Spring finally arrived!

It was a long winter.  When people ask me what I've been up to, I pause and think about it for awhile.  Let's see.  Sitting in front of the fireplace with Mike and our cat Gilbert each evening.  Sewing once again after Mike researched and fixed my broken sewing machine.  Reading and visiting friends and family.

Nothing major really.  Just living.

I admit this goes against my strong work ethic with a need to accomplish something each day.  But I'm trying to enjoy just living,  and sometimes that means you can't point to a big accomplishment at the end of each day.  Not an easy thing to learn really...

I recognize that I've had another case of cabin fever this winter.  How do I know?  I am SO HAPPY now with sunshine and warmer weather!  And people are smiling everywhere, so I know I wasn't the only one with a case of the winter doldrums.  People are outside walking, jogging, biking and sitting outside at restaurants.  Even construction workers seem to have a spring to their step.  And yes, even the dogs are smiling!

Here's a glimpse into the past couple of weeks:

Final vestiges of winter?

Ice on the Jeep

And a dash of snow

The arrival of spring.

And with the hordes of birds (and squirrels and ground squirrels and rabbits) feeding at our bird feeder or on the ground beside the feeder, our cat BlueBelle decided to do a little research...

When Mike was teaching on Wednesday, my job was to research raised bed garden designs so we could start planning our new garden.  And of course this involved deciding what I wanted to plant.  So I headed to one of the local nurseries.  This particular nursery had about 9 buildings, and the flower greenhouse was pure bliss.  When I stepped inside there was a fantastic floral smell and bright colors everywhere.  I could live in this building.  I smiled the whole time I wandered around...

Checkerboard plants

Already in bloom

And since my sewing machine was repaired (thank you Mike!), I got back to the hobby of sewing pillows.

And of course, I wanted to try something new. I painted stars on this pillow top with fabric paint.  I then added batting and a muslin layer and hand quilted this top layer.  Ok, it was my first attempt at quilting in many years, and you know what?   I'm fine with NOT being a quilter.  Anyway, the pillow turned out ok...

And I made some new pillow covers for mom's couch.  Plain fabric. No painting. No quilting. Just the way I like it.

And we continue to enjoy great times with family and friends.  Last weekend we traveled to mom's, where we enjoyed lots of laughter and BASKETBALL!  It was the best of all worlds.  We were glued to the TV for NCAA basketball and the state high school basketball championship.  My cousin's son played for Evansville's Reitz High School.  Unfortunately Reitz lost, but we were very proud of Jacob.

On Monday I enjoyed a lovely visit with my friend Jane.  We met up at The Cake Bake Shop in Broad Ripple (in Indy).  It's a lovely little white house decorated in a French Provincial style.  They feature 4-5 types of cake and your choice of coffee, tea, wine or champagne.  Ok, it's a bit pricey.  I have NEVER paid $17 for a slice of cake and a pot of tea before.  But I have to tell you it was worth every penny.

The Earl's Court Chocolate Cake was some of the best chocolate cake I've ever tasted.  Let me tell you how the menu describes it..."Layers of French Valrhona chocolate cake topped with a layer of Belgian chocolate ganache, filled with a malted cream and topped with a dark chocolate fudge frosting.  Sprinkled with Fleur de Sel from  the Isle of Rea from the beaches of France."  Wow!  Just writing that makes me want to head back for another slice.  And of course I had a great conversation with Jane.  I know we could have talked for hours and hours...

Last night we joined up with our friend Pat at the Red Key Tavern in Broad Ripple. They were celebrating their 64 year anniversary.  We signed their guest book, enjoyed a first round of drinks on the house and chatted with the regular patrons.  Actually Pat is one of those regulars, as he explained that he's been coming to the Red Key for 30 plus years.

Next we dashed across the street to eat dinner at a very cool Latin bar, La  Mulita, where we enjoyed tlayuda de chorizo and margaritas.  Amazingly fresh and tasty food, we would definitely head there again.  And then we ended up at Luna, a great little music store across the street.  And to think that all three great places are within a single block in this "SoBro" area of Broad Ripple..

It's definitely Spring time. And things are looking up...

Diane