Wednesday, April 30, 2025

It’s Wednesday and time for Hodgepodge with Joyce!

1. My very first edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge was published on November 10, 2010 (linked here if you’re curious). Tell us something about your life from that era. 

My twins were 8 years old in 2010 and I was really embracing the elementary years if I remember correctly and I am not romanticizing the time period. We belonged to the pool in the summer, we watched the nieces one day a week, we went to the library, book store, zoo, park, and school playgrounds. We played soccer and baseball to try our hands at those sports. We had playdates. It was a sweet time for me! I was very happy! I am still very happy, but I just remember really loving being a mom and feeling so grateful. Tom was involved in everything we did after 5:30 on weekdays and all weekend!

My kids would sit with me and “cuddle” until they were maybe 11 and they still will sit close to me now. I loved mornings with them. They would wake up so happy to see me and I felt the same.

2. What’s a song you love that relates to time in some way? 

Jim Croce’s Time in a Bottle was a player piano roll we owned. Yes, my family had a player piano that you pumped with your feet (pedals) in order to make it play. It is still in my mom’s house and will be part of the estate sale if a family friend doesn’t want it. We would sing when we had people over. So weird, right? I really remember the player piano the most in our childhood home and it was not really used in my parents’ home after that. I only lived in two houses with my parents, by the way. I lived in one until I was 5 and then the other house was their house until I was 34 and I had my hands full with 3 year old twins, so I’m not sure how much I was able to get sentimental.

But, the place I grew up is extremely special to me. I know long time blog readers have heard this, but my dad thoughtfully dug up a periwinkle hydrangea from the childhood home and brought it to my current house.

My childhood neighborhood friends are having a reunion this summer and I am so excited! It’s three families that were all really close and only one still lives there – my dear Terry. Terry is like the cool aunt/big sister to me. She moved across the street when she was in her twenties with a 6 week old baby boy and I spent so much time at their house.

The house we are working in right now was never “my” house so my sisters and I have commented many times how this is easier than our special childhood home would have been. And, yes, we were very sad when they decided to move but we understood their decision. It was in the same town but out in the country in a neighborhood with a lake so they wanted to be closer to town.

The lyrics are so melancholy, no?

If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I’d like to do
Is to save every day
‘Til eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you

If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I’d save every day like a treasure and then
Again, I would spend them with you

And, who doesn’t love “I’ve Had the Time of my Life” from Dirty Dancing?

Now I’ve had the time of my life
No, I never felt like this before
Yes, I swear, it’s the truth
And I owe it all to you
‘Cause I’ve had the time of my life
And I owe it all to you

I’ve been waiting for so long
Now I’ve finally found someone to stand by me
We saw the writing on the wall
As we felt this magical fantasy
Now with passion in our eyes
There’s no way we could disguise it secretly
So we take each other’s hand
‘Cause we seem to understand the urgency

3. May is nearly upon us. When did you last need to yell ‘MAY DAY-MAY DAY!!’? 

At my job! I’m done! Ha! This week my principal had asked me to come up with a “who should teach what” plan. I have been department chair and that position will also need to be replaced. So, there is some department drama bubbling beneath the surface because several people feel entitled to my good classes and my position. You know what? It made me so glad/ready to be done with that.

I also had to call in help with my sisters for some things that I was working on. Kate took over a couple of phone calls and I took the rest of her thank you notes because they have always been the bane of her existence and I have always loved writing – lol.

Our other deal is that Kate is going to work on getting my mom’s two years of Storyworth questions/answers turned into books. I got my mom Storyworth and she loved it so much she did it for more than the year and I think she upgraded to already purchase a certain number of copies. If you are looking for a Mother’s Day gift, that would be a good one! And, how special are her answers/stories going to be for us now?

4. How do you feel about food trucks? Is this a dining experience you enjoy?  Do you have a favorite What’s something you’ve ordered from a food truck? 

Here’s the thing…I am not a big fan. I do partake at the outdoor concert we go to once or twice a year because it is a nice atmosphere and we sit and listen to music while eating. I just don’t enjoy eating out of styrofoam with no atmosphere or ambiance. I guess it can be nice at a picnic table sometimes? I feel like food truck food is really expensive, too!

I love a cute restaurant atmosphere or a patio, you know? I am not opposed to food trucks, but they just aren’t as nice. If you love a food truck, tell me why and I will try to embrace them more!

5. We’re bidding farewell to April…what are three adjectives you might use to describe the month you’re leaving behind. 

Wet – we started the month with severe flooding. My beloved Captain’s Quarters just opened back up Monday. My favorite little farm to table market just opened back up. Our spring break here in town was wet and disappointing.

Full – it has been a full month and a busier month than usual for me. On April 12th I had so much fun with my sisters in our hometown, on April 18th I had such a lovely time with my friends from Spain, and then last weekend, I met and formed friendships with 5 fellow blogger ladies. I am so glad I said YES to fun.

Social – oops! I should have saved all the full answers for social. Ditto! The reason why it was full was because it was social. I feel like I come alive again after the winter and want to do all the things and see all the people. I have several people on my list to plan things with and I also want to celebrate my retirement with the people in my life. More to come on that…

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Sometimes when I feel happy I say, “I feel happy”. The funny thing is that I usually feel the happiest just doing ordinary things or seeing ordinary things.

Last night I went outside to read after dinner and the temperature was literally perfect. It got up to 84 during the day but when I went outside at 7:00 there was a nice breeze and I just felt so happy to be able to enjoy it.

I still haven’t put any pillows out or any type of decor…I am not sure what I can have out with pup. Also, I left pup inside with Tom so I didn’t have to be on high alert for naughty behavior.

What’s on your mind this Wednesday?

Amy

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

So, yeah…I like to buy shoes. I lost most of my summer ’24 collection to one Mr. Eddie Otis, my chocolate lab puppy. But, I had too many summer shoes, to be honest, so maybe he helped me out?

But, summer shoes are so fun to buy!

Also, I am wondering what my non-teacher shoe wardrobe will look like as time goes on. Will I live a glamorous life of heels? Yeah, no.

Nevertheless, I hope to have some occasions to wear my new cork heels. And, I am ready to not be so dictated by those hard cement floors, you know?

Do you like how I paired them with my very old lounging shorts?

They are probably too cool for me!

I bought these for $30 ish dollars and have already worn them several times.

My Target flip flops are so comfortable and well made. I wear these almost everyday right now for at least part of the day.

I added a new Target pair to my collection. They are really well made and by Universal Thread.

I’m still loving my New Balance and hope to be using them for walking more!

And, I added these Dr. Scholl’s sneakers for $30 something direct from the Dr. Scholl’s website with a coupon they sent me!

They are extremely comfortable and cushy and I wanted something that would work with dresses, too.

Don’t forget today is the day that “Wear Whatever the F You Want” with Clinton and Stacy comes out on Prime. I’m excited to see what it’s all about!

What summer shoes have you purchased?

Amy

Monday, April 28, 2025

Happy Monday! I’m linking up with Holly and Sarah to share my weekend and some of you have been waiting to hear about it with bated breath…

This was the blogger trip to Louisville that you have been hearing about! I had met Jenn two years ago, but this was literally a blind date for me to meet Joanne, Maria, Marilyn, and Tanya!

And, it’s hard to understand if you don’t read blogs (obviously you all do), but I felt like I already knew all of them and they are all exactly like they are on their blogs. So, it was a bit of a surreal experience to meet them in person!

They only thing I can’t understand – I have never been in a group of 6 women (including me) where so many are non-coffee drinkers! Tanya and I are the only hot coffee in the morning people! I mean, my blog is called “Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa” so I love to drink it, think about it, and talk about it. And, yes I do drink more coffee than cocktails.

Marilyn was the organizer and she found a cute little Airbnb in a fun and lively area of town called The Highlands. I checked it out back in the winter and Facetimed Marilyn to show her the exterior.

The interior was cute and had some cool design touches.

I helped Marilyn plan an itinerary and some of it was weather dependent. Also, we are still feeling the effects of the flooding so a couple of things were limited due to that.

Joanne and I were the first to arrive and we prepared snacks while we waited. The car full of Tanya, Jenn, and Marilyn arrived shortly after, and then Maria arrived. Here we are showing our sweet gifts from Tanya of notepads, flair pens, and hand sanitizer in a cute wrapping. So thoughtful!

And now with Tanya:

We chatted and got to know each other and then sat around and shared a book we are reading and I shared mine:

We kept talking and talking and then realized that we should probably get dinner. We ended up at this little Mexican restaurant nearby.

I ordered some really good mushroom and spinach empanadas.

After dinner I headed home. I had decided not to sleep at the Airbnb and it was perfect for sleeping 5, so it hopefully was good for the other ladies.

I woke up Saturday after not enough hours of sleep and made fruit salad (copycat Chick Fil A, I think – you do two cans of mandarin oranges drained, a container of blueberries, and a container of strawberries sliced up – then you sprinkle about a tablespoon of vanilla pudding powder and about 1/4 cup of lime juice) and a low carb egg casserole.

We had to add to that Marilyn’s sourdough and a couple of really yummy Trader Joe’s breakfast treats – a cinnamon cake and a raspberry kringle.

Then, we got motivated and started at Butchertown Market and Work the Metal. It is a huge store with a kitchen section, a fashion section, body product section, garden section, home decor section, and more. It’s hard to describe. It’s a great place for gifts!

We saw a group of ladies from Texas and Tanya knew two of them! They were trying on hats and fascinators so we did the same. When in Rome!

After shopping there for about an hour, we headed to the NULU district which is on the edge of downtown and a vibrant, hopping, refurbished area of shops and restaurants.

These are two different alley selfies.

Then, we browsed a bit but they had to try what was voted Louisville’s best cookie from Please and Thank You coffee shop. They liked it but I had told them about my favorite Penny and Pearl’s so that was the next stop.

We were supposed to have lunch out but we had cookies instead. We all voted Penny and Pearl’s over Please and Thank You, by the way! We had leftover snacks at the house and everyone was fine with just going back. I dropped them off and then went home for a couple of hours. Everyone rested and changed for dinner and then they came to my house to meet…Eddie Otis…and Tom! No one else was home.

We had a lovely 15 minute drive out to the country to Hermitage Farm. It is a lot of things. They board horses, they have a farm store, they do bourbon tastings, they hold festivals and events. and more.

They have a restaurant and we had a reservation to sit in a horse stall!

The main area:

The bar:

The bathroom is really unique and has fake chickens and roosters making noise while you are in there:

Look at Marilyn’s face; I think she is scared of the chickens.

Maria ordered us some cornbread with sorghum butter. The menu is very Kentucky farm to table style I would say.

I had a really good South African red blend with dinner and I should have written down the name!

I ordered the flat iron steak with chimichurri and tri color potatoes.

The owners of the farm a huge local art supporters and big people in the community. After dark, you can go on an “art walk” which is a lighting design set to music. I have been two or three other times and it was just as spectacular as I remembered. At the very end you can see horses running through the trees. I didn’t get a photo of that part.

Then, we drove back to my house and chatted for a bit in the driveway before the ladies went back to the Airbnb.

Sunday morning we did brunch! We were able to sit on a patio! We went to Biscuit Belly. I’m trying to get rid of my biscuit (entire loaf) belly, but you know, it was a special occasion.

I had heard lots of talk of a brown sugar shaken espresso cold brew and I ordered one and – wow – so good!

I got baby biscuits with three types of gravy! Aren’t they cute?

I swear we didn’t eat all day! In between the brunch and the next food event we went to a consignment store where many of us scored some finds! Then, we went out door shopping area where we went to a cute little boutique and some people found something there, too.

We decided on just a little afternoon snack and tried $5 margaritas (some of us) and potato chip nachos!

Wow!

The ladies went to do a couple of touristy photo opps and I went home to my Sunday preps for the week before heading back to the Airbnb for a little more chatting and goodbyes.

What a fun and full weekend! I’m tired! I don’t usually do this much on the weekends. It was a little different for me because I was in and out of my house and I had my normal life to manage, too, but honestly with school in the homestretch and such a busy time, my mom’s estate, and just life right now this worked out great for me. It would have been hard to go away right now.

I feel like I got to know all 5 ladies much, much better and it will make blogging and interacting even more fun.

That’s all for now!

Amy

Friday, April 25, 2025

Is it really true? Is it here? I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites.

I am hoping for a pretty cocktail this weekend!

Here is a random assortment of things that made me smile this week..

I brought home my mom’s vintage mah jong set and my kids told me they knew how to play. But, as we started they said they knew Japanese and not Chinese style. What? Did you know there were different styles?

We took lots of time to set it up, read directions, and then we finally played on Easter afternoon and it was lovely.

I also admired my new highlighter yellow mani!

Tom worked really hard on the deck this weekend and it’s coming along!

Pretty after a little drizzle…

Then muddy and not so pretty…

It is back breaking work and Tom has already put in maybe 5 full days. He said that pulling up the old boards was harder than he thought it would be.

Blurry photo that I asked Tom to take of our Easter meal. I had a brisket in the crockpot all day, ham, roasted carrots, hasselback potatoes, and rolls.

It was fun to “announce” my retirement on Instagram this week. I had already done so on Facebook. Facebook is my family and friends and Instagram is mostly former students and some friends.

I had this photo of me with a clock and said, “it’s time”…

I was so touched by all the messages that came through and thought of each and every former student and what they mean to me.

As much negative as there is surrounding social media, it has helped me to stay in touch and there probably isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t engage with a former student – not in a creepy way. At least I hope not in a creepy way!

We replaced our shamrocks that told why we felt lucky with our suns which tell what we hope to do and will do this summer. We used the future and subjunctive tenses for any nerds out there.

Big boy tried out the leather couch for the first time this week and looks pretty proud. He has his emotional support chili pepper from Aunt Molly.

I ordered two sizes in these from Target and I really like them! I took the smaller size so I am glad that I had two to compare because I was leaning toward the larger size. They are like nerdy cool, no? They are Universal Thread that does good dupes for higher end brands. Target makes in person returns easy so I will return the other pair.

Wow – my twin niece and nephew tried on their cap and gown for their graduation invitation.

And, Mia had her AP art show. I wish we lived closer.

I feel like I need to add electrolytes on a regular basis – like every day. Do you have any brand/flavor recs? This strawberry is good and I mixed it with sparkling water.

Baby with his elephant…

The excitement is in the air for Derby week as it is only a week away now! Some events were cancelled due to the flood, sadly. The track is open for people to watch the warm ups and then there is racing all week leading up to Saturday, May 3rd – Derby day. I have been several times but only to the infield which is just a big old party! I have also been to Oaks dressed up and on some of the other racing days dressed up. I have been to night racing in the summer and I have been to the fall racing – which I really like. The ticket prices have gotten so outrageous!

Look how these ladies are dressed in 1910!

This weekend is also something you may have heard about in blog land. Jenn, Marilyn, Tanya, Joanne, Maria, and I will be hanging out in Louisville! They did this last year in Nashville, but Maria had her broken bone and I had my kids’ last college play. I have only met Jenn in person a couple of years ago when she visited my city. So, this is like a blind date with the other women!

What was a favorite of yours this week?

Happy Friday and Happy last weekend of April!

Amy

Thursday, April 24, 2025

It’s Thursday and link up day with Kellyann and Jill.

I know you all think I am good at purging and getting rid of clothing that no longer serves me, but I am struggling with my printed pants, my skirts (most of which have print), and my dresses. I am feeling a pull to more neutrals, simpler patterns, and I just feel like many of these items are dated and look dated.

One pair of pants that I probably will keep is these…

I love this print; they are very old from Loft and someone was returning them and I was eavesdropping and I swooned when I saw the pattern and asked the sales clerk if I could try them on. I am wearing my solid black Target blouse. I don’t love the fit or the fabric, but it will do until I can find a replacement. If it’s a school outfit, I am wearing sneakers. You can have a good day or a bad day as a teacher and it’s a lot about the shoes.

This looks frumpy – I think the jeans are looking too big – my normal Halaras. They are a little too long and just a little too big all over and that ups the frump factor. I wore my Aerie yellow stripe and sneakers and my Spain purse. This is what I wore to play tour guide with my Spanish visitors. My shirt is doing something very weird in the photo, too. So, I was comfortable, but when I look at the photos from that day I think I should have done a more fitted piece with the other piece – not too voluminous pieces. Oh well.

I decided to keep the cork! Keep the cork! They are surprisingly comfortable with the platform, they are different than anything I have, and I have recently been reminded for the need of neutral shoes by Susie Wright – my new Instagram stylist follow.

I wore this to go see Macbeth last Saturday night. My light Halaras fit much better than the medium denim from above and I wore them with my new Dr. Scholl’s sandals. I have on an old favorite boutique blouse – Entro is the brand – and sadly, I saw the little pin prick holes in the hem of the blouse so I think it’s time to say bye-bye. I love Entro and Umgee for blouses and dresses. Where do those little holes come from? Is it the button on jeans? Is it the dryer?

Susie Wright says to try not to wash your jeans. I feel like I have to wash mine every other wear and maybe she is talking about the more standard denim because this is a lighter material.

Keeping it real – this is what I wore during the day for spray tan and errands. I try to keep it all black. I broke out one of my gauzy tops. I also love this skort – I wouldn’t really wear these two pieces together normally.

For school one day this week I wore my cream Old Navy blouse new this season and my light blue gauzy pants. I look like a rectangle. Oh well.

So, this week was not a very fashionable week for me. Am I tired? Yes! I don’t know.

I’m starting to feel like my spring/summer shoe wardrobe is coming together and plan to do a post soon. I am also feeling like my clothes are coming together, but obviously not in these outfit photos. I have ordered a couple of things but nothing too crazy.

What looks dated to you this season?

What looks fresh and updated?

What are you enjoying?

Amy

Wednesday, April 23, 2025

It’s Wednesday and hodgepodge day with Joyce!

1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Picnic Day…will you celebrate? Do you enjoy picnics? Dining out of doors picnic or otherwise? What are three or four things I’d find in your picnic basket? 

Well, I did not even know! Now is the best time for picnics before the bugs get really bad. I love eating al fresco. I don’t know how much I enjoy sitting on a blanket anymore; I would prefer a table. I just love a sandwich! Make it fancy and even better – pickles and some unexpected element – brie? Maybe a bottle of wine, some chips, some fruit, some wipes and hand sanitizer!

2.  A time recently where you felt ‘antsy’? 

I feel antsy a lot and I think it’s a form of anxiety. I worry about certain deadlines. I feel like I have to be in charge in so many areas of my life. I have to check and make sure things have been done.

You would not believe all the little errors and annoyances from my mom’s estate business. People messed up little things and caused more work for us.

Tom even says to me, “remind me to _____” and I have started to tell him I already have enough stuff in my brain. Remind your own self!

3. As the saying goes…’when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.’  Do you like lemonade? When did you recently need to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking?

I think I do. I try to make the best of the situation. I have definitely gotten better at this as I have matured. I used to get very upset when things didn’t go as planned.

I like lemonade especially with vodka or in a cocktail! I will never choose lemonade over water for a non-alcoholic drink. I just love water.

I think my sisters and I made lemonade when we had to cancel our weekend in our hometown due to the flood. We shifted everything forward one week and it was a good call. We were so happy to see my mom’s gravestone done and maybe it wasn’t done the weekend before?

4. Recently five ‘celebrities’ made a brief (ll minute) foray into space aboard Jeff Bezos Blue Origin rocket. Did you hear about this? Your thoughts? If money were no object is this something you’d like to do someday? 

I have no interest in doing this myself. I think the money they paid was insane and could help so many people instead, but money don’t mean brains. There was no point to the trip other than to flex and say they did it. But, this did cause me to read up on it because I really didn’t know anything. Apparently they only went to the edge of space! I like bringing stuff like this up to my students to see what they think. Who am I going to talk to about all the stuff in my brain when I retire?

5. Favorite thing about the ‘space’ you’re sitting in right now? 

I guess that it’s mine and we have comfortable furniture. Tom sees to it that we buy quality things and he looks at details that I wouldn’t look at like the height of the couches – he made sure our outdoor sectional was high enough to be comfortable on the old back. I really appreciate that about him. He is thoughtful and detail oriented. I have a nice couch upstairs and one in the basement that is comfortable. I like my dining room chairs and my outdoor chairs. I do still want a reading chair in my bedroom. I need to put my feet up in all the spots!

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I can’t believe we are already at the end of April! Time is really flying! I told my students that I was retiring at the end of last week. I am glad they know now and I think I did it at the right time. I have so much to do still- we are having food days in all classes, I have the AP Spanish exam coming up, we have final presentations in Spanish 3, and more. I found out they are not replacing my position which makes me feel better for some reason. We have 6 Spanish teachers and they will only have 5 next year. The language numbers are down which I think is due to the STEM and pathway (medical, engineering, media arts) opportunities but it makes me sad because Spanish has enriched my life so much and two years doesn’t cut it.

It’s starting to feel more real, but I don’t think it will hit me until next August. I think I should stand near the turn in to my school and yell “Suckers!” at all the teachers. Lol.

Thanks for reading!

Amy

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

After a year of a new puppy, winter, and just a busier than I’d like schedule, I haven’t hosted much. This past week reminded me of how much it fills my cup to have low maintenance friends over and to do what I think of as a low maintenance spread.

I have a better entertaining space for warmer weather, but I need to be reminded that people really don’t care what your space consists of. And, when we look at the much smaller spaces of Europe, it seems silly to not invite people over more.

For the last year I have been going to coffee shops, restaurants, and bars more than I have been having people over. And, I only have a couple of friends who host in their homes. It’s funny to me that my friends who have the biggest homes host the least. So, that is something to put in your pipe and smoke and ruminate on, no?

There are seasons in your life where you do it more and less, of course. Friends who work from home want to get out.

I like to always have some cute cocktail napkins and small plates on hand. I really need to update my glassware. All I had for our recent guests that matched were jam jars but they really liked them and said they use them in Vermont, too!

I want the pretty hobnail style! I can be really weird and take a long time deciding on something small like this but I want the right size – not too short and not too tall and I am thinking about going with a very light mulitcolor set. See? I haven’t found that exactly right one yet. If you click on the red font, you will see it comes close, but it’s not quite right.

These were what I had for my guests last week. I found the cute napkins at Marshall’s on spring break.

Sometimes simple is best, you know?

Our drink was tinto de verano which is red wine with lemon lime soda and a lemon slice. I used a Rioja Tempranillo that was around $10.

Ordering a pizza and making a salad is great if you are crunched for time.

It’s always been easy to come to my house for after school happy hours since I live so close. One time I did something unexpected for Erica and Elizabeth and make tater tot nachos in the air fryer.

You could even Door Dash some bar food and it would still maybe be cheaper than going out.

You can have people over for coffee or tea and cookies or cake. Who wouldn’t love that?

As I have an idea, I type it in my phone memo.

There are so many things you can do – have some girlfriends over (or just one friend) and make and decorate a summer bucket list. I think Erica and Elizabeth would love to do that! You could get some nice paper and markers and stickers – why should only kids get to do that?

I think you know this topic is close to my heart. I love feeding people and I love connecting with people.

Here are some posts I have written:

Entertaining at Home – Why you should even if your space isn’t perfect

Spanish Lunch

Summer Hospitality

Hodgepodge of Borrowing from Other Cultures

Mexican Homemade To Go – I need to do this again!

Sound off in the comments! What are your best hosting tips for any type of hosting?

Amy

Monday, April 21, 2025

It’s Monday and that means it’s time to link up with Sarah and Holly. Let’s go back to Thursday. I was off Friday so Thursday was like my Friday and I treated myself to an Egg McMuffin – no butter, no cheese, add an extra egg. I didn’t miss the cheese and butter as much as I thought I would.

We had houseguests coming and I snapped a picture of my baby. My hall bath has not been this uncluttered for some time so it deserved a moment of appreciation. I still love the stuff I chose. Oh, and I added a funeral plant after I took this photo.

I got home from work at 4:00 on Thursday and they were coming at 5:45. So, I decided to finish cleaning and do tapas instead of trying to cook a full dinner. I had strawberries, lemon slices for the drink, Easter kisses, jellybeans, manchego and havarti cheese, serrano ham from Spain, little crackers shaped like baguettes, olives, pistachios, potato chips, and stuff for pan con tomate. They have been living in Vermont this year so I think they appreciated the Spanish stuff and they ate it up!

Rafa and Pili are the parents and they are 43. Gabi is the little boy and he is 7 and in first grade.

We sat on the patio from 6:30 to 9:00 and it was lovely. When they first arrived we all walked around on the playground with Eddie Otis and they could stretch their legs from being in the car for a couple of hours. They drove from Vermont, but made stops to visit friends along the way.

While we were sitting at the table chatting, I ordered pizza for our dinner. They had not had pizza recently and love it so they were really happy.

Rafa taught Spanish at my school in 2007 with a special program from Spain and we instantly became friends. He is exactly 10 years younger than me. We kept in touch all these years and this is the first time he has visited since!

Friday morning we just ate breakfast at home. They were super easy houseguests. Then, we drove around, looked at the river, went to my sister in law’s boat business, saw waterfront park and talked about how high the flood had been and saw remnants, saw some places of interest in the downtown…

ate lunch at a hot chicken place in NULU and then shopped and looked around. Gabi couldn’t wait to get back to new best friend Eddie Otis (it was mutual!). We found out Eddie is good with kids.

We shared these and they loved them!

We visited Clayton & Crume because he also taught one of the founders!

We got a special tour of the upstairs which used to be Ali’s gym!

If you are a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fan, Clayton and Crume just visited Kemosabe in Aspen and are selling some goods there!

I talk about this a lot, but it’s such a cool story. Clay and his roommate from college started making those leather embroidery fraternity belts while in college and now it’s hit the big time!

We asked a passerby for a group photo!

We came home and Gabi got to play with EO again and then we walked to Ballard and it was time to say goodbye.

EO says, “don’t leave, new friend!”

It was time for me to put my feet up. For dinner we had leftover pizza and the salad I forgot to make for the company! Oops!

Saturday morning I started a new book. It’s kind of like Eleanor Oliphant if she were an air traffic controller.

I took my iced coffee with protein (proffee) out to do errands with me. I also took a baggie of Fiber One cereal. This was several hours after my breakfast and I think it’s good to be prepared in case you get hungry. I find it very hard to get my protein in without a 30 g shake.

One of my errands was Easter baskets!

Tom’s:

Mason’s:

My sister Molly said it looked like a basket for an 80 year old man. What can I say? Mason is an old soul.

Jack’s:

I filled my bird feeders and had lots of visitors when I sat outside in the afternoon. It was going to rain and the air was nice and cool. I spent a few hours reading.

Then, it was time for three of us to go see the other one in Macbeth! It was in a really cool old chapel and was BYOB so I brought red wine – communion vibes. But, Tom and I ate a baggie of jellybeans, too. I just don’t enjoy Shakespeare. There I said it.

We got home really late and I got up later than normal. We woke up to a beautiful Easter day. I had lots of thoughts of my mom.

I started a brisket. I also bought a ham.

One of my Saturday errands was a Kroger pick up.

I sent this to Tom Saturday – forgive me in advance.

Hope you had a nice weekend and a happy Easter if you celebrate!

Amy

P.S. – I think WordPress (my blog host) had a commenting problem on Friday. When I still had no comments by 8:30 a.m. I started thinking I had offended someone and I felt very unloved. I have my regulars that comment first and I started to be worried about them, too. Are they ok? Anyway, sorry about that! I think it is working again!

Friday, April 18, 2025

It’s Friday! I am linking up with Andrea and Erika to share some favorites. Today’s post is short and sweet because I just worked and got ready for my houseguests coming this weekend.

My first favorite is the comment section of my Tuesday post about cleaning out my mom’s house and the lessons I’m learning. Thank you for your kind words and your stories shared with me. I am going to go back and read them again this weekend.

Last weekend was a lot and then I went into a very busy week and I needed this…

One of our counselors sends a Wednesday Wellness slide show each week.

So, to do this for myself, I ordered take out for dinner one night and I decided my houseguests would rather me be relaxed and able to talk to them so I am making Spanish tapas when they arrive and a salad to go with pizza we will order. I am making the salad with romaine, goat cheese, sunflower seeds, strawberries and Brianna’s blush dressing. It’s delicious.

I brought home my mom’s vintage mah jong set and then I got a notice that an acquaintance that I have only met once or twice but I am Facebook friends with is now a certified mah jong instructor. I am going to learn how to play in a few weeks and then maybe that will become a new hobby if I like it.

I sent my niece some lip stuff and she and her boyfriend tried it – lol – and sent me a video review. I couldn’t figure out how to flip this around. I used to know how to edit in WordPress and now they have changed everything. It’s on my list to learn.

Aren’t they cute? It makes my day to get texts and videos from my nieces and nephews. Isn’t it great to be an aunt?

Speaking of aunts… my mom’s sister has been so helpful and we have called and talked to her several times about family furniture pieces and to get advice on the estate sale. Aunts are great!

I brought this for lunch one day and it was so good! Coleslaw mix, rotisserie chicken, Skinnygirl poppyseed dressing, blue cheese crumbles, apple pieces – the flavors are so good in my opinion!

The other day I brought “sub in a tub” using my snackle box. Erica had to to the other lunches – one was a salad with grilled chicken. We are really eating a lot of salads this year.

My best dinner this week involved three sheet pans. Easy! Roasted peeled Yukon gold potatoes – I boiled them a bit first, salmon, broccoli – all cooked on air fryer setting at 400. I need to get more 1/4 sheet pans. The size is great. I only have one right now.

I know it’s over, but this Master’s cocktail sounds good.

I bought another Fiona Ferris. This one is 10 years old and it’s not my favorite. Many of her points are repeated in the newer books I have. But, still – she has nice reminders of ways to live well.

I checked this out from the library and took some study hall time to read it this week. It’s a bit different than the title suggests – “Die with Zero” – you do need to read the subtitle. He talks about finding that balance between working just enough to have rich life experiences and not working too much for money you will never get to use. This is going on in my brain a lot as I prepare to retire and think about what work I will do next and as I clean out the possessions that my parents spent a lifetime accumulating.

So, what tops your list of favorites this week? I hope you had many! Thank you for being here! You are always a favorite of mine.

Amy

Thursday, April 17, 2025

It’s Thursday which means that it’s Fashion Files day with Kellyann and Jill.

My favorite thing to wear right now is Halara flare jeans and blouses. Still!

So, we are going to be a bit out of order, but here goes…

Saturday night in my hometown I wore my lighter Halara jeans (my fave right now) with this tropical blouse I bought maybe 3-4 years ago at TJ Maxx.

I was able to wear these and they are actually quite comfortable! I think they look good with flare jeans.

For school Monday I wore my older Dillard’s Westbound jeans, my J.Crew clearance $12 blouse from a few years ago and my J.Crew consignment cardigan. This is an easy Monday combo that I can throw on. Yes, the sneakers ruined it. Oh well. We can wear whatever we want to my school. We have no dress code. Many teachers wear jeans everyday. A lot of them wear them with our school logo shirts and sweatshirts so even though I am in jeans, my top half is usually more “dressed up” than many.

Tuesday I wore my blue gauzy pants and I let the dogs out in gold Birks. These are not that comfortable to teach in. Maybe they aren’t fully broken in? I have had them for several years, though! I wore an old blouse that is kind of scratchy and might need to go bye bye and my Old Navy cardigan.

After school Tuesday, my replacement Aerosoles arrived. They are surprisingly comfortable, but the straps are a little loose for the top one and fine for the second one. I will have to try them on at different times of day. Does anyone know if they stretch out? That might not be good.

I love the look of cork!

Look at these that showed up in my Facebook feed! Should I exchange again for these? Lol!

I found a new IG follow – a style guru named Susie Wright. She was talking about the need for neutral shoes and how black shoes can ruin an outfit. She showed maybe 5 outfits where she switched black to neutral. It’s shocking! So, you can see that I need more neutral shoes!

Want to see something funny from my mom’s house? This is my bestie and roommate Heather and I at college orientation. She is on the left with the impressive bangs. Oh to have those unfreckled un-sun damaged legs back.

I only had two days last week but I broke out my new dress for one of them. I bought this back in February. I bought this one and the one I wore to Erica’s bday dinner around the same time. They are both from Tunie’s outlet.

Tanya influenced me to buy this under $10 Amazon sweatshirt and I wore it the other school day last week.

School selfie with readers:

What have you been wearing? I am trying to be content now and not shop. Famous last words, no? But, when I am super busy like I am now I just really don’t have time to shop. I did realize I needed some jockey shorts to wear under dresses. I think I donated my two pairs in the last donation drop off. Oops. So, Amazon to the rescue.

Amy