clicking on blogs and being greeted with yet another picture of snow falling somewhere?

Me too.  Ha!
Hey, it's mid-March which means spring is here in words and pictures.

Except we've still got snow on the ground. At one point Tuesday morning rain, snow, and ice were simultaneously falling from the sky in some sort of gigantic jumbled weather prank.

Spring is here in word only.

There was one warmish day about two weeks ago ago (and when I say warmish I mean by our standards, not by California or the Southern State standards) where I got all excited and put my hydrangea wreath on the front door.

When I look at this picture now I want to sing that old Sesame Street tune...'One of these things is not like the other, One of these things just doesn't belong...'  

Let's talk about something else...awkward I know, but there's just no graceful way to segue between random nonsense so I'm not even gonna try.

Remember St. Patrick's Day?  I always send my girls a little treat via the US mail because we have Irish roots, and also because they love getting mail.  I adapted something I'd seen on Pinterest and came up with this-

A skittle rainbow.  The 'pot of gold' on the bottom of the jar is actually Rolos.  I had all the skittles dumped into one bowl and was busy sorting by color when hubs came in. He thought this was one of the more insane organizational ideas I'd ever had, that somehow we'd be eating Skittles one color at a time. I have been known to sometimes organize small insignificant stuff by color, but rest assured this was for a gift.

The original craft was done in a cello bag and the printable on top said Happy St. Patrick's Day. I used jars because I liked the look.  Plus I was mailing them and thought the rainbow would stay together better in a jar.  Let me tell you those Skittles were packed in tight. I used most of a large bag for each jar (their dentist can thank me later), and I also changed the wording on top because I'm a little bit sappy.  My tops say-'I'm lucky to be your momma.'  

And I am.

Besides a sweet treat I always send them something 'green', and this year it was a Barnes and Noble Gift Card.  I still buy greeting cards too, because I like words on paper.  Email messages are great, but they don't provide quite the same thrill as the one that comes from opening an honest to goodness mailbox and seeing something with your name and address on it tucked inside.

Aaaand we're changing the subject again...that's why they call this Friday Fragments people...keep up!

I host a meme on my blog every Wednesday and mentioned this week that I'd sprung for some Pottery Barn pillows for one of the bedrooms.  Technically this is daughter1's bedroom when she's home, and a guest room when she's not.  Lots of commenters said 'let's see' so here you go-

Pretty pillows make the world go round.
Something like that.

My calendar is bursting with lots of fun things next week.  Numero Uno will be my girls coming home for the Easter weekend. Daughter2 will get to stay a few additional days since the county schools where she works are on break, and her grad classes are cancelled too.  I've already booked us an afternoon of mani/pedis where we'll sit side by each and likely make the poor manicurist's ears bleed with all our chatter.

The very nice couple who lived beside us in the UK will be in NYC next week, and we've made plans to meet up with them for dinner one night. They had the most beautiful garden and he grew peonies in every color and variety.

Sometimes my life in England feels so very far away.

Speaking of England...raise your hand if you think Princess Kate is adorable. I read an article where she and Wills visited the Child Bereavement Charity of which is he the patron, and it was so touching.  She seems to handle the pressure and attention foisted upon her with such grace, and I love her style. I'd also love her hair guy to call my hair gal and give her the secret to Kate's fabulous, healthy, frizz-free locks.  

In other dining and expatriate news... a co-worker of hubs (again from our UK days) will also be in NYC next week, so we're meeting up with her and her hubs one night too. They're from Italy so after dinner I'll probably want to go home and book myself a trip.

In more travel news, not as exciting as overseas, but still something to look forward to...I've booked a couple days in DC for sometime after Easter, and will be taking my mom with me.  She's never seen Daughter1's apartment or her office, and since Daughter1 and I both had something like the plague on my visit there in January we decided another trip was in order.  I'm hoping the cherry blossoms cooperate and bloom while we're in town.  Originally they were predicted to peak late March, but then March went and got all wintry so the date has been moved back to April.  Yay!

Two dinners in NYC, old friends, kids home, Easter, cherry blossoms...is it any wonder I've got spring fever??

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