Spring Has Sprung (at least in the kitchen)

  I decided that we better plant our vegetables.  I am super missing my garden, although if I still had it, it would be weeks before I could get into it.  Still, I figured if we can start some things from seed in the kitchen under the grow light, all the more sooner we'll have veggies we can eat.  Hopefully by the time the seedlings are too big for the starters, I'll be able to move them to the balcony.  I have grand ideas for a balcony garden!  Anyway, it so happened that we planted all our seeds on the first day of Spring, and that this coincided with Lyla's letter of the week (v) which is for vegetables.  I couldn't have planned it better.  I didn't plan it at all so that worked out great for once.  We planted kale, spinach, lettuce, thyme, rosemary, sweet peppers, hot peppers, pear tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes.  It was later when it came time to move these plantings into the kitchen that I almost had a major melt-down.  Have I mentioned the kitchen is tinier than I'm used to?  I already have the top of the pantry shelves covered with plants - either ones I brought with us when we moved or have planted since.  So I bought these shelves that said they could hold 8lbs. with the intention of putting some little starter cups on them to be closer to the grow light which hangs from the ceiling.  Well the shelves fell, dumping yucky potato water, dirt, and some seeds down on top of our microwave and various kitchen things that have no other place to live but the table that was under the shelves.  I salvaged all the actual plants and replanted the spinach which had been the only real casualty in the fall.  But I had a moment where only the presence of my children kept me from loosing it.  Thank heavens I often feel a strong obligation to model good behavior in front of them even when I don't feel like it.  That doesn't always work, but it did in this instance.  After much cleaning up and moving things around.  I came up with a make-shift solution that will just have to do until all those lovely plants can be moved outside.  Thankfully everything seems to be coming alive and growing.

It was sunny and "warm" here on Tuesday, so we headed to the park.  The girls got to ride their scooters and play on the playground.  Somehow they always end up in the trees though.  They get this honest though because that's where I usually was as a child.  They created a fairy store of sorts in one particular tree where you could go buy baskets made from pine needles or get your scooter fixed and washed.  I think they could do this all day.  But when it did get chilly it was time to go.

Wednesday Celee and I got to go to a cooking "class" at Carrabba's.  My wonderful friend Flo had invited me to go along with her, and when she couldn't go Celee got to go with me.  I thought that they would show us how to make some things and we would get to taste it and that was it.  They did show us how to make everything from Sangria to the appetizer to the bread to the main dish.  Then they sat us all down for a full meal.  The main dish was Linguine with clam sauce.  This was not something that I or Celee would have ever probably ordered, but now we know!  It was awesome!  And it was too much.  We brought Jason a box home complete with cannoli's for dessert.  The fun didn't end there though.  It was the official 1st day of Spring and so Rita's was giving away free Italian Ices all day.  We walked down (even though it was a bit of a chilly day) and stood in the long line to get ours.  They were super yummy too and they have lots of neat flavors.  And we shivered happily eating our Ices as we walked back up to the apartment.

 The girls got to go to a parent's night out party at a gymnastics studio with friends on Saturday.  They had soooo much fun!  Celee and Lyla are totally siked to try out for one of the cheer and dance teams there for next year.  They must have have fun because they came home covered in "face" paint talking non-stop and bouncing off the walls.  Gymnastics isn't exactly Gwyn's cup of tea, but even she had a blast.  Jason and I got to go out together too so it was all around win!  And we decided to have a work out date.  We never get to go to the gym at the same time (I'm not paying for kid stuff at the time) so this was super fun for me.  I think our next date Jason will definitely get to pick the activity, but even he had fun.

We woke up this morning to quite a bit of snow.  Not Champaign amounts of snow, but the most we've seen here.  So of course we had a Snow Day!  We went and sledded.  We build a snow lady up on top of a boulder overlooking the parking lot.  Gwyn and Celee worked on a snow fort.  We kept trying to build snow ramps for the sleds to fly on, but Lyla is the only one who ever hit the ramps right.  She caught some pretty sweet air one time.  I don't know why, but Lyla also insisted on eating the snow while laying in it.  I just kept trying to remind her to only eat white snow.  Our neighbors came out and sledded and had snow fights with us for a while.  When the girls were completely soaked and it was time for lunch we decided to go in.  I don't know why, but snow always makes me want Indian food.  So thankfully I had what I needed to make Tikka Masala when we got back.  To top that off, La Cakerie was having free snow day cupcakes for kids!  So after picking up Gwyn from a friend's house we all went down.  I had been looking for an excuse to go down to Towson to try La Cakerie for several weeks, so this was my chance.  Definitely worth it!  They have the yummiest flavors and their icing is amazing.  I may have to find reasons to go down there more often. :)

 So it's Holy Week.  Somehow the fact that it was Palm Sunday totally slipped by me!  I do miss that about churches that follow a liturgical calendar.  Celee actually reminded me that Sunday was Palm Sunday very late in the day.  We'll try to make up for it by celebrating Passover tomorrow.  I still can't find horseradish, but we'll just have to make do.  For us it's the symbolism and the focus on God's provision that matter anyway.  We'll have to see how the meal goes though.  I am really looking forward to the focus that this week holds.  All the rituals, celebrations, prayers, all culminating in Easter on Sunday.  I think this year I need this focus desperately.  I am walking up the other side of the valley lately.  Still low, but rising.  I am so thankful for the many friends we've made here and for my wonderfully sweet husband.  Jason just keeps amazing me how he pursues me.  I've never been really good at being honest about my emotions, but he has learned how to keep after me in loving ways to get me to open up.  Then he walks along with me in it.  Thank you Jesus for a wonderful husband!  My parents are also coming in to town for the weekend.  We will surely find many fun things to get into.  I am almost finished with the Easter dresses, so no midnight sewing the night before hopefully.  I've got most of the Easter basket stuff already.  I only need to pick up a few little things.  This Holy Week is looking good!