Arrrgh!!!

We had a quiet week this week, until Friday. I'll just give you the highlights or we'll be here forever.

The apple trees, and pear trees have been beautiful this year, covered with masses of blossoms. We had quite a heat spell early in April, but the last 10 days of the month it's been unusually cool. The tulips are gorgeous, and the lilacs have been holding their bloom unusually long.

Today, the wind is whipping the fruit trees, and we have petal snow.

I noticed, as we returned home today that the lilies of the valley under the birch trees have materialized! I think they must be easily six to eight inches tall, and there was no sign of them a few days ago.

Ed (the cat) seems to be doing well with his regimen of antibiotics. We are into our second week of one dose down the throat every other day. He is wary when my stepson and I are in the room with him, with good reason. Usually I pick up the cat, and hold him, while my stepson opens the cat's mouth and delivers the meds.

SS works the 2:00 to 11:00 p.m. shift, so we were going to try to medicate Ed before he left. Unfortunately, he was on to us, and got away. That meant I had to wait up until SS returned from work. I was ticked at not being able to go to bed. I was reading, trying to pass the time, when Ed hopped onto the table and stretched out, asking to be loved up. I obliged, thinking that this would be the perfect position to collect him when SS arrived.

Of course, ten minutes before SS got home, Ed left the table.

When we were ready to do the dirty deed, I went to get Ed, and he got away from me. I figured that we were out of luck for the night. The cat had made a bee line for my mother's bedroom, and slipped through the barely open door.

A few minutes later SS was on his way to the stairs to his bedroom, when he realized that my mother was out of her room, and the door was standing wide open. He stepped in, and discovered the cat stretched out for the night on the sewing desk. He scooped him up, walked to the kitchen, and I squirted the meds into the back of his throat. Yummmmmmmmmm! Triple Fish Flavor!

(sighing) Thank God. One more night of meds down! Only four more to go!

We're all yet livin here, just getting on with life.

Elegant Mother is recuperating from her cold and the cat scratch. Dear Husband, as we speak, is moving the mast from it's winter storage to the top of the boat for it's ride down the Chicago expressways. Ed, The Occasionally Insufferable," is outside chasing birds and chipmunks, and Step Son is off to work.

I am going to collect a book on tape and go out to play in the gardens. I'd love to stay and chat, but sunshine and warm weather are calling to me! Have a great weekend!

I suppose that telling you I was on my hands and knees for more than five hours yesterday may create an unfortunate image in your mind, but it brought me a lot of satisfaction. It was a glorious day, and I spent that time weeding!

In just two weeks our Red Hat Society ladies will be coming for a brunch. I've started making lists mentally of what has to be done before they troop up the sidewalk. Of course, part of that has to be the preparation of the gardens.

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms I know. And, Happy Mothers Day, to those of you who don't have your own children, who have lovingly cared for stepchildren, nieces, nephews, godchildren, or even kids who are not related to you. To me, it's not simply the ability to give birth that we celebrate, but the care and love that help a child to become a strong, healthy adult.

I hope that your loved ones take the opportunity to tell you how much you mean to them. Don't assume that your mother knows you love her. SAY IT!!

Last night Dear Husband and I went to see a community performance of Fiddler on the Roof. We had an early dinner and then drove west through the farmland to the town of Sandwich, Illinois.

One of my friends from exercise is a member of the troupe that puts on at least one musical each year. This year she was cast as Gramma Tzeidel, and nearly brought the house down.

Most of our friends went to opening night, or the performance last Sunday. I wanted to be able to go with my husband, and we had commitments last weekend, so we got tickets for the final performance.

I'm sure in my ramblings in the past month I've mentioned that we will be hosting two brunches, one for the Red Hat Society group to which we belong, and one for our exercise group. These brunches fall just six days apart, and I've been working for the past ten days or so to get things ready. When I set the dates for these brunches, I forgot that I had committed to spend the weekend with two of my nieces and my Mother.

So, perhaps you can understand where I've been, and why my blog has gone quiet. By the end of the month I hope to have my Spring cleaning done, and then maybe I'll have a bit more time to visit.

Meanwhile, I hope you are all having wonderful weather and have had the chance to get outside for a bit.

When I get back to the computer, I'll have several things to talk about.....the incredible wind that we've had the last two days, along with very chilly weather. One stand of tulips in an unprotected spot were denuded of petals.

I've been pondering the drawbacks to having a computerized life, especially for those who have never learned to do things from scratch to begin with. The same problem existed when they tried to teach us "New Math." It failed because there wasn't enough focus on the basics. I think that jazz performers have to learn Classical music to be able to depart from the "rules."

We're making a trip to Iowa this weekend to commune with the cows and our relatives. I'm looking forward to an unstructured visit, some shopping, good food, and the chance to beat my niece at Spite and Malice. See you Monday!

Saturday, I was in eastern Iowa, visiting with relatives. My niece had planted flower boxes on her deck, and a bird I had never seen visited one of them as we watched.

The bird's body was a mustardy gold color. It's wings were barred in black and white, rather like a downy woodpecker's wings. It was slightly smaller than a robin, and had a similar shape. I didn't get a good look at it's beak, but it seems to me that it was long and pointed, rather than the blunter beak of a cardinal or gross-beak.

I browsed through my bird books, and the closest thing I could find to what I saw was a female "Northern" or "Baltimore" Oriole.

Can my birding friends suggest any other birds I might look at that fit that description?

I've never seen a deep gold bird before.

I was in the grocery store last week, and I was reminded just how dependent we have become on computers in our lives. I'm old enough to remember when a cashier at the grocery store hit keys on a cash register to ring up the cost of the items. Each item was marked with a price rather than a zebra stripe.

If the electricity went out, they "rang" you up by hand, and you went on about your business. These days, if the computer is malfunctioning, or if the electricity goes off, you're out of luck. No sale. There is nothing they can do to make a sale.

I was driving home last Thursday, and came around the corner onto the street where we live. There are subdividion signs on either side of that corner, and the landscapers had decorated them with banks of yellow tulips.

It has been incredibly windy for the past few days, and the tulips on the north side of the street had been totally stripped of their blooms. Those on the south side had a six foot block sign protecting them from the wind, and were still blooming.

As we traveled to Iowa and back, we saw similar examples of the wind's power. I'm ready for that part where "April sighed, and said goodbye, and along came pretty little May!"

Actually, that should be WE came, We saw, We conquered Iowa. My mother, one of my nieces and I visited a niece in eastern Iowa this week. It was a totally unstructured weekend. We ate, and shopped, and scrap-booked, played Spite and Malice, quilted, knitted, chatted, ate, drank, ate, and generally had a wonderful time.

One of my mother's friends sent a recipe to me for an Italian style spread that's really yummy.

It's a layered spread that starts with a layer of cream cheese mixed with goat cheese, spread and pressed into a bowl lined with plastic wrap.

The next layer is a blend of spinach, fresh basil, Parmesan and olive oil and garlic. It makes a dry pesto. This would work best in a food processor, but I was able to chop it finely in a blender.

On top of that you spread roasted pine nuts and finely diced sun-dried tomatoes.

Those layers are repeated and then the final layer is the last of the cream cheese/goat cheese mix.

The spread is chilled to blend the flavors, and then served with crackers. I've made this twice for my family, and I plan to make it for the two brunches coming up. It may become a staple at family gatherings. The pesto layer blended with the cheese is wonderful!

Whewwwwww!

I've spent the past three weeks working on my Spring cleaning, and getting ready for two brunches which will be held here. I've been "missing in action" from my blog because there was so much work to be done. It's been worth it.

We held the first gathering today for our Red Hat Society group.

The bane of a homeowner's existence.....repairs! We built our house 16 years ago, and when it was ten years old we reached the point were it was patch, Patch, PATCH! You'd think a new house would stay "new" longer.

I've been trying for some time to get a picture of my Mother all dolled up in her Red Hat Finery. My brother was in New Orleans and bought her an incredible purple boa to go with the outfit. She wore it for the Red Hat Society brunch that was held at our house last weekend, and was the hit of the day.

Here's Elegant Mother on May 21st, standing on the sidewalk to our home:

It's just amazing what I learn from my friends! I'm fortunate to be a part of the Friday Night Bee. It meets in my home once a month, and the ladies who make up the rest of the bee are the most prodigious quilters I know. We begin each session with Show and Tell, and although there are only eight of us, it can take half an hour to show and discuss new creations, or antique quilt finds, or new books to be shared.

If you've read my blog in the past, you might have seen comments from Cop Car, complaining that I have created a MONSTER!!!

It's a quilter's joy to addict someone to quilting. Can you envision us rubbing our hands in glee, plotting each step to drag you to the DARK SIDE??? Well, she's well and truly addicted, and I'm proud to say that I had a hand in it.

Unfortunately, you have to be careful, or your student might turn on you. Cop Car found a quilt store just a mile from her home, and she discovered a quilting software program called "Electric Quilt 5." She's shared with me the ease of designing a quilt, and even importing pictures of the actual fabric you wish to use in your quilt. I stood in awe of her progress, but resisted getting the software, thinking I simply didn't have the time to learn a new program.

I'm recuperating from three weeks of Spring cleaning and heavy housework. I volunteered to host two pot luck brunches in my home. You know that I had pages of "To Do" items. I diligently worked my way through them, and the Red Hatters came to us a week ago. It was a wonderful party. They filled the house with their laughter and conversation, and we had a great time, but it didn't prepare me for Friday's visit with the exerecise group.

Elegant Mother and I have been attending an exercise class together. I enrolled her in it five or six years ago, to get her ready for a trip to the Chelsea Flower Show in England, and we have stayed on, and on, and on.

Meet Ninotchka.

She's the middle in age of three raccoon mommies who are living in our attic. One of these clever ladies ate her way through the roof, and the others, being no slouches, followed.

We were just about to evict them, when they gave birth. We are waiting for the day when we see tiny furry bodies milling around under the bird feeder.

Dear Husband has created a raccoon door, to allow the mommies access to their babies, while keeping the rain out. He's also slipped lightweight metal under the bottom row of shingles to prevent other holes. Once the babies are outside, we will repair the hole and have the entire roof re-shingled.

Enjoy it while you can, Notch. It's time for you to face the wilds of suburbia again!

About five years ago, I attended the Strictly Sail convention on Navy Pier in Chicago. It's a wonderful activity for sailors held at the end of January or the start of February when one can't sail in our climate. Sailors gather to see the newest boats, tools, clothing, equipments, sails.....anything you might need to sail a boat.

Along with the exhibition floor, they offer dozens of one hour seminars on all sorts of subjects. Occasionally we would attend different classes, but frequently we sat through seminars together. One that I attended that year was about sailing in the Pacific. It seems that atolls are ringed with coral reefs, and there is usually only one area where you can cross through the reef to moor.

Yup, it's that season again.

Two weeks ago, while Elegant Mother and I were in Iowa, Dear Husband took the boat to the boatyard and they craned it into Lake Michigan. He's spent the last two weekends getting the boat squared away.