Tuesday, March 17, 2026

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! When my kids were little, I made green foods but now I make traditional Irish food as seen above!

I used to get a Shamrock shake one time in March!

Today is my sister’s birthday! I was three when she was born and I could say I remember her coming home from the hospital to my first house as a child, but the memories might be borne of the photos. I have lots of photos of me standing next to her bassinet. Family lore says that I said, “I hate her. Take her back.” Wow, what a jerk I was. Kate and I are very different but also a lot alike in many ways and I truly can’t imagine her having been “taken back”. I do absolutely remember the day Molly came home from the hospital because I was 6. We had been watched by a neighbor, and our mom had given us cigar boxes with presents in them that we could open while waiting. I remember standing on the neighbor’s driveway and watching for my parents’ brown Oldsmobile to pull into our driveway so we could run up and greet them.

The original fam – I am the one standing in the back, Kate is below me and Molly is on my Dad’s lap:

*I wanted to start a podcast this year, but I know it’s more work than maybe I am ready for. I also know my friend Dan’s heart wasn’t in it and I didn’t want to push him. If he gets inspired, I still want to do it, though. It was going to be based on topics that 50-year-olds face called “Our Fifties Sense”. Dan would have to do the technical end of things most likely, and he works full time and is a busy Dad. The podcasts I enjoy most right now are chatty and funny. My idea was to take a topic and chat about it from the female v. male perspective.

This is Dan and I at his mom’s 80th birthday party:

*I went to a library cooking class in January, and it was good but chaotic. The German cookbook author was the featured chef and did more in January, but I wasn’t interested in the foods they were teaching and after how crowded and chaotic the first one was, I didn’t really want to do another one. February’s chef cancelled for some reason. March’s chef is based on kid allergen-free foods and that doesn’t interest me. So, I still might attend another one in the future, but I haven’t been that interested in the ones on offer. I love that they have a demo kitchen and are doing a chef-in-residence program. Mason says I should pay and take a “real” cooking class and not just go to the free library ones.

*The pandemic taught me how to make dressings and sauces when I couldn’t find the ones I would usually buy. I save the most wonderful jam jars from the Bonne Maman brand and make my own dressing most of the time in the jar and then shake it up. Here is one from Cup of Jo blog:

Lemon-Dijon Dressing
1/4 cup lemon juice (from about 1 1/2 lemons)
1 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoon honey (or sugar to make vegan)
1/3 cup olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Every time I make my own dressing I feel so amazing! Ha!

*Empty nester house is quiet but it’s going well. I would love to have a set family meal night eventually but right now I am not sure we can coordinate a night between the kids’ work schedules, sadly. I would love to do Sunday night. I am still figuring out how to grocery shop for just two. I am buying less chips, for sure! My fridge and freezer are way too stuffed currently for some reason. I can’t function when it’s overstuffed. This will be the first full month of only grocery shopping for two and I have been tracking again this month. I feel much less pressure about cooking dinner even though Mason was super easy.

*Eddie Otis is still crated when I leave the house. I don’t want to leave him for more than four hours because of this so I am a bit limited in how long I leave the house.

I am trying to take him on some errands with me. He can do the Kroger pickup if I have them put the groceries in the front with me since he is in the back area of my car. He barks his head off, unfortunately. He can go to Feeder’s Supply with me to get his treats. He can return library books with me if I just use the drop off bin. He is an excellent car rider unless we come to a stop sign and he sees a threat. I try to end an errand with something in it for him like a new field to run in and sniff. Anyway, I am that crazy dog lady.

*My feelings about being retired are still confusing. I really miss the students and all the fun I had. I really don’t miss the lack of work/life balance, the admin bs, the PDs, the meetings for meetings’ sake, etc. I think of a school memory almost every day. I communicate with former students on social media most days. I miss the social interactions and some days I don’t have enough to satisfy my social side.

My tutoring student has brought his grade up two letter grades! I was so happy! We are still meeting most weeks at a Starbuck’s. This has been good for me. I think about subbing sometimes but I just really don’t want a full 8 hour day right now.

*I am trying to establish some routines/rhythms to my new life at home. Mondays are generally look at calendar, pay bills, do admin stuff, prep some food for the week, Amy laundry. Thursdays are water the plants and collect trash day. Friday I generally try to do house laundry and clean as much as I can with EO and then do whatever else on Saturday. I don’t really have a set grocery shop day yet. Things can be moved around if needed.

I never want to leave you hanging about anything I’ve mentioned here on the blog. I hope that I am authentic and that you feel like you “know” me. I am open to suggestions or tips that have made your life better.

My coffee is now cold!

Amy