Enjoying the Sunshine with JB

It has been so, so beautiful in northeast Ohio the past few days. My husband, Ken, got out the patio furniture because he knows I’ve been wanting to go sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. Then he emailed me and told me to do just that. Be sure to get outside and soak up some sun, he advised. That’s an easy request to fulfill.

So yesterday and today I went out and sat with Jeffrey Bob for a while. You remember JB, right (from a posting last fall)? He doesn’t have all his hair, er, um, leaves yet, but he will. Just give him a few weeks. He will.




The best part about Jeffrey Bob? He’s like Ken - he doesn’t care that the office is still in total disarray! Just like Ken, that tree never complains. If you read my last post you know that I’m working on reorganizing our home office. Well let me tell you, I got into more than I bargained for with this one! We need more people like Ken and trees like JB in our lives, that’s all I’m saying. Then, if we weren’t so hard on ourselves, we’d really be ok.

Wherever you are I hope you're enjoying some sunshine and that you have people/and or others in your life to help make your journey more enjoyable along the way.

Well, I have procrastinated long enough. It’s time to go back to those filing cabinets. See ya later, JB.

Spring and My Thoughts Turn to....Organization?

I’m on a huge organization kick. I mean a really big one. Oh, I always like things picked up. Every day, I go through the house in the morning, pick up, wipe down, straighten up, you know, make sure everything is in place. But something happens to me during this time of year. It’s like I get an urge to clean out, purge the unnecessary and organize what’s left. It kind of reminds me of the feeling of an expectant mom getting that nesting instinct. But for goodness’ sake, I'm glad it's not the nesting instinct I'm experiencing! I’m way too old for that! I’ll take the spring cleaning instinct!

I was not always like this. Oh no, not at all. I used to be quite a messy kid. I’d shove anything I could under my bed. It was hard to tell what my mother would find under there. I was especially fond of craft projects and some of the overflow made it under there.

A joke in my family was how I used to like to glue pasta, like uncooked spaghetti and macaroni on paper plates and make “art.” I guess I was creative even then. I used a lot of Elmer’s Glue. My mom swore there were years when I was personally responsible for keeping Elmer’s in business. Guess my fondness for business started early, too. Who knew?

Thankfully, I am a bit more organized now. Still, our home office needs attention, so that’s where I’m heading today. I wonder if we have any Elmer’s Glue…

"Dear Abby's Infallible Rice" Recipe

I get so many comments about the recipes I post on my blog. As I've shared with you, I only post what I know to be easy, tried-and-true winning recipes that are as tasty as they are easy. So today, I thought I'd share one I'm making as a side dish for supper tonight.

As I mentioned previously this week, our son is home this week on spring break. As usual when he’s home, I ask what he wants me to cook for him. One of his favorite meals and one of the ones he's requested this week is Poppy Seed Chicken.

I like to serve Poppy Seed Chicken with hot rice as one of its side dishes. I get lots of requests for the rice, so I thought I’d share it here. The recipe is actually from a little booklet I ordered from a Dear Abby newspaper column years ago as a young bride. The booklet is called “Dear Abby’s Favorite Recipes.” Because my boys love rice, I always double the recipe. (I don't double the onion, however. My boys aren't huge onion fans, so I adjust accordingly.)

ABBY’S INFALLIBLE RICE

1 medium onion, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup long-grain, raw white rice
2 cups chicken broth (hot)
1/2 tsp. salt (my addition)

Saute onion in butter until transparent. Combine onion, rice and hot broth. Bring to a boil on top of range. Cover and place in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.

And that's it!

Notes:
1. If your rice has too much liquid after 20 minutes, recover tightly and bake a little longer. Check every 3-4 minutes, as it will absorb the liquid quickly.
2. If you are making this as a supper swap dish to share with friends, leave a small amount of liquid in the rice. Cover tightly after you remove from the oven (and when transporting), and the liquid will be absorbed yet the rice won’t become sticky.

I hope you enjoy this recipe! I think it’s the best, most flavorful rice recipe I’ve made.

Spring Break Tennessee Style

We have a sign above an armoire in our kitchen that says “Come on in & sit a spell.” I love this because it reminds me of my southern upbringing. Those days were a time when family and friends stopped by unannounced - so much so, in fact, that it was common place.

I must admit, that while I love to invite folks to come in and join us in our home, I generally do not like to visit others unannounced. I always like to call before popping in on someone, but this week, we did just that.

Our son was on spring break from college and he, my husband and I went to our place in Tennessee to stay for a few days. While there we decided to visit my Aunt Juanita and Aunt Sue who have homes nearby. I generally let them know when we’re in the area. That way, they know to expect us sometime during a few days’ span. They may not know the exact time we might stop by, but they do know it’s probable. This time, however, I didn’t even tell them we were in the area. So, against my normal manner of doing things, we just dropped in. Although a bit surprised, they greeted us warmly and were as gracious as if they’d expected us for weeks. We enjoyed catching up with them and spending time with them in their beautiful homes. Although we only stayed with them a little while, the “Come on in & sit a spell” was their grace and hospitality in action, as they could not have been more welcoming.

We enjoyed all our time in Tennessee so much. The weather was just gorgeous. Coming from Ohio with snow on the ground, it was a pleasure and a blessing to wear sandals from the time I left to the time I returned. We had temperatures from the low 60s to the low 70s while we were there and Matthew was able to play golf for the first time in about 6 months. I’m not sure who was happier to be on the golf course – Matthew or his parents (and we don’t even play!).

Even more special was the time we spent with our boy. "Come on in & sit a spell" was like our mantra for the week and catching up with him in our home away from home was priceless. We laughed and talked and reminisced and dreamed. We kicked back and relaxed on the wonderful back porch. Getting away from the stresses and hassles of everyday life and going to a place without the usual distractions was a welcome change. I realize that spring breaks of the future will likely be different than the one Ken and I enjoyed with Matthew this year. For that reason, these last few days are even more special and are ones I’ll visit often in my memory.

A Sure Sign of Spring

(Reid and Ellie, our sweet, across-the-street neighbors! I scanned this photo from a whole calendar of photos they gave us for Christmas.)

I saw it today. It’s a sure sign of spring. While getting clothes out of the dryer, I looked out the window and there they were: Ellie and Reid, those two sweet-faced kids who live across the street from us were out in their driveway playing with their dad! And they weren’t even making a snowman! Ah, what a welcome, sweet sight that was to me today!

Yes, we still have snow on the ground here, but they were walking around, almost like they were trying to get their sea legs, poor things. In the life of a 2 year old and a 5 year old, an Ohio winter is, well, a good portion of their lives! They probably struggle to remember the warm days of their youth!

Well, it has been a long time since it was warm and sunny. Today it was beautiful here. I think it was in the mid-30’s. Yes, I know, it’s not Florida, but we are talking northeastern Ohio here. We'll take it!

As I looked out at the three of them outside, I wasn’t sure who was more excited they were out there – the kids or me! I bet Brian, their dad, was also pretty excited to be out and about. I remember when Matthew was little how nice it was to get him outside where that pent-up energy could be set free!

Just seeing them out there gave me hope. It reminded me that spring is coming, it really is! It made me think of sunny days and flowers and sitting on our huge covered back porch (ok, it’s really a patio slab, where I’ll soon be fussing about the sun being too bright, but a girl can dream, can’t she?!).

But for now, I’ll just look forward to those warm, sunny days. How about you? What signs of spring have you seen?