Surprise!

I purchased this tiny cactus last summer. If you look closely, you will notice that these blooms are hot glued to the top of the cactus. They aren't native to this plant. The store knew what they were doing, though, because I'm not sure I would have bought just a plain green, prickly cactus. It was the pretty bloom that drew me to it. Last summer it had one pale pink flower. The papery petals opened and closed with the rising and setting of the sun, which I found totally endearing. Anyway, I left this little guy out on the porch all winter. The pink flower turned brown, shriveled up, and went away. The cactus stayed green and seemed to be alive, so I just left him there. Imagine my JOY when a few days ago I noticed multiple purple blossoms opening to greet the morning sun! Nature is some kind of amazing, don't you think?

Poetry Month - Part 5

The final Tuesday in April...can you believe it?! Since I've shared all of my most favorite poems, here's something a little bit different.

"Yet, it is true, poetry is delicious; the best prose is that which is most full of poetry."~Virginia Woolf

I wholeheartedly agree with the quote above. There are numerous books on my shelves that I would classify as poetry, though they are written entirely in prose. Currently I'm reading "Cold Mountain" by Charles Frazier. Here's a bit of poetic prose from his book:

"She rose and walked beyond the orchard to the margin of the woods where the tall autumn flowers---goldenrod and ironweed and joe-pye weed---were beginning to bloom yellow and indigo and iron grey. Monarchs and swallowtails worked among the flower heads. Three finches balanced on blackberry canes, the leaves already turned maroon, and then flew away, flaring out low to the ground, their yellow backs flashing between their black wings until they disappeared into a clump of dog hobble and sumac at the transition between field and woods."

Jake Had a Bath

Now he's soft, snuggly, and smells so sweet!

My Grocery List

Monday is grocery day. I try to limit my trips to once per week, which requires me to be very organized in my meal planning and list making. I usually spend some time on Sunday afternoon coming up with the week's menu and the list of ingredients I'll need to make it happen. There's nothing I dislike more about grocery shopping than having to repeat an aisle because I forgot something. In order to avoid this, I've divided my list up into sections resembling the store aisles, resulting in a much more pleasant and quick shopping experience. The black and white computer print out was looking a little dull to me, though. Since I leave the meal plan sitting on my cookbook stand all week, I decided to add a pretty vintage graphic to it. This week I chose an old Domino sugar ad...I particularly love the butterflies in the corners.

An Early Dinner

Sometimes the simplest recipes turn out to be the tastiest meals. My friend, Cookie, sent me a recipe for Pepper Crockpot Roast. With just two ingredients and many hours of cooking, my crockpot worked its magic once again. Two pieces of homemade bread, a slice of melty provolone, and the tender shredded beef became a delectable Saturday evening treat.

Thanks, Cookie!!

Miss P.

"I know that squirrel is up there."

After three long months...

Grey's Anatomy is finally back with new episodes! I've had this date marked on my calendar since they first announced its return. Hooray! Yippee! It was a good episode, and next week looks to be even more exciting...only seven more days!

Pretty Paper

I used the last bit of money on my Paper Source gift card to order four large sheets of beautiful paper. The FedEx man delivered them to my door this morning. Yippee!

Poetry Month - Part 4

Jane Kenyon is another one of my favorites. I've been slowly making my way through "Jane Kenyon: A Literary Life" while reading her book of poetry entitled "Otherwise". It's been interesting to read them together, the first giving lots of background on the poems in the second. Kenyon dealt with depression for much of her life and spent her last years fighting an aggressive form of leukemia. There is a melancholy that pervades many of her poems, so I had a hard time choosing one to post. I do love her work, though, and I admire her way with words. She takes daily life occurrences and imbues them with brilliant meaning. Perhaps you remember this post about one of my favorites. Here's another...this one makes me stop and take the time to be thankful for each day, even the seemingly ordinary ones.

Otherwise
Jane Kenyon

I got out of bed
on two strong legs.
It might have been
otherwise. I ate
cereal, sweet
milk, ripe, flawless
peach. It might
have been otherwise.
I took the dog uphill
to the birch wood.
All morning I did
the work I love.

At noon I lay down
with my mate. It might
have been otherwise.
We ate dinner together
at a table with silver
candlesticks. It might
have been otherwise.
I slept in a bed
in a room with paintings
on the walls, and
planned another day
just like this day.
But one day, I know,
it will be otherwise.

This Month's Issues

Stacked next to my place at the table are my favorite magazines. They'll be my dining companions while Lee works late this week.

No Dairy, No Eggs

Behold the amazingly delicious vegan cupcakes! Moist dark chocolate cake frosted with buttercream icing...scrump-diddly-umptious!

The Beach

Lee & I picked up sandwiches and headed to the beach to meet some friends this afternoon. Although the air was cool and the breeze chilly at times, it was a gorgeous sunny day...a perfect place to enJOY our Saturday!

A Cool Treat

Today was the hottest we've had so far this spring. Hot chocolate has been my afternoon snack of choice, but not today! Instead I whipped up a delicious smoothie...frozen blackberries, plump strawberries, vanilla yogurt, soy milk, and honey. It was easily one of the best smoothies I've ever made. Still needing my chocolate fix, though, I enJOYed some dark chocolate covered almonds rolled in sea salt and turbinado sugar. Perfect!

A Tasty Snack

Fresh Bread

Arinn and I made another batch of sauce today. Spaghetti & meatballs wouldn't be complete at our house without a loaf of bread. I did things a little bit differently today, though. Instead of baking the bread in my machine, I used the dough cycle, formed my own loaves, and stuck it in the oven. The house smells heavenly, the bread is scrumptious, and I had fun changing it up a bit!

Poetry Month - Part 3

Besides being a writer, Wendell Berry has also spent much of his life as a farmer. His close ties with nature inform much of his poetry. I was first introduced to him when a friend slipped a copy of "The Peace of Wild Things" into my mailbox because she thought I'd like it. I did, and I still do. Here's another of my favorites...

The Wild Rose
Wendell Berry

Sometimes hidden from me
in daily custom and in trust,
so that I live by you unaware
as by the beating of my heart.

Suddenly you flare in my sight,
a wild rose blooming at the edge
of thicket, grace and light
where yesterday was only shade,

and once again I am blessed, choosing
again what I chose before.

The Joy of Creative Space

"I hardly ever thought to photograph the nooks and crannies of a home until recently. In order to preserve in my mind some of my favorite spots and the flood of memories I treasure with them, I now try to take photographs of those spaces from time to time while we're still really living in them. These are the places in your home that bring you some sort of feeling of peace, joy, happiness, or comfort."
~Amanda Blake Soule~
"The Creative Family"

Over the past three years, I've captured our living spaces in photos. Inspired by the above quote, I thought I'd share the evolution of my creative space in the three homes we've lived in thus far.

In our first apartment, I shared my space with the guest bed. We referred to this room affectionately as "The Hobby Lobby", a name we borrowed from my favorite local craft store. My hobby of choice then was scrapbooking. Newly married, I was working on an album of our wedding weekend. Although I wasn't writing then as much as I do now, you can see my journal sitting on the card table. It was a simple set up, but I loved it nonetheless.

My next craft room was in a house with three bedrooms. I had the space all to myself with no guest bed. We only lived here for a few short months, so the walls stayed pretty bare, and my stuff never fully got unpacked or put away. I did spread out a bit, though, and added another card table. Even though I was still scrapping a lot, I was beginning to write more too. The corner shelf held all my writing how-to & inspiration type books. I spent many afternoons sitting in my rocking chair reading and writing in the sunshine.

And here's where I create now. I'm back to sharing a room with the guest bed. In a teeny house with little storage, this room also serves as Lee's dressing room (notice the big man boot by the chair). I've acquired more stuff, but it's also better organized and the most used of the three rooms. The shelves of baskets were my mom's idea - brilliant & lots of fun. I enJOY reading, writing, and card-making here with a bit of scrapbooking every now and then.

Six years ago today...

we said "I do". For the first time in four years, we're together to celebrate. We've had a wonderful day...sleeping late, relaxing in the gorgeous weather, feasting on bacon-wrapped filet mignon and our favorite chocolate truffles.

A Lazy Saturday

An Impromptu Yard Party

Just as our weekly Friday pizza night was about to get underway, the electricity went off! Wendy's came to the rescue for dinner, and our friends, Arinn & Ben, provided us with something to do. Beers and dogs in hand, we ventured out into the darkness and spent a couple of fun hours hanging out in their front yard.

After days of clouds & rain...

the sun is finally shining!!!

Sweater Sleeves

Poetry Month - Part 2

Unlike Billy Collins, whose poetry I've read a fair amount of, this poem is one of only a handful that I've encountered written by William Butler Yeats. This one I love purely for the beauty of the language and the word picture he paints.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree
W.B. Yeats

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee;
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.

Yippee!!

My mom, sister, and I are near the end of our current Scrabulous game. I've trailed behind them both the entire time. Today, I got a lucky break and scored 51 points with the word "crawled". Now I'm perched on the edge of victory!

Confirmation Day

Although I was baptized 31 years ago, I had never been confirmed. For numerous reasons, today was the perfect time. It was a beautifully simple service, and I'm so glad I waited until now to do it.

A Delightful Remedy

I have had a headache pretty much all day. Tylenol would take the edge off for a couple of hours, but I couldn't seem to fully kick it. While my headache and I were out and about this afternoon, I ran across a bag of Ghiradelli Chocolate and Caramel coffee beans. Knowing how much Lee would love it, I brought the delicious smelling treat home to him. Caffeine sometimes will ease headache pain for me, so he offered to make me a cup. OH! MY! GOODNESS! From the moment he began grinding the beans, I knew it was going to be scrumptious, and I was not disappointed. That warm mug of yumminess was just what I needed...I'm now headache free! Yippee!

Look!

Do you know what this is?? Yep, it's a box from Amazon.com!!! I had a gift card that was burning a hole in my pocket, so I cashed it in a few days ago. According to the tracking information, it wasn't supposed to arrive until Monday. Imagine my JOY when it showed up today!
Here's what was inside...a cookbook and a craft book. I know some of you are wrinkling your nose at the word "vegan" in front of cupcakes. Let me tell you, though, I've been reading about this cookbook for over a year now. The reviews are amazing. I'm not into dairy-free so much, but I do dig the "no eggs" part. I'll be sure to let you know how the taste-testing goes.

How to Spend a Rainy Day

Looking longingly out the window

Covered in a cozy blankie

Digging in the mud

Still Thinking About Poetry

I've been reading "Jane Kenyon: A Literary Life" by John H. Timmerman, and I ran across this quote today. WOW!

"The poet's job is to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, in such a beautiful way that people cannot live without it; to put into words those feelings we all have that are so deep, so important, and yet so difficult to name. The poet's job is to find a name for everything; to be a fearless finder of the names of things; to be an advocate for the beauty of the language, the subtleties of language. I think it's very serious stuff, art; it's not just decoration. The other job the poet has is to console in the face of the inevitable disintegration of loss and death, all of the tough things we have to face as humans. We have the consolation of beauty, of one soul extending to another soul and saying, "I've been there too."

~ Jane Kenyon

April is National Poetry Month

I love poetry, and I love it even more when a poem makes sense. Billy Collins is an easy poet to love. His poetry is straightforward, yet the way he strings words together is so brilliant, that I'm often left shaking my head in disbelief by the end of the text. As I looked through his collection "Sailing Alone Around the Room", there were many favorites that I wanted to post. I chose this one because it reminds me that I don't always have to "get" a poem to appreciate it...sometimes it's just the beauty of the language that's enough. Happy Poetry Month!

Introduction to Poetry
Billy Collins

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to water-ski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author's name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.