Hello Lovely Friends! Happy Monday and happy MAY! I have moved my office to the back porch this morning because it's so beautiful out. It's just me and birds and I couldn't be happier. My Dad still thinks it's "too chilly" to be out here, but since it's 70 degrees (??!!) I'm just dandy with it!
We had a very nice weekend that went by too quickly like most weekends do. On Saturday we had some friends over for a pizza game night, that ended up being more pizza (and Kentucky Derby watching!) than actual game playing, but it was a great time. I made the pizzas which was super fun. Our friends supplied the apps and desserts. I didn't get to bed until midnight which hasn't happened in ages! ♥
On Sunday we went to my sister in laws for my niece's 2nd birthday party. She always does a beautiful job hosting! (She's hosting Mother's Day on Sunday as well!). We had a great time with family! After the party I came home, got into some comfy clothes and took a nice rest before dinner. I had to get a little self care in there too : )
** Me after an unusual amount of socializing in one weekend! LOL **
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And now here we are on Monday morning already. I have lots of work to do this week and hopefully if the weather stays cooperative (which I'm hearing it will, for the next few days anyway) I'll be doing it from this spot. I just made my to-do list for the week. It includes a dental appointment, a few errands, bills to pay, blah, blah, blah. Real life stuff that mostly stresses me out. I've been getting so stressed over the littlest things lately. I must work on that. So, my plan for the week is one day at a time, one task at a time, and try not to worry about things I can't control (Amen!).
It's May so I'll focus on all the lovely things about Spring. It's finally time for to make that trip to the nursery with my iced coffee and get some flowers for the front garden. I'm also thinking about taking a ride to a local farm for strawberry picking on Saturday. I did it a few years ago and loved it. If not picking, I'll at least visit the farmers market. That atmosphere always lifts my spirits. Wish we could all go together ♥
Also lots of walks, water for hydration, good food, and rest. I would like to take at least one walk on the beach this week. I feel I need to inhale some salty ocean air and it's finally warm enough (although not according to my Dad :) to do that.
Yup - so happy May, my friends! What's on your weekly agenda? ♥
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I also have few letters to write because some of you reached out to be pen pals! I couldn't be happier and it will certainly be a bright spot in my week. YAY! I'm so thankful for this space and the friends I'm connecting with. It truly means the world to me, so thank you!!!
I also LOVED reading your comments on my last post ♥
Have a lovely day! I hope the sun is shining on you today! Talk soon! xo
We are halfway to Friday and that's something to smile about. It's a gray and overcast day here and we are expecting a monsoon of rain tonight. It will be good sleeping weather. Do you ever wake up in the morning and think about how nice it will be to get back into bed later? I do...all the time! And especially tonight because it will be raining which will make the warm bed extra cozy! I cannot wait. But I digress...♥
I thought I'd have some fun today and share some not very important facts about me.
Every word is true :)
In case you didn't know...
#1. I absolutely hate clothes shopping. I would rather go to a Home Goods or Hobby Lobby any day rather than a clothing store. I hate trying things on (because nothing ever fits) and once I get home, I always have regret. "What was I thinking?" is usually my response to whatever it is I purchased. It's an ongoing battle. I have the same issue with shoes! Maybe I'm shopping in the wrong places. Where do you all buy your clothes?
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#2. I eat a small cup of dry cereal before I go to bed every night. Yup. Every night. It's a small cup, but I do it. Sometimes I add a few chocolate chips into the mix, just for a bit of sweetness. My body needs it to sleep through the night. The cereal varies. This week it's Cheerios. Sometimes it's some of Rob's healthy stuff like Total or Grape Nuts (which is like eating gravel, but when you mix in the chocolate chips its actually tasty). Side note about Rob - he's very health conscious. Never would he touch a Pop Tart or Twinkie. He works out every morning before work at an un-Godly hour and is the most discipled person I've ever met when it comes to dessert. I say this because I most certainly am not that. If I have cottage cheese or half an avocado at breakfast, I feel like I'm a champion. Like I'm winning at life. It doesn't last though, because come 10 pm out comes the cereal and chocolate chips.
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#3. I love the ocean. I love to look at, smell it, sit by it, walk along it. I would do that all day every day. It's peaceful, serine, and wonderful. But you will never see me swimming in it. I will put my feet in. Maybe on a hot day go in as far as my shin, never above the knee. I never learned to swim so I have an intense fear of deep water. As a kid, I never loved getting dunked under water either, so I hate getting my face and head wet. I'll take a shallow wading pool or a lazy river sure, but that's about as far as I go. I have no desire to ever snorkel, scuba dive, or worse - parasail! I mean, that's a whole other fear, but nope - I'll never do those things. Ever. Watching the sunset on the beach though.... perfection.
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#4. A grilled cheese sandwich is my favorite thing to eat. I'd choose it over a steak dinner. If you want to win me over, invite me over for grilled cheese sandwiches. Bonus if you serve tomato soup on the side. Just thinking about that makes me happy. Sitting by the fire at a Panera Bread, with a grilled cheese and a bowl of tomato soup. I've spent many an afternoon doing that. Let's go!
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#5. I love Hallmark movies and want to live in a Hallmark world (who doesn't?), I'm left-handed, I wear contact lens and wear readers over them because I haven't made the leap to bifocals yet, I color my hair (myself) every 5 weeks to cover the grays and have no intention of ever stopping. If it were socially acceptable, I would wear my slippers everywhere. I'm obsessed with all things British (hence my LOVE for Downton Abbey and everything on PBS), I love antiques, anything from the 1950's (especially I Love Lucy, which you probably already know :), carnations are my favorite flower, I would die without coffee, I love be home, hate large crowds, love game shows, documentaries, and reading books - especially thrillers. I adore twinkle lights, Christmas, fireworks, vanilla cake with vanilla frosting, I never leave home without makeup, love Alfred Hitchcock films, flowered wallpaper (can we bring that back please!), bunnies🐇, Peanuts (the Charlie Brown kind), New Hampshire trips, and Marvel movies (yes, that is true!!). I hate driving at night, am a terrible parker (my family can attest to that for sure), have bad habit of biting my nails, never have a lip balm out of reach, and really hate it when people lean on their horn the millisecond the light turns green. What is your rush?!
I think that's enough info about me!! If you didn't already me, you do now.
Now tell me some things about you so we can be even :)
Have a wonderful evening friends! ♥
We are having breakfast dinner tonight - eggs and pancakes. Another thing I love...in case you didn't know...
Well, look who went walking with her clippers this weekend...:)
This is literally a branch that I clipped of that big wild bush I showed you on Friday. I put the whole thing in vase and called it a day. It's so wonky and makes me laugh when I look at it. However, I love the yellow and it's screaming spring to me so she's staying!
Yay! ♥
We had a very nice weekend, although some things didn't go as planned. John's event ended up getting cancelled by the venue. Something to do with overbooking. He was very disappointed! However, when one door closes another opens. He and his bandmates have a few other irons in the fire for upcoming performances so there's more to look forward to. This place will also be rescheduling so hopefully he'll have a busy summer. That's life in show biz I guess. Never a dull moment.
As for me, I didn't end up going out to dinner Saturday night. It turns out staying cozy in my sweats was more appealing to me in the moment (typical me), so we stayed in and watched a movie instead. We did go out to breakfast after church on Sunday and went for a nice walk on the beach after.
It was sooo lovely and made me really excited for the summer ♥
Around the house I was pretty productive. Little touches of spring as still appearing around here and I keep reorganizing things. I have way too many dishes and teapots and I struggle to find places for everything. I just can't put things away.
Especially if they have flowers on them ♥
I had to run to CVS to pick up a few things and this candle caught my attention.
I decided to treat myself. It's heavenly! ♥
I made the custard pie I'd been craving. I remembered I had a recipe for coconut custard pie that was pretty easy. I whipped it up in minutes and it came out DELICIOUS! I did have some crust issues so don't look too closely at it.
Thankfully it still tasted yummy!! ♥
I'll link the recipe HERE if you want to try it. I blogged about it back in 2016.
A custard pie (with or without coconut) is pure old fashioned comfort food.
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I cleaned out my closet and filled a donation bag that I need to drop off this week. The hard part is done. Now I have lots of room in my closet. I need to make a point to do this more often.
There's a coat closet downstairs that I will tackle next time I'm motivated ♥
I also cleaned a cabinet that I store craft supplies in. It had really been bugging me because it had gotten so disorganized!! Unraveled rolls of ribbon everywhere! Going through all my stuff I really began to miss crafting and decided I need to get back into it again. I was very into rubber stamping for a hot minute and have a very big supply of them that I totally forgot about. How cute is this bunny one?! I must use it on something soon!
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If I have your address, you'll probably be getting some type of correspondence from me with stamps all over it. Actually, if anyone wants to be pen pals, let me know : )
After getting coffee at Panera, I took some time on Saturday to read an actual MAGAZINE and loved every minute.
My Dad and I shared an orange too ♥
Out back is slowly turning greeeeeen 💚
And the evenings are starting to stay lighter longer. I enjoyed this view last night.
Very peaceful ♥
I hope to see many more sunsets from my deck this summer.
And that was pretty much my exciting weekend in a nutshell.
Here I am this morning trying to take a selfie without feeling silly.
It's not easy! LOL
But I was up early, showered, and dressed on a Monday morning. A big accomplishment when you work from home. I felt it should be documented. Does this mean I'll have a productive week? We shall see.
Fingers crossed! ♥
Have a wonderful evening friends! ♥
I'm making a lemon pasta for dinner tonight that I am very much looking forward to. I'll definitely need my after dinner walk....I'll leave my clippers at home this time.
I promise I'll be a little more positive today than I was in my last post : )
I truly appreciate your support and those who reached out to me to let me know they fully understand what I was feeling and that I'm not alone (or crazy!). I guess I'm just a person that really hates change and doesn't feel like myself when faced with it. This world can be a scary place to navigate sometimes. I have to focus on the GOOD and I will continue to do that.
Pinky promise!
Moving on...♥
I hope you all had a nice week. The weather was LOVELY here this week and the sun is still shining today which makes me very happy. I have been taking walks, reading my book, and working on my cross stitch. All good things! I've heard we are looking at a beautiful weekend also, so I'll take that too. Rob mentioned going out to eat on Saturday night (I think he can tell I need it) so I'll be getting myself dressed up and out of the house for a few hours, which I'm looking forward to. Maybe I'll even have a cocktail - party girl that I am : )
I just stepped out on my back deck to get a bit of fresh air in my lungs. I was drinking my coffee and listening to our windchimes. It was so peaceful. Those are the little things that I cling to, the things that make my heart happy.
*Sidenote - Have you ever put cool whip in your coffee?
It's amazing and I highly recommend it ♥
Saturday night John has a "gig" with his band that he's very excited for. The last one a few weeks ago at the art festival went extremely well! With every performance comes a little more confidence, but more so - he's having so much fun doing do it.
I'm so happy and proud of him for following his dreams. He's been playing music since he was 3 years old. Taking lessons and playing all through school. And now he's got his own band and he's preforming for audiences on his own, playing the music he wants to play. It's what he's always hoped for.
As parents it's so rewarding to see your kids doing what they love.
Amazing ♥
If this kid only knew...
I'll keep you posted on how it all goes. It's one of those "open mic" type things. His band gets 10 minutes and 3 songs. I'll see if I can get some pictures to post next week 🤞
So, other than dinner Saturday night, I'll be here - puttering around the neighborhood. I spotted this wild forsythia on my walk the other day. I don't have a forsythia bush in my yard and I was very tempted to run home and get my clippers. Wouldn't a bunch of these look pretty on my kitchen table?
Will I return with clippers in my pocket? We shall see ...:)
Other things on my weekend agenda:
Laundry (of course!)
Clean out 1 closet and fill a donation bag
Bake a pie. I've had a craving for a custard pie, one of my mom's favorites.
Rob mentioned a ride to beach on Sunday after church for a walk, which I would love
Write out 2 cards and take them to the post office
Allow myself to rest
We also want to see the new Michael Jackson movie, but chances are I won't get there this weekend. Maybe next week. I'm also starting to think about flowers, but it's a bit too early to plant. In time, in time. It's always nice to have things to look forward to, right?!
This is literally me every day....🡣
I love it! ♥
I especially love how it's not even acknowledged he's drinking out of the coffee pot!
I feel seen!!
I hope you all have a happy and restful weekend! I hope you get some sunshine your way.
Spring has officially sprung around here. Every tree and bush has buds on it. Flowers are blooming, grass is green, and the birds can't sing loud enough. And even though the nights are still a bit chilly, we are certainly past the "hump" and well on our way to warm sunny days. Horary! Rob has started cleaning up the yard and laying down mulch. That's a sure sign of the changing season.
And while I couldn't be happier to kiss winter goodbye, last week I was feeling a bit down. Ever since Easter I've felt a sort of sadness come over me. I know much of it has to do with my mom and memories of her, but it's more than that.
I am a very nostalgic person, and sometimes I tend to go down rabbit holes of longing for the past in ways that really make me sad. I get into a funk and then have to work hard to pull myself out of it. This is nothing new for me. It hits me at different times, triggered by I don't know what. But here I am.
Nostalgia (according to Google) by definition is this:
Feeling nostalgic means experiencing a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, often triggered by memories of childhood, familiar places, or close relationships. It is a "bittersweet" emotion, blending fondness for happy memories with a slight sadness or longing for times that cannot be relived.
Google also says:
Bittersweet Feeling: It often involves feeling happy about a memory while simultaneously feeling sad that it is over.
Triggered by Memory: It is usually sparked by sensory triggers like music, smells, old photos, or visiting familiar places.
Psychological Benefits:
While sometimes seen as sadness, it actually strengthens personal identity, enhances social connectivity, and provides comfort during times of loneliness or stress.
I think that just about sums it up don't you? I'm sure we've all had this feeling. Like, if I look at pictures of John as a baby, I feel happy and sad at the same time. I understand all this. The hard part for me is to focus on the happy, and not so much on the sad.
For example...
The other day I was looking at pictures (on this very blog mind you) of the house I used to live in. How happy I was there. How cozy it was. The cute twinkle lights I had around the kitchen windows and hanging geraniums I used to have on my deck every summer. Those things made me happy and now that they are gone, I'm sad. I will never see that window or have those geraniums ever again.
NOT to say I'm not happy now, but you get the idea.
Time goes on and things change. Family changes. Friends change. People get older or pass away and some things just aren't what they used to be. Maybe it's just the passing of time that gets me. I'm getting older and the years are passing at a faster rate. Looking at a picture I think, that's a time in my life that will never be again. But I'm still happy it happened. And what happened to that sweater? I really liked that sweater. See....happy/sad/happy/sad. It's a blessing and a curse.
TikTok has been a killer for me. I keep seeing those aesthetic videos of "what life was like back then" type of stuff. I'm obsessed with watching them, but at the same time they make me so sad (especially the Christmas ones!).
I watched one this morning...it was all about what shopping malls were like in the 1980's & 90's. Bustling, lively, and fun! Who didn't spend their weekends at the mall?! And now they are slowly disappearing. Some are abandoned. Why do I even care? And why would that make me sad? And have you heard that QVC has declared bankruptcy?! I've spent the last 40 years watching QVC. Not that I've even ordered much from it over the years, but I do enjoy watching it, and now it might disappear...just like the malls.
I was food shopping last week there was a sign posted at the cashier that said no more pennies. Change will be either rounded up or down the nearest 5 cents. What is going on? This is me resisting change and progress. Is it progress? Am I over thinking? I have been very negative lately about a lot of big things and I think it's just spilling over into the little daily things.
Ok, so maybe I just need more hobbies? Get out more, Danielle.
Get a grip on reality! I know, I will ♥
Thank you (if you are still reading this!!) for listening to my rant. I don't even know what this post is?! I think I just needed to get all of that out and you know what? I do feel better! Maybe it's not so unusual to be sad for the past and maybe I'm not the only one who gets down about these things. If you've ever felt this way for no particular reason, then I feel you! :)
I will end this post with a lovely picture of my hot chocolate I got on Saturday morning when I met my friend Julie at a cozy bakery for a wonderful catch up! We hadn't seen each other in ages and had the best time talking. It was great therapy for me. Her boys and John have been friends since kindergarten, so we've done the whole "growing up" thing together. It all happened in a blink of my eye.
So now that I've been writing all this and thinking about it, I realize my nostalgia is a blessing and curse. Yes, I do get sad when I long for the past and things in my life that are no longer, yet I'm so very happy and grateful that I was able to have those things. And who know what more there is to come in life. By the grace of God I pray for blessings.
This is life. And it's good ♥
Love you all! Have a great day! xx
PS I promise you I haven't become unhinged. I'm hanging on nice and tight. I'll be back in a day or so more like myself - with lots of Lucy, baked goods, and candles - the usual. Now I'm off to drink a much needed coffee and get some work done. Tonight Rob and I will walk the neighborhood after dinner, I'll get into bed with my book and then get a good night's sleep. I'm really looking forward to that.
As you can see by the title of this post, I made a chocolate cake. Did I need a chocolate cake? No. Did I make it anyway? Of course. And guess what? I have never posted a chocolate cake recipe on this blog. I was shocked when I went searching for a recipe on here and couldn't find one. Who am I? I felt I needed to rectify that immediately.
So actually, I did it for YOU! :)
I wasn't in the mood for anything too fancy or too rich, just something quick, with simple ingredients to satisfy my sweet tooth. I don't know about you, but I can't end a meal without something sweet. And it appears all my Easter candy had dwindled away....oops😳
I remember a recipe I've been saving from a little cookbook that my mother gave me called "Recipes We Grew Up With." I dug it out of the stack and thankfully had all the ingredients on hand to make it.
I love that this recipe is from 1943. Tried and true. And here I am making it in 2026!
Can you just imagine the generations of moms and dads that mixed up this batter and served it to their families. All by hand. All with love ♥
** I made two small additions**
#1 I added 1/4 cup of cold brewed coffee, just like Ina Garten taught us. The coffee brings out the chocolate flavor. And she's right!
#2 I added a tsp (measured with my heart) of vanilla, because every cake needs vanilla.
The smell of chocolate filled my whole kitchen ♥
I didn't have anything handy to make frosting, so I improvised.
I had a container of cool whip in the freezer that I let thaw. I dolloped each slice and you know what???
Perfection! ♥
As I type this post I'm enjoying another piece. I will probably regret it but not really. Don't we have hard enough days? We can't be expected to give up cake too?! I promise to do my walk tonight and I'm drinking lots of water too, so see - I'm a health nut! ♥
I'll leave you today with this that I saw on Facebook the other day. I'm quite sure the moms of 1943 would never in a million years imagine how much I would love to have that stove. It seems to me that simple wins every time, but that's just me...with one foot in the past trying desperately not to step too deep into the future.
Have a lovely night friends. It's almost Friday! ♥
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