Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Already!



Four little baby tomatoes already! Warm temps and lots of rain are really helping things grow. One of the advantages, or disadvantages, depending on your point of view, of living in an older home is that the vegetation is very mature. We have large trees all over our yard and only one small, sunny spot for a garden-ette. Thankfully, Buddy and Elaine always have a big garden and this year say we can plant whatever we'd like there. In the meantime, it's nice to have herbs, peppers, and tomatoes just outside our kitchen. Easy pickings!

Monday, April 25, 2011

Arnold (and Williamson) Easter

We had such a nice Easter. I have a grand total of *1* picture, our annual Arnold children Easter photo: this time with Mom and Dad since Grandmama was here to take the picture.



We started the day with church services - we love our church here so much, our rector is wonderful. The building is beautiful, even older than our house, and there is an amazing pipe organ. The Easter music was beautiful, we have a great organist and my husband Chris played the trumpet in yesterday's services. There was an egg hunt on the grounds right after the service - where the children dug up 'Alleluia', which had been missing during Lent. Then we had Easter dinner, with aunts and uncles and a Grandmama. Everyone brought dishes and it was a feast. For my part, I made a summer squash casserole, roasted asparagus (from my aunt and uncle's garden, yum!) and made a triple dessert: chocolate cheesecake, lemon bar cheesecake, and strawberry swirl pound cake, with fresh strawberries we picked Saturday morning from Hardy Berry Farm. Can you tell I gave up sugar for Lent?

Elaine and Buddy host an Easter egg extravaganza every year. This is only the second year we've been able to attend (have I mentioned how nice it is to spend holidays with the family without having to travel for hours and hours?) Even though the children are older, everyone enjoys the hunt. This year the party was down near the creek, so beautiful and a good excuse for a new tradition: racing the eggs down the creek! Buddy brought his grill down and we had hotdogs, fresh fruit, and many desserts. The hunt itself is always entertaining. My niece and cousin's little girl have allergies, so the candy for the eggs is carefully selected and Buddy and Elaine add a little money to the eggs: quarters and if you're lucky, a dollar bill or 2.

It is really fun for me to get together with my Williamson cousins - we were all there yesterday. I was the only girl growing up, but this new generation is dominated by girls. Quite a change!

Brianna left to go back to school for exams, but she'll be home for the summer in another week. I'm glad she was home for Easter.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Ranger and Scout

Every now and then our golden retrievers remember the retrieving part of their name. Here they are waiting for Chris to throw a tennis ball.




Friday, April 15, 2011

Jimmy


This beauty came to live at our house today.


One of the reasons we loved this house was because our furniture fit into it so nicely. We didn't need to buy anything new. But, we did have this one empty wall in the dining room. We kept thinking that it would be nice to find a buffet or sideboard to fit there. We enjoy hosting family meals, and it would be nice to be able to put the food on the buffet so we'd have more room on the table. We've found a few we like, but this one is really perfect. It fits exactly into the space, goes well with the other furniture in the dining room, and was a really good deal - just in time for hosting Easter dinner in just a few days.

Chris is calling it Jimmy. You know, as in Jimmy Buffet. Now you know why I married him. A laugh a minute

Pardon the glare. Jimmy's so bright he has to wear shades. And that's Scout checking him out.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Roses

I need to thank the person (or persons) who planted the more than 2 dozen roses in our front and back yards. I cut them back at the end of February and now, with the very warm temps we've had, they are looking great. I'm not exaggerating when I say there are hundreds of buds on them right now. There are all kinds of roses: the grandiflora and hybrid teas with their gorgeously huge blooms, (I've already cut a couple that are more than 4" across.), the climbing roses, one of which has overtaken the backyard arbor, and some I don't recognize, including my favorite, a red and white beauty that, after a little research, seems to be a native of Italy. My husband Chris gave me 3 knock-out rose bushes for Valentine's Day that I've added to the mix.

Here are a few pictures of some of the roses from our yard:





Saturday, April 9, 2011

Springtime dinner

Dinner tonight: marinated tilapia with mango salsa, baked potatoes, and caprese salad. Eaten out on the patio in gorgeous weather. Yum.