Easter Prep

I can hardly believe that Easter is right around the corner. Not only that, but we're leaving for Riverside on Saturday! Geesh Louise, I thought we weren't leaving until next weekend! Lordy me. (The kid took this picture of the crane yesterday afternoon out in back.)

And so, I've been busy filling my muck buckets with junk to take down South with us. Not only that, but since we will be gone the entire week and coming home on Easter Eve, I've been getting the house in order for Easter Sunday. I've ordered all the traditional Ukrainian foods we eat on Easter and I think I have everything pretty much under control. Famous last words.


I finally brought all my pretty things out and scattered them about. Boy, Easter comes early this year.


I did these years and years ago. I should have put a little wax on them because I put this bowl by the fountain and it's splattered them! Ooooooof. Oh well, I kinda like the look. No worries.


Some non-traditional Easter eggs that the kids and I have made over the years.


And bunnies bunnies, everywhere.


I always get the most enjoyment out of setting up my little Easter bunnies and bears (and doggy) each year. Truthfully, I don't do much girly stuff, but I have to admit, I love these little fellows. I started this collection when my niece, Madeleine, was a baby and I bought her a Muffy Bear. Being partial to bunnies, I had to get Muffy's friend Hoppy for myself. The friends and family continue to grow.

Peter Rabbit in all his glory.

His friend.

More friends.

And someone's dog.

Last year, like in the summer time, I found these three little egg holders. Three of them, together! I always like to collect things in sets of threes and I am lucky to have spotted these tucked way back in the sale corner. I put an emu, a goose and a chicken egg in each one and didn't like the look. I think little candies will be cuter. I just love the vintage look though, regardless what's in them.

I had found these tulips at the grocers a couple of days ago. I sure wish they lasted longer. They'll have to be thrown out before I go. I know the teenager won't keep water in the vase, and they like lots of water. I've enjoyed them while they've lasted though.

I'm looking forward to getting away for a bit. It's always good to get the batteries recharged every so often. Since I've only made three pysanky so far, I may take my supplies down with me. No, wait a minute, hold on, Ukie Easter isn't until April 27! I have another month. Sometimes it falls on the same Sunday as our Western calendar. Phew! I really didn't want to drag all that stuff down with us. I have enough junk to take! ha. I'm still planning on giving one away!

Girl Talk

I guess it's just that time of year. Still considered the beginning (by me), I am trying to get all my medical "procedures" behind me. Oy. Mamogram, check. All looked fine there. Ouch.

This morning, it was time for the "schme-ea." As mentioned before, somehow two years had passed since my last one. And I thought I was being so "medically" correct last year. Goes to show you how much I know.

All the usual barely tolerable series of poking and prodding. With one exception, that is. My physician is now checking for the HPV (human papilloma virus) along side of the pap smear. Good deal. If you're down there, you may as well go for the full monty. She told me if everything comes back clean, my next smear won't be due for another three years. That sounds like a good plan to me.

All kidding aside, when was your last schmear? (Aim, your turn?)

Big Kid on the Block

Fun times. All the things we have to do as parents of a senior in high school. Our latest jig is having to send in a photo of him as a baby for the "Senior Wall" and the yearbook. This is the one I found that I liked the best (pre-embellishments). It still looks like him--well, minus the goatee, of course. Sigh.

I remember kissing those cute little perfect lips so many times in a day just because they were there for the kissing. And the little chunkem cheeks right next to those lips, oh my. And so many butterfly kisses on those sweet long eyelashes. I could have just eaten him up on most days.

I look back on these photos with so much love for that baby. And now, he's a man. Still, just as much love; but no more overwhelming urges to grab him and kiss him. Blech. He's too fuzzy now.

This is the first time in a long time I have missed having my babies to cuddle. Someone pass me a tissue! Sniffle.

One-Word MeMe

This was emailed to me by a friend. I thought, easy and fast enough. Why not?

1. Where is your cell phone? CAR

2. Your significant other? BED

3. Your hair? BROWN

4. Your Skin? DRY

5. Your mother? BASEMENT

6. Your favorite thing? LIFE

7. Your dream last night? FORGOT

8. Your favorite drink? WATER

9. Your dream/goal? ORGANIZATION

10. The room you're in? STUDY

11. Your ex? NONE

12. Your fear? MOM

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? EUROPE

14. Where were you last night? HOME

15. What you're not? MEAN

16. Muffins? BLUEBERRY

17. One of your wish-list items? EUROPE

18. Where you grew up? ARLINGTON

19. The last thing you did? SHOWER

20. What are you wearing? PJs

21. Your TV? OFF

22. Your pets? CATS

23. Your computer? APPLE

24. Your life? CONTENT

25. Your mood? HAPPY

26. Missing someone? BROTHERS

27. Your car? VOLVO

28. Something you're not wearing? SOCKS

29. Favorite Store? PAPERSOURCE

30. Your summer? WONDERFUL

31. Like someone? YEP

32. Your favorite color? FUSCHIA

33. When is the last time you laughed? TODAY

34. Last time you cried? FORGOT


All yours for the taking. Enjoy.

Anniversary Flowers and Pysanka Time

Of course, I had to take some close ups of my anniversary flowers. They're so pretty.

I love this one green mossy/ferny sprig. Only one though. Wouldn't an entire bouquet be perfect for St. Paddy's Day?

After much procrastination, I finally decided to do some pysanky this year. Low and behold, I found all of my pysanky supplies after much searching. For some reason, my dyes were in the rec room and my patterns and kistky (my writing tools) were in a box in the basement. I have become so disorganized since redoing several rooms in the house, I don't know where anything is at this point. And, of course, that drives me absolutely mad. I was truly doing so much better last year in my organizational skills before all the demo began. Now I honestly have no desire to straighten it all out again. None whatsoever. In fact, just thinking about it makes me want to crawl into bed and pull the covers over my head. My one yucky thing a day has turned into doing something totally different than cleaning. But I am still doing one yucky thing a day, promise.

Yesterday, I decorated two eggs. This one is my first attempt at getting my hand steady. I started with a pattern then messed up and used my imagination for the rest. The first egg is normally the shakiest of the season, one I will never give away! Yuk. With the traditional wax process, it will take several more days to see what the egg actually looks like--similar to batiking fabric. You can see the process in a previous post here. I can already tell that this one will not be anything special.

I'm thinking about giving one of my pysanka away in a drawing a little later. The One World One Heart was so much fun, I'm already reading for another one! I will keep you all posted. First, let's see if any of my eggs come out worthy of giving away. Now there is the million dollar question.

Purple Grits?

With my parents being from Georgia and Texas, yes, I grew up on grits. Love them. Would eat them every morning if I weren't so lazy. Hey, I even love hominy but admit to not having any since I was a child way back when. My mom used to saute it in a pan and serve them piping hot!

After writing my last post and thinking about last night's dinner, I got grits on the mind. I had purchased a bag at our local farmer's market the last time we were at Riverside and I had yet to open it. Well, now was the time. Only thing, these were blue corn grits.

I cooked them up--no these weren't the instant type. They cooked for a good 20 minutes. And they continued to get prettier and prettier with each minute.

They were just as good as the white variety but the color threw me off. Perhaps if they had matched the bowl, all would have been good? Oh yea, did I mention, I am the only one in this quasi Southern family that will even eat grits? The Yankee hub would only eat my Aunt Mary's grits (the true gentleman he is, it wasn't because he actually like them). I thought about taking a bowl down to mom, but I was afraid the color may throw her for a loop. And so, I sat and enjoyed my bowl of grits by myself trying to think of the right time and with what food to serve purple grits with. Perhaps a multi-colored dinner party? What other foods come in odd colors? Maybe I could serve it with some Jamon Serrano (black footed pig) with a glass of blood orange juice? Lovely combo. I think not. Do you think the pink of shrimp would match this color purple? I'm going to have to give this some more thought, obviously.

Anniversary Dinner with Snow on Top

Last night, the hub, kid and I went to one of our favorite little restaurants in Franklin, Saffire. It's a cozy little place built inside an old stove factory. The walls are old brick, the floors are wobbly old concrete and the menu is delightful. We go perhaps once a year, maybe a little less. But each time we go, it's a true treat. (Sorry the pics are so dark--it was dark in there.)

The hub started out with oysters on the half shell, I had the Southern Caesar salad. We have both of these each time we come here. For entrees, the hub had the special--rack of lamb, I had the creole shrimp with grit cakes and the kid had the chicken fried chicken without the Loveless gravy. Yum. Makes me hungry again just thinking about it. Oh for dessert, non other than a big ol' slab of chocolate tiramisu! Yes, I said chocolate! Oh my.

While we sat and ate, the snow began coming down. It was absolutely beautiful. It made me feel like Christmas again. What is up with that? ha. The restaurant had added some old rustic artwork. Again, sorry for the horrible pictures. I loved the Prophet Johnny one! Never could make out what Johnny Cash was trying to say. Between the darkness, my weak glasses and this horrible photo, it was useless. Perhaps it was the pineapple cosmo? Just what in the world is Johnny trying to tell us?

This is the scene as we left the restaurant and hit the parking lot. It was a downright blizzard, I tell you! The kid kept on saying it was a "moderate" snowfall. He cracks me up. Being in the south, we got behind a pick up truck that kept spinning out of control. Geeesh peeps. Slow it down, put it in low gear and make it home safely. Peace out (as my niece Madeleine says).

You'll remember these little fellows from a few days ago. The daffodils are closed up tight from the night's cold.There is something magical about snow on freshly blooming flowers. So pretty.

I got this bunny statue in Georgia when the teenager was a baby. We were visiting my Aunt Mary (mom's sister) and close to her house were these old flea markets on the weekends. I picked this heavy baby up for a song and lugged it back to Ol' Virginny. It brings back fond memories of my Uncle Euell saying "Are you sure you can see out of the back of that car?" I had it filled to the brim! "I sure am worried about them driving with that car so full." I miss them both so much.

We awoke to a beautiful winter wonderland this morning. The cardinals were happy to see a little seed left in the feeder from the week. I spied two robins playing around in the street. Didn't momma ever tell you not to play in the street children? This is my second sighting of them. My first was at Beth's last weekend. It's always a sign of spring when they're spotted.

The kid loved the look of the side stairs covered. You can barely see where the teenager tromped through about midnight as he returned from sledding with his buds.

And no snow is complete without a snow angel. Thank you Chrissy for this sweet angle in our driveway first thing this morning.

Twenty-One Years and Counting

From the movie Moonstruck:

Mother: "Do you love him Loretta?"

Loretta: "Aw, ma, I love him awful."

Mother: "Oh, God, that's too bad."


I still do.

Good Plant, Sad Plant

Pretty plant, dead plant. Primrose are funny little things. If you don't water them, they tend to droop. (Really?) Most of the time, they come back after a little water. But sometimes, they're too far gone. Obviously, I let this one go too long between drinks. It looks to have also sat in water at one point which shows in the moldy leaves. I have since taken the healthy plants out of the second pot they come in to remedy this. This poor little fellow was laid to rest in the trash bin. Sorry little buddy. (Couldn't rightly give him the proper burial in the toilet as I did earlier in the week to blue fish, now could I? Blue fish to be replaced tomorrow to keep the feng shui in balance in my study. Hmm, I still owe a Feng Shui 101, don't I? Shame on me.)

Obviously, there's not a whole lot going on here. Well, actually there was which kept me from doing anything. I had more workmen in to do "this" which turned into this and that. You can never get away with just a few little things here and there; a whole other animal tends to always rear its ugly head. We had some damaged transoms from last summer's excessive heat (above picture--see the glass insulation oozing out?); so I thought now would be a good time to have them replaced, before we have to paint the outside trim in the spring, etc. Well, of course, when they were being torn out, mold and rot was found in the trim surrounding the above-mentioned transoms. One door jam turned into two door jams and six windows! Oy! Whenever I hear the word mold, I can't get rid of it fast enough. Funny thing is, all the damage was on the back side of the house which gets a full seven or eight hours of direct sun. But, it is also the side that gets the blunt of all of our storms here. Of course, it didn't end there. Since I paid them for a full day's work, I was going to get a full day out of them. I found the "Honey DO" list that the honey don't do and gave it to them. I had them pull out three fluorescent light fixtures (ew) and replace them with incandescent lighting. I had them replace the old decrepit fixture above the garage doors that hasn't worked in years with a new one that actually matched the house (and it only cost $30!). And I had them replace all the weather stripping around the doors (that the cats have torn off). I got a lot done! ha. There is always upkeep in a house. I'm just so glad to get rid of that nasty mold before it went any further. Yuk.

I admit to, whole heartedly, being a paper freak. And so a couple of days ago, when I couldn't find that perfect envelope to use in a "love" letter, I had to order some from Paper Source. Yes, this is the store I feel like I've died and gone to heaven each time I visit in DC. Of course, I missed it the last trip as it wasn't that kind of trip. So I went online and did a quick inventory replenishing. Oooh, my goody box came today! I need to start getting more love letters out now that I'm all stocked up! Look for yours in the mail soon! Guess I better go and get started on that.

Daffodils, Hyacinths and a Cow

I am so enjoying my primrose. I keep moving them around the kitchen. Now they're on the side chair getting a little sun. Not that they got too much of it. I had all the windows slung open this morning. By the time noon came along, it started getting really nippy!

We've had nice warm weather for the past couple of days. Then, wooosh, the cold air streamed back in. We even had a few snow flurries (which always make me giddy). Before it turned cold, I was out and about and saw our first three blooming daffodils.

Nothing cries spring more than daffodils. Three days of warmth and these babies are singing to the sun!

And, along side of them were some grape hyacinths in full bloom.

These three tiny rooster salt cellars were some I found when Beth and I were antiquing junking this past weekend. This may be my newly found "collection" mission. Wonder how many colors I can find?

Next to this little display is my French moo-cow creamer, just as I promised you. I love this thing! I've had it for a little while; but I love it as if it had been in the family for generations!

Yesterday and today, I once more had contractors coming into the kitchen and fixing what the idiots never could--or chose not to. I finally have my ice maker flush with the rest of the island. These guys had to literally remove the drywall behind it, chisel away at wooden beams and shimmy it to and fro to have it sit almost flush. The idiots never compensated for it to sit flush; so when they put the end cap wall in, they didn't pull the cabinets out the extra 1/2 inch needed. So the right side of the ice maker is flush, the left (which butts up against the cabinets) is not. C'est la vie. They also redid the grout behind the stove. The idiots used two different colors. Today was the first day that I am actually feeling that this kitchen is 99% done. The counter tops need to be removed and replaced because the Silestone is staining. Yes, Silestone is staining. Par for the course, I suppose. The counter top people have come in and sealed it. Yes, sealed Silestone. It's even worse. Where I clean it now leaves a dull spot. Ooooof. Me and my kitchen. Good news is, as you can see, I made more blueberry muffins this morning; and with the oven set 25˚ below what I normally use, they came out perfect! The workmen got two hot out of the oven, I got one. Now there's one for the kid, the teenager and the hub! Yes! I made enough batter for an entire six muffins! Movin' on up! Proud? I certainly am. I was feeling a tad deflated recently in there. I think I'll continue cooking my muffins for a bit before I graduate to the next level--say cakes? hehe.

Springy Sunday

We had absolutely gorgeous weather here this weekend in Middle Tennessee. Yesterday was in the 60s, not bad; but today was spring at its best--a perfect 70˚ƒ. Doesn't get much better than that. The kid and I, quite ready for spring, put our spinners out a couple of weeks ago. I just love the bright colors.

I did a little walkabout to spy any new buds peeking their heads up from the dirt and found a lovely bunch of croci that apparently have been out all week as some of the flowers are already spent!

Oh, and look at the grape hyacinths pushing their way through! These are some of my all-time favorite miniatures because they actually smell like grape! I love making tiny little bouquets out of these mixed with small bleeding hearts, croci and anything else small in size that I can fill a little bottle with. Just precious.

Yesterday, I went out to visit with Beth and her mom. I took the back route, which Beth told me about, and passed under Natchez Trace. I remember when we first moved here how odd this modern bridge looked out in the middle of the beautiful countryside. One day, I'm going to get on that bridge and let it take me all the way to the end. I'm sure it's a beautiful drive.

The Natchez Trace, a 440-mile-long path extending from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee, linked the Cumberland, the Tennessee and Mississippi rivers. It was used extensively by Native Americans and early European explorers as both a trade and transit route in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Today, the trail has been commemorated with the 444-mile-long Natchez Trace Parkway which follows the approximate path of the trace. The trail itself has a long and rich history, filled with brave explorers, dastardly outlaws and daring settlers. Parts of the original trail are still accessible.

I made my blueberry muffins as promised for Lottie; and will you just take a look at what a difference 25˚ makes! Okay, think I have my oven figured out, again. My only problem is that I could only get four humongous muffins out of my batter since I used a large pan. Well, it wouldn't be me in there cooking if something didn't go awry! I'll take two muffins short over burnt any day, thank you very much. I kinda wish I had made two batches, because now that I'm talking about them, I'm craving one! Oooof.



Yesterday, I met up with Beth and we headed to Dairy Queen to get Lottie a hot fudge sundae. Seems she's been wanting them since she arrived in rehab. We gladly obliged the request because you know we had a sweet tooth needing some attention also!

After everyone finished their ice creams, we stepped outside for some fresh air. It was just the perfect day; and Lottie kept saying how good it felt to get out. She had more visitors and we sat and talked for a bit until it was about time to head in. We then went through making some peace cranes (which I actually remembered how to make after only a few trial and errors in addition to a hot flash). We could tell Lottie was getting tired, so after her husband arrived, Beth and I hightailed it over to a local antique shop. It was such a fun time. We giggled like two schoolgirls walking about the place. I got more junk than I care to admit to. In fact, it still sits in the car as I am not quite ready to figure out where to put it. It's mostly kitchen stuff. And, yes, I am having more contractors coming in tomorrow to fix the mess the first contractors made. Please give me the strength to see this kitchen through to completion! I stayed up half the night last night worrying about it all, again.


I did take my life into my hands today and entered the mother of all messes to do a couple of ATCs. I had just found some more of my little angel charms and was dying to use them.

I leave you with Bad Bella. She's a tad cranky today. I think she's starting to want to go out.
Grrrrrrrrr. This is what she gets.