Spring Fever ♥

Good morning Friends! ♥

Look what I just noticed?  We have signs of life in here. 

Yay! 

This week we had two days of 70 degree weather. It was glorious and it's what we New Englander's call "false spring" ♥

We know we are being teased but we are living for it anyway. 

We open windows, go for walks without jackets, and would you believe John had shorts on yesterday?!  

Yes, we lost an hour of sleep from daylight savings but last night I was doing the dishes at 6:30 and it dawned on me that it was still light outside.  I saw neighborhood kids on bikes and one kid on a scooter.  We are all waking up.  

 

Its already dropped 20 degrees since yesterday, but it's ok.  We are heading in the right direction.  Our minds are fixed on spring now and nothing is going to mess with that.  

I went out for a walk yesterday for the first time in a while.  It was so nice to breathe in the fresh air and hear the birds chirping.  

We all have spring fever ♥

Within two days most of the snow from the blizzard (20 inches from just a few weeks ago!) has melted.  

The bushes (that were completely buried!!) are still here aaaand look what I saw.....

...alive and thriving ♥

Nature is so amazing.  She knows just what to do. 

I can't wait for these hydrangeas to be blooming.  

It's hard to believe these deadheads (that are so delicate) are still in one piece after all that snow.  

We had happy ducks swimming in the river yesterday morning.  

They were too quick for me to photograph, but I was thrilled to see them and hear their quacks!  

♥

I'm sure we have more cold days ahead, but they are getting fewer and fewer.  

We've made it through the winter of 2026.  It was a tough one! 

This is a side note, but did your mom have these porcelain China flowers?  This wheel barrel has lived in my house my entire life. I have no idea where it came from.  I remember it on a shadow box in our living room when I was a kid.  I recently found it on a shelf (when I was removing it for the painter!!! - who came last weekend!).  

Anyway, I always LOVED it and now it has a permanent place on my coffee table upstairs.  Why was it hidden on a shelf?  I put it with another one I have, that my mom gave me as a gift.  

It's a little trio of flowers and I love it ♥

My coffee table feels so springy now and colorful.  It's matching the mood outside.  

I have decided that this year will be the year I bring out the old antiques in my home and display them.  Our attic is full of them, and I have my mother to thank for never throwing anything away : )

Out with the new and in with the old, I say!  I'm in my granny-chic era and I'm loving it ♥

Happy Wednesday, my friends! Spring is officially here in 10 days!!  

We made it ♥

Xx

March: In like a lion, out like a lamb...hopefully ♥

Hello Friends! Happy March!! ♥

We are in the home stretch of winter now.  Yay! 

It's the winter that will not end.  Since I posted last we had a blizzard! It dumped over 20 inches of snow on us. It was crazy.  Every window was covered and when we could finally see out, all we saw was white.  Pretty? Yes.  But oh, so cooooold!  

We had three full snow days with no work or school. That hasn't happened in years.  Thankfully we didn't lose power!  I made pancakes for breakfast and soup for dinner.  

We ate comfort food and watched movies while the snow came down ♥

It wasn't so bad.  It was actually nice to see everyone slow down.  

They had no choice :) 

And then a few days later, the sun came out.  

My daffodils started blooming and I realized that Spring is almost here.  

March came in like a lion, but is slowing turning into a lamb...♥

It was 23 degrees on Monday...and we might reach 50 today.  

Yup, 50! 

To celebrate I started decorating for spring.  Not full-blown Easter yet, but a few pastels here and there never hurt anyone.  I put away the last of my winter snowmen.... packed away safely for next year, and out came some bunnies, spring dishtowels, new sheets on the beds, and new vanilla candle that is divine.  

This weekend I made a banana bread with (my new obsession) homemade butter.  All this is bringing me life.  I feel rejuvenated.  

Isn't that what spring is supposed to do?! ♥

YUM! ♥ 

Don't get me wrong, we are still in the throes of winter (I won't be fooled) but I know in a few weeks I'll see buds on the trees.  I knew it would happen.  

It always does ♥

Every morning, I come downstairs and open the blinds to see the sun shining in (insert happy face here).  My houseplants are thriving and I'm thrilled they have survived the winter.  

 I would like to get more plants this spring. I'm redecorating a baker's rack in my kitchen that will hopefully include some pretty blooms.  Once it gets a bit warmer, I'll head to the plant store and see what they have.  

A day strolling the nursery with an iced coffee is something I'm very much looking forward to ♥

And of course, with it being lent, I've been practicing gratitude now more than ever.  Here is what I remind myself of everyday.  Along with giving up chocolate (not easy, by the way:) I am trying to be my best self during this time and let go of things that don't serve me anymore (also not easy).

♥

This morning we've got blue skies and the drip, drip, drip of melting snow.  

These are ordinary days of March, friends ♥ 

In my next post I'm going to share a few new recipes I've made over the last few weeks and some books that I've read this winter that I loved.  I just wanted to do a little catch up first.  I hope you are all keeping cozy and are enjoying these last days of winter.  The season is about to change and that makes my heart happy. 

Have a wonderful day, friends! xx 

PS just because I mentioned it last time, here are my Valentine brownies I made a few weeks ago.  They were a hit ♥

Happy St. Patrick's Day ♥

Hello Friends and Happy St. Patrick's Day! 🍀

I thought I would show you this beautiful bowl of veggies that will become my dinner tonight!  I have a little prep work to do peeling and chopping but once that is done it all goes into one big pot - easy peasy!  I'm making a smoked shoulder (ham) as our main.  We prefer that to corned beef. That's what my mother always made for us growing up.  It's a meal we only have once a year and we all really enjoy it! Even Rob who isn't even a bit Irish, loves it. 

I made my friend Elieen's Irish bread to go with it.  We've been noshing on it all weekend.  I brought some to my mother in laws on Saturday and everyone really enjoyed it.  Eileens recipe has a little sour cream in it so it's not as dry as traditional Irish breads.  

It's so good with morning coffee or afternoon tea :) 

♥

This past weekend we had beautiful weather.  Yesterday was 67 degrees!  I had all our screen doors open just for a little while.  It felt good to change the air in the house.  I think every bird in the neighborhood was singing because all I could hear was chirping.  Rob and I sat out on our back deck on Sunday morning and had a 30-minute conversation about what kinds of flowers we're planting this spring (now that's a conversation I can get into:).  It got me very excited for the nice weather and I can't wait for a trip to the garden center. I don't think I've ever been this excited for spring before. Like ever. 

Today is a rainy Monday but I'm not bothered by it.  I'm working from home today, so I'll stay cozy while my boiled dinner bubbles on the stove ♥

Another thing that got me very excited this weekend was I bought a vanity table for the bedroom! I've been thinking about getting one for a long time and finally bit the bullet.  I found one I love on Amazon.  It's white and has pretty lights around the mirror.  It comes with a cute stool and 5 drawers for all my things.  I can't wait to set it up and organize my makeup.  It's time for me to do a BIG purge of old beauty products anyway and this is a good excuse to do it.  Since we've been remodeling the bathroom, I'm slowing going through each room little by little and making mental notes of things I want to update and change.  Wait until Rob finds out I want to wallpaper the bedroom! OH DEAR that should go over well! LOL  But don't you just love wallpaper?  I miss it! 

I'll show you the vanity once it arrives and I get it set up.  It feels very vintage to me (even though it's not) and my heart loves that ♥

Well, I better get back to work now.  

I hope you all have a very HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!  ♥

Have a great week, my friends!  Cheers! 🍀

Hello Monday and Hello March! ♥

Good Monday morning! ♥

 I'm starting this Monday off with my usual Maxwell house coffee and a cinnamon donut.  My Dad always picks up Dunkin Donuts after church on Sunday mornings. I saw this beauty still in the box this morning so I scooped it up before someone else did. I don't mind day old donuts because they are perfect for dunking.  It's just what I needed to start the week. As you have probably heard me say, Monday's and I aren't besties.  Donuts help : ) 

Well, happy March friends!  It's hard for me to believe it's almost the start of a new season...without my mom.  Time is marching on.  This past weekend I put away the last of my winter decorations and brought out spring.  Where Easter is in March this year, St Patrick's Day and Easter and getting a bit mashed together, but that's OK.  I thought about my mom a lot as I decorated.  How the season will be different.  I'm hosting Easter this year and I think she would be so happy about that.  I wish she was here. I really do. 

It's been warmer these last few weeks and it's getting lighter! We are only a week away from Daylight savings but I can already see a difference.  It's not so dark in the morning and it's still light out while I'm cooking dinner. 

We're getting there ♥

I saw the first signs of life in the yard too! These are daffodils. They will be blooming by Easter.  How lovely to think about that.  This winter has been so dreary, I'm looking forward to seeing color for a change.   Flowers make everything just a little bit better, don't you think?  

♥

Speaking of flowers, look at this beautiful table my mother in law set for us last week?  We stopped over for lunch and a catch up.  She made us meatball sandwiches (that were delicious!) and we talked for a long time.  I love a long lunch.  They don't happen enough these days.  

I'm so very grateful for my in laws.  We are going out to dinner with them on Saturday night for a very belated anniversary dinner (for our 25th that was in October).  I'm just excited to get together.  We picked a nice restaurant and are going to dress up.  

I need to find an outfit 👗to wear. 

In other news....♥

John is in a Beatles phase right now.  He loves music. All music.  From Perry Como to Harry Styles. I’ve never seen such variety in music taste before.  I love it.  As of late he’s listening to the Beatles.  And when I say “listening to” what I mean is “studying”.  He studies.  The music.  How it’s written and played.  It’s what I hear coming down the halls. It echoes through the house.  It’s nice. It’s the soundtrack of my life this week.  Today I woke up to Yesterday and Let it Be. I drank coffee to Hey Jude (one of my favorites). On the way to school I heard Blackbird and I almost cried because it was so beautiful. I love it when as song does that to me. What a gift they gave us.

 On Saturday we stopped by the music store so John could get at replacement guitar string. We were there for over an hour.  I used to bring him here for drum lessons for years when he was in elementary school. 

Now he plays guitar and piano as well. He has had amazing music teachers who have taught him so much and I really feel it's affected everything in his life.  

.

Lately he's been talking about a career in music.  

Who knows what the future holds, but I'm excited for him ♥

Here's a rare selfie of me at work last week.  I was in a good mood because it was warm out and I was wearing polka dots! LOL

♥

 

After work I treated myself to a Shamrock Shake at McDonalds!  I don't go there much anymore but there are certain things I must have.  And in March it's a Shamrock Shake and a fish sandwich.  I'll go back at least one more time before Easter! 

 

And here's how we spent our Sunday.  Did you know you could "check out" puzzles at the library? You can! Which is the perfect solution to the question "what do I do with it once it's done?"  Return it!  This one is 1000 pieces and Rob thinks I'm crazy, but really, we are all enjoying working on it together. 

We started this one yesterday while watching the We are the World documentary on Netflix.  Have you watched it yet? It's excellent!!! And will take you right back to the 80's! :)

♥

Well, I'm off now to get some work done now.  I'm all cozy and settled in my home office today.  I've got a pot roast in the crock pot bubbling away for dinner tonight (what a feeling that's done!) and I'm just about to pour myself another cup of coffee.  Happy Monday friends! Thank you for visiting.  I'll be posting on here much more often now and I'll be visiting your blogs too.  I've been busy the last few weeks with things around the house and (UGH) taxes.  Thankfully all that is done now ✔ 

I'm thankful to have this space to share with you ♥

Be back soon! Byeeeeee! xo

Ordinary Friday ♥

Hello Friends! Happy Friday! ♥

The week has gotten away from me and now here we are.  I was just sitting in my cozy spot here trying to get motivated to start the day.  It's super bright today which is nice because the sun is shining in through the windows and is lifting my mood - as if I needed help on a FRIDAY! 

  Can you believe this weekend is daylight savings?  We'll lose an hour of sleep (after a few days of adjusting:) but it will be worth it. 

 I can feel the shift coming. Can you? 

 

I gave myself a refill (with whip cream - a TGIF treat : )   

Today is an ordinary Friday.  

My favorite kind ♥

I'm waiting for this Christmas cactus to bloom.  I have no idea when : ) 

New candle for Spring I picked up yesterday. 

 I love lemons! ♥

A puzzle I've been wanting to do since Christmas.  Soon! I just have to figure out a spot to do it in because I'm sure it will take more than one sitting! LOL 

Ready for St. Patrick's day! 

One week from today! 

My kitchen is small but I try to make it as cozy as possible

♥

I'm going to make a strawberry salad dressing out of these.  I'll let you know how it turns out! 

It sure does! : ) 

This little plant stand was once a CD tower.  Remember those???  

Seeing all the green is so pleasing.  I like it better than CD's.  

My ordinary Friday will consist of working, more coffee consumption, a breakfast dinner (don't knock it till you try it : ) and a family movie night.  John's pick! He's trying to see all the best picture nominees before the Oscars on Sunday.  I think he only has 3 left! 

I would like to make an Irish bread today as well, so we can snack on it this weekend! 

♥

Thanks for popping by and visiting me on an ordinary Friday.  

Have a wonderful and cozy weekend! ♥

xoxo