Without a word of a lie, April Fools Day is Scooter’s birthday. He’s 8 years old today but I’m happy to say that for the most part he still has the heart of a kitten. Mind you, like any other cat he sleeps somewhere around 20 hours a day. He snores too. As a matter of fact, he hogs the bed. Somehow as I continue this he sounds less and less appealing, doesn’t he??
In reality, he’s a great cat and Erik and I enjoy having him eat us out of kitty kibble and shredding us at his whim.
So…Happy Birthday Scooter Boy!!
I was at the grocery store this past Wednesday and I was trying to locate the granola. Now that sounds all well and good and very easy but it’s not!! For one thing there’s only one grocery store that sells the brand of granola that we like. (Is there a secret conspiracy to rid the stores of healthy cereal??) Once in the store the hunt continues. They’re in the proper aisle but they’re tucked between the semi-good-for-you cereal and the clog-your-artery cereal. When I finally find them there are only three boxes. I buy two just to be safe.
From the cereal, I wander a bit trying to jog my memory because once more I’ve forgotten the list that helps me remember. Is there a list that helps you remember the list?? I digress.
Now this is where the trip to the grocery store became fun. I was perusing those little signs above the aisles that help you find where you are. They’re like road signs for lost shoppers. They’re tiny little comfort zones for weary people at the end of the busy day.
When I looked overhead I noticed something that made me smile and almost laugh out loud. In the same aisle as “Baby Wipes” you can purchase “Insecticides”. Now I ask you, at first glance wouldn’t you have laughed too??
I can’t help but wonder who thought that up.
The birdfeeders are busy these days and one by one we’re seeing (and hearing) that certain of the feathered friends have returned from warmer climes. Plump round robins are in the yards looking for whatever they can find at this time of the year. I’m sure that the heavy spring rains that we’ve experienced give them any number of yummy choices.
It’s good to see the tulips pushing through the ground but it’s the daffodils that I really wait for. My Aunt plants them in groups of five or seven making them a bright splash of spring here and there.
One of my favorite things to see is crocus planted right in a yard. They’re up and gone long before the first grass cutting and what a beautiful “surprise” to see at the end of a long white winter. I must make note (and not lose it) to do that this fall. Hmm…I’m thinking about fall already.
Erik and I are certain that the Mountain Ash is all but finished. It’s the only real shade that we have in the back and oh, how I’m going to miss it when it’s gone. My friend (and extra Mom) Barbara from Minnesota lost her Mountain Ash last year too. It’s a disappointing thing to lose a tree. They take so long to establish themselves. Our Mountain Ash is such a gathering place for the birds, so I keep hoping for a tree miracle!! I used to know a woman who would make a recording of her voice coaxing any and all ill plants and trees to “just try harder”. I hadn’t thought of that for a long time. Not to fear. You’re not going to be treated to any recorded pep talks should you drive past our home anytime soon!!
The deer seem happy to see the end of the snow and everywhere I drive I see them feeding with gusto. It’s never uncommon for Erik and me to see them on the way to the station each morning.
The geese too are feeding on the grasses that are starting to grow. It’s always fun to see the males on guard while the females munch away. They’re handsome birds and completely loyal to one to the other. They mate for life and when one loses a partner they seemingly do not choose another. When the days grow warmer, we’ll head to a favorite park with cracked corn and bread crumbs. The girls especially enjoy this and I find myself hoping for warmer days.
I had a flashback moment this week.
Erik and I were taking the girls to dinner on Tuesday evening. A song came on the car radio. It was a Aretha Franklin song we’d heard any number of times and hadn’t given a second thought to. The girls sat in the back and watched as Erik and I got totally silly. We were singing (loudly and pretty darned bad!!) and half dancing (which isn’t easy to do in a car) while the girls sat in horror. Rebecca asked what we were doing and why we were doing it. Cassandra obliged to answer as she slithered down so that no one could see her.
As she turned towards Rebecca she said these words, “It’s ok ‘Becca, they’re old. They’re supposed to do things like that.”
Erik and I paid no attention at all, but I suppose it was bound to happen. We got old. Here was Aretha belting out “R E S P E C T” on the radio, and Erik and I got old. Now I wonder when that happened. It seems to me that just yesterday my own Mom and Papa were in the front and I was the one doing the slithering. I’ll wait to share that with Cassandra for a few years. I feel that it would be wasted on her right now.
As for Cassandra, she really DID get older just this past week. She turned 11 on Wednesday!! While we celebrated on Tuesday night (the “old” incident”) the real celebration will come this Sunday when we have a birthday party with family and friends.
As well as other goodies, Erik will make his famous “Wicked Good Noonoo Sauce” so that we can have Spaghetti and Sauce and I’m planning on making some Caramel Corn for us all to munch on.
**Special note to Karen—There will be a bag of Caramel Corn for you to take home with you!!
Tomorrow we’ll start the celebrations early. We’re headed out to get a HUGE cookie instead of a cake as per Cassandra’s request. Keeping it safe until Sunday could be a bit of a challenge though.
Let’s see. Purple streamers, balloons and I should be writing this down. I wonder if I’ll just forget the list even if I do.
Love from Butternut Grove,
Shelley
The Simple Pleasures
Scooter is 8 and he’s still a kitten
Finally finding the granola
The birds returning & plump
My Aunt’s daffodils
A letter from my extra Mom, Barbara
Spring’s wakeup call to the deer & Canada geese
Flashbacks and R E S P E C T!!
Getting “old”
Erik’s Wicked Good Noonoo Sauce!!
An 11 year old Sweet Potato
(We love you Cassandra)
Thursday April 21, 2005
It’s 10:30 at night. I should be sleeping. I should at the very least be thinking of sleeping but I’m not. Instead, I’ve just found the recipe for Cranberry Daiquiris. Now why couldn’t I have found that in December when I was looking for it?? Water under the bridge, spilled milk and lost daiquiri recipes are best left for the sages of this world to contemplate.
I feel better getting that off my chest, if only for a moment.
A while ago my friend Phyllis (you’d love her!!) gave me a painted wooden box marked “take-out menus”. The box itself reminds me of Phyllis. It’s bright and cheerful and it makes me smile. That is Phyllis. She told me that she has a box just like it and fills hers with what else—take-out menus. Now try as I might to save take-out menus I just don’t save them. I have decided however, to use the box for wayward recipes and such. The first one in there will be the Cranberry Daiquiri recipe.
Two years ago (has it been that long already??) when my Aunt, Ginger visited from Ontario, she brought a folder jam-packed with recipes that my Mom had collected and copied over the years. I was delighted to see them and they were such fun to go through trying to decipher the ones that were in obvious “code” known only to our Mom. She was famous for writing them in the shortest of short form. For the most part she was able to figure them out, but Ginger and I laughed when we read a few and had to look at one another with puzzled looks. It was a good laugh and it took us back to happy times. As recipes they’re totally worthless but as treasures from the past they are irreplaceable and will have a place of honor in “the box”. Thank you, Phyllis. Thank you, Auntie. Mom—thanks to you too.
For the past few days when I’ve looked outside I’ve been treated to bumblebees and early butterflies. Just a month ago, looking out the window would have meant snowflakes flying by instead. The changes that have taken place in that time have been nothing short of miraculous. The whole Hudson Valley has taken over the green spectrum. Spring is a green time and there are certain greens that belong only to spring. Just this morning my friend Melissa wrote me about the “Spring Green” crayon in the Crayola box.
Here’s a portion of her letter:
“This morning I was driving home after dropping Emily at school for a student council meeting and I noticed the tree buds were opening up here....the color reminded me of Crayola's "Spring Green"....remember that color? I used to love using that color! I thought how nice it would be to take the wrapper off the crayon, enlarge it on a printer and frame it for a poster or make a Welcome Spring card out of it.”
Oh Melissa, I do remember Spring Green in the box. What a lovely thing to think about—crayons and spring and buds on the tree. Thanks Melissa.
Speaking of buds, there are delicious buds on the Lilac bushes in the yard. Right now they’re tight little curls but I know that in a matter of days I’ll be able to go out and gather a full bouquet for the dining room table. Lilac—the loveliest harbinger of spring!! I often wonder if at this time of the year Gladys Taber wanders the grounds at Stillmeadow checking on the Lilacs and looking for blooms. Surely Gladys’ unicorn watches from the woods while Holly and the cockers romp by her side. Jill is there too. She still pours over her seed catalogs and plans the garden wondering if there’s room for the new things she wants to try.
Scooter has a bit of a weepy eye lately and Erik and I have been taking turns wiping it and reassuring him that everything is fine. I don’t know why we feel that we have to reassure him. He doesn’t seem worried by any means. I hate to say it but a vet visit is probably in his future. He’s a big boy and not one to just “slip” into the carrier. In fact, when he sees it he runs like a mad monkey for a hiding spot. Now you’d think that he’d be used to vet visits and such but for all of his fuss about wanting to go “Ooooouuuuut” he is a home body after all. Sigh.
Sunday April 24, 2005
For those of you that followed our vacation travels last week you will know that it was a whirlwind of fun. Being as I battle the wolf (lupus) it was decided that since we were doing daytrips with the girls that we’d space out our big drives.
Monday we loaded up the car with hats for the sun and coats (just in case it was cold) and headed to Pennsylvania to visit Cabella’s. On the way we stopped at the Crayola Factory Store where we were all kids!! As well as the girls finding even MORE crayons that they just couldn’t live without, Erik got himself a very snappy Crayola hat!! I found a wonderful long sleeve shirt with embroidered Crayola crayons popping out of the pocket!! It will make a great cover-up shirt when I go out in the sun. Before continuing to Cabella’s we had lunch at a restaurant just about a block from all those wonderful crayons!! Instead of going inside, we chose to eat at their tables on the street. A delightful breeze and the giggles from girls was a pleasant way to enjoy a meal. Erik and I were in bliss.
Tuesday was a quiet day for me but Daddy and the girls got down and dirty with flowers for the boxes on the deck. At Easter the girls found gardening gloves in their baskets. They were SO excited that they were finally using them. What sweet little farmers we have.
Wednesday found us “on the road again” to Connecticut this time!! We visited the aquarium at Mystic. Now right now I will tell you that I was more than taken with the Beluga whales!! What lovely creatures they are. Their pools are set up so that you can go “under” the water and look in on them through windows. They lumber by and look at you with soulful eyes. It’s an incredible experience.
Thursday was another “quiet” day at home. The girls did however have a picnic on the lawn with some of the little neighbor girls. Daddy barbequed chicken and then made fried rice. My contribution to the dining al fresco was homemade kettle corn. They were happy young ladies.
Friday and off to the city. Dressed in finery; Daddy in his “popular guy” jacket as Rebecca called it and we three ladies all wearing new dresses for the occasion, once again we piled into the car and met Mimi and Juliet at The Tea Den for Chinese. Following a rousing ride in a New York cab (a first for me!!) we arrived at the theater where we would see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!!
When I was a little girl, I remember seeing the Chitty car on the movie screen and then in the years following on the TV. Each time that car would fly I was soaring up there with it. I truly believed that it could fly. My child’s mind never doubted it for a moment. Well, last Friday when the real life Chitty car took flight in the theater house I was that little girl once more and I didn’t doubt then either. Mimi and I were beaming at one another as the Chitty car took to the air. I think we proved that childhood is just as fun the SECOND time around!!
Following the show we stood at the stage door (in the rain, no less) to get photos and autographs of the cast members. What tremendous fun it was as each of the actors emerged from the theater. To our delight we were able to meet many of the players and we even managed to get a beautiful picture of the girls with Erin Dilly who played Truly Scrumptious!!
Following such an adventurous week the four of us were pleased to celebrate the first Passover Seder with Mimi and Robert and their girls on Long Island. It was a fine way to bring our vacation week to a close. Family—it is all important.
Friday April 29, 2005
As I write this tonight, I’m sitting in a hotel room in Framingham, Massachusetts. This is a weekend away for Erik and me. Once a year I come to a Rubber Stamping Trade Show here with my dear friend Karen. We take classes and learn new techniques and have an opportunity to play with new products. Karen owns a wonderful little shop in New Hampshire, and a few years ago I had the pleasure of working for her. During that time we became great friends and it’s such a joy to be able to get together like this even if it is for such a short time.
This is a special trip because this is the first time that we’ve been able to see Karen’s little boy Griffin!! I can tell you right now that I’m smitten with this little man who has such a sweet laugh. Karen and Alex...you did a great job!! Griffin, you’re a charmer.
As April comes to a close I find myself looking forward to May. Bright flowers and bright days give reason to smile. The thought of the girls playing in the yard and asking when it will be hot enough for the lemonade stand makes me thankful for childhood innocence.
As April comes to a close, may you find such sweet joys in your own lives.
