The weather today in my neck of the woods:

Another absolutely gorgeous Florida day!!! I have spring fever to the nth degree…and it is NOT a spring cleaning fever….it is lay around in a hammock ALL day and late into the evening spring fever….now to buy a hammock!

A simple pleasure:

Playing Farmville. I know it sounds crazy but it totally relaxes me. Awhile back my husband’s cousin asked on her Facebook page…”What inspires you?”. I answered…..my farm on Farmville.

Here is why. I love the virtual creativity of creating a farm with the tools given you (or earned). This has TOTALLY inspired me to really become creative with my backyard…with the tools I already have.

For example:

I would love to have a raised vegetable bed. But we just cannot afford it. But I did have several unused containers in the shed. Voila. I am now growing tomatoes/squash/sweet red peppers in containers.

I would love to have a lush butterfly garden that I can look out on while working in my home office. But I hate weeds!!! THAT is just WAY TOO MUCH WORK!!! But weeds don’t grow in containers as fast and furious as they do in the ground. So I have container gardens hanging all along the fence line.

And the list can go on of the changes that I am making, using what I have…

and literally because I have been inspired by Farmville. Weird, I know. But true.

I am thankful:

That Miss Sam’s Uncle Scott and Cousin Logan asked her to spend the day/night in Daytona today and tomorrow…..and that Miss Sam said yes. That is a HUGE step forward for Miss Sam!!! We are diligently working on moving out of our comfort zones…..our new motto is:

If You Don’t Step Out….You Miss Out

From the kitchen:

We had a fabulous cookout here at our place this Easter.

We had steak/baked potatoes/corn on the cob/broccoli/salad/my MIL’s famous potato salad….with peach shortcake and Oreo pie for dessert.

The grill has been christened…let the spring/summer grilling begin!!!

From the learning rooms:

Miss Sam is excelling in all her Virtual School courses. I can’t reiterate enough how great a fit Virtual School is with her learning style.

I am FINALLY finished reading:

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It is a very intense novel. I believe it will find it’s way into the category of “literary classics” much like Dostoyevsky – one of my favorite authors. I loved.loved.loved it. I have her book Swan Thieves in my to be read pile.

Speaking of the To Be Read Pile…all the books I mentioned last week have been returned back to the library. Instead I had a copy of An Irish Country Doctor that I had picked up months ago. And read it in a few days. It was FABULOUS!!! If you liked the Mitford Series you will definitely like this series. I got the next one An Irish Country Village yesterday from Amazon used.

But it will have to wait because I started reading:

Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham and I am completely hooked.

On My Mind:

Watching my little girl grow up. It’s a difficult yet rewarding task.

Creative Projects:

• Still working on the genealogy project. Darn it!!! I just remembered the Genealogy Meeting at the lending library is at 10:00 and it is now 10:04! Rats. Rats. Rats. Now I will have to wait until next month. I need to get into the habit of reviewing my Daytimer AS SOON AS I GET UP!!! Not halfway into the day.
• Really making headway on my photo portfolio and bouncing around different essay ideas for certain pictures. I love this challenge!!!

Hearth and Home:

STILL not much going on there. Dust continues to make itself comfortable on EVERY surface. I love having everything green and blooming again but the yellow pollen clashes with my decorating theme.

I laugh:

Because just when I think I have heard it all from my students….I get zinged.

We are studying cultural bias in standardized testing. One of the tests I give asks where the “Hully Gully” originated. Of course…not one student even has a clue what the Hully Gully is….sadly….I AM old enough to know.

For the first time in all my years of teaching a student asked “Can you give us a demonstration???”

He…He…NO!

Inspirational Quote I’m  Sharing:

There is nothing in time or eternity more absolutely certain and irrefutable than what Jesus Christ accomplished on the Cross – He made it possible for the entire human race to be brought back into a right-standing relationship with God. He made redemption the foundation of human life; that is, He made a way for every person to have fellowship with God. ~ Oswald Chambers ~

A picture thought  I am sharing: