Christmas Notebook

menu plan monday ~ april 26, 2010

April 26, 2010 – 9:19 am

We’re back from a trip east, where we attended one daughter’s senior show (graduating from college in a few weeks!), celebrated another daughter’s birthday, and visited with our oldest son and his family. We had a wonderful time and so enjoyed visiting with everyone. And we had tons of fun with the little ones. 🙂

On the way home yesterday, the temps started out around 74* and by the time we got home, it was 52*. Brrr! Today is damp and cool, so I’m going to start this week’s menu with soup for this evening.

Monday
Cheeseburger Soup

Tuesday
Ham Sandwiches
Veggies / Ranch Dip
Grapes

Wednesday
Grilled Pork Steaks
Oven Fried Potato Wedges
Cole Slaw with Peanuts

Thursday
Broccoli Beef Stir Fry
Rice

Friday
Crock Pot Chicken Cordon Bleu
Rice
Steamed Green Beans
Corn
Spinach Salad w/ Strawberries

Saturday
Lunch ~ Fridge Food
Supper ~ Pizza Braid

Sunday
Marinated Pork Tenderloin in the Crock Pot
Mashed Potatoes
Steamed Sugar Snap Peas
Corn
Green Salad

You’ll find more menu and recipe ideas at Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Comments (1)

visit with family

April 24, 2010 – 2:27 pm

We traveled east to be with our second daughter for her senior photography show. She graduates in May! Anyone have a job for a fledgling photographer?

We celebrated a birthday with DD#1.

And we got to visit with the grands!

Swim time with Grandpa.

Aunt and niece had a good time together. Took lots of pics of their own…

This summer, they are coming to us! Can’t wait!

~~Grandma

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in twins | Tagged family, twins | Comments (1)

garden pics

April 23, 2010 – 8:44 pm

I took these shots to share on Tuesday, but life got hectic for a few days, so am sharing them now.

The columbine has come on thick and fast this week. It’s a nice long bloomer and adds color to the beds this time of year.

My favorite columbine is the blue one…

I thought I might have missed the Spanish Bluebells while I was sick, but they opened this week. We have these in two places. I’d like to spread them around. Love the color.

The pump (small fountain) is running. We need to get some goldfish for it. Children always enjoy watching them dart around the bottom, as well as the fun of feeding the fish. Now that the weather is nice, we sit on the east porch after dark and listen to the fountain while we enjoy the scent of the lilacs.

Lilac ‘Charles Joly’ has been showy this year, though the color is lighter than usual. Not sure why.

If there’s a breeze, we can also enjoy the soft sounds of the wind chime that hangs in the big oak behind the house.

The early purple irises are in full bloom all over the garden. These old irises came from DH’s family farm.

The hostas continue to unfurl.

‘Flower Power’

‘Samurai’

Closeup of a ‘Samurai’ leaf…I like the corrugation.

‘Guardian Angel’

Part of the hosta bed by the carport…Left to right:
‘Forest Fire’
‘Waving Wuffles’
‘Samurai’
small dark green is ‘Devon Green’

It’s a lovely time of year. I hope you are getting outside to enjoy it!

You can enjoy more gardens at Fertilizer Friday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden | Tagged garden 2010, hostas, spring | Comments (3)

menu plan monday ~ april 19, 2010

April 20, 2010 – 12:16 am

The yard is transitioning from early spring to mid-spring. The irises are putting up their buds and a few have flowered.

The earliest are ‘Baby Blessed,’ the old purple variety from DH’s family farm, and the old white ones from his great-grandmother’s place. You can see those in my previous post. The first of the newer varieties bloomed Sunday…Raspberry Blush. For the next three or four weeks, it will be new irises every day.

I’m late getting the menu posted, but here it is.

Monday ~ school event this evening
Subway sandwiches

Tuesday
Julie’s fake baked ziti
homemade bread
green salad

Wednesday
hamburgers / homemade buns
grapes
veggies / dip

Thursday
Baked Chicken
Rice
Corn / Peas
Green Salad

Friday
homemade pizza

Saturday
Fridge Food

Sunday
Spaghetti
Homemade Rolls
Spinach Salad
Corn
Steamed Sugar Snap Peas

You’ll find more menu and recipe ideas at Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Comments (0)

flower friday

April 17, 2010 – 5:39 pm

I’ve been sick this week and spent more than two days in a recliner. Didn’t get back outside to take pictures of the garden until today. But this morning was beautiful, so I enjoyed being able to get outside. I also spent some time on the east porch. Am reading Thomas Merton’s The Seven Storey Mountain which has been fascinating. I may head back out for more of that in a little while…

Here are some pictures from this morning. The lilacs are at their peak.

Old purple lilacs from the family farm.

Lilac ‘Sensation’

Lilac ‘Charles Joly’

The redbud blossoms are waning, and the leaves are beginning to grow.

The leaves on the redbud ‘Forest Pansy’ are a purple/red color. Very pretty, adding interest to the tree after the flowers are gone.

The old-fashion white irises opened this week. That’s the hosta ‘Spritzer’ to the right and Honesty (Money Plant) behind the irises.

This old purple iris came from DH’s family farm, where it has grown for years. It’s one of our earliest irises.

Also blooming this week is the dwarf iris ‘What Again.’ It’s about 8″ tall.

And dwarf iris ‘Baby Blessed’ is blooming, too. It blooms early and is a great rebloomer in our garden.

The wood phlox is one of my favorite spring flowers.

It’s thick under the apple tree.

Columbine is beginning to bloom.

In a day or two, the green blossoms on the snowball bush will be larger and bright white.

In the front yard, the last of the daffodils, late blooming ‘Cheerfulness’ looks beautiful above Candytuft ‘Snowflake.’

The hostas are looking great, too.

‘Squash Casserole’

‘Liberty’

‘Pineapple Upside Down Cake’

‘Journey’s End’

And my personal favorite…’June.’

A few shots from around the yard…

I hope you enjoyed the look at our garden. If you would like to see what’s blooming in other gardens, check out Fertilizer Friday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden | Comments (4)

menu plan monday ~ april 12, 2010

April 12, 2010 – 10:24 am

We are enjoying perfect spring weather right now. And it looks like we’ll be able to enjoy it for the next week or so. I tried to keep the menu pretty simple most days so we could spend as much time outside as possible.

Monday
Toasted Cheese Sandwiches
Chicken Tortellini Soup

Tuesday
Crock Pot Turkey
Mashed Potatoes
Green Beans
Corn
Homemade Rolls
Green Salad

Wednesday
Grilled Hamburgers on Homemade Buns
Carrots / Celery / Ranch Dip
Red Grapes

Thursday
Julie’s Fake Baked Ziti
Garlic Bread
Steamed Sugar Snap Peas
Spinach Salad

Friday
Stir Fried Shrimp and Veggies
Rice

Saturday
Fridge Food

Sunday
Grilled Chicken
Grilled Veggie Packets
Grilled Corn on the Cob

You’ll find more menu and recipe ideas at Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Comments (0)

clouds of pink

April 7, 2010 – 10:28 am

The redbud blossoms opened Monday. The yard is full of billowing pink clouds of blossoms!

The redbud by the kitchen is the only one that was in the yard when we moved in. This year we have more than 20 blooming.

The daffodils are beginning to wane, but still look lovely. The Poet’s are a later variety so they are in their prime right now.

The bluebells are one of my favorite spring flowers…though I might say that about *any* spring flower…

Magnolia ‘Jane’ in the evening light.

We’re emptying the beds flanking the front sidewalk, so DH moved this peony to the new bed behind the addition. Not the optimum time to move a peony but it will do fine.

We also need to move the hostas that were under the crabapple tree. It had to be cut down last year and those hostas are now in full sun. Most will move near the back door, where we are restructuring the flower beds.

We moved the hosta ‘Forest Fire’ and it didn’t miss a beat.

The fenced garden invites you to stop by and sit a spell. 🙂

You can visit more spring gardens at Bloomin’ Tuesday. Enjoy!

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden | Tagged garden 2010 | Comments (3)

menu plan monday ~ april 5, 2010

April 5, 2010 – 10:55 am

We enjoyed a delicious Easter dinner with friends from church. After pie and ice cream, they brought out their four wheeler for DD to enjoy. And she did!

Sunday evening I sat on the east porch and enjoyed the spring breezes and the waning sunlight. The redbud trees are THIS close to bursting into bloom.

DH and I sat on the porch swing till 8:30. It’s so nice to be able to enjoy that again! Seems we waited for spring an extra long time this year. After coming in, it was time to get the menu planned and grocery list made. Watcha think about this week’s menu?

Monday
Broccoli/Beef Stir Fry So good last week, we’re going to have it again.
Rice

Tuesday
Glazed Pork Chops
Oven Fried Potato Wedges
Steamed Asparagus
Corn

Wednesday
Hamburgers on Homemade Buns
Carrots / Celery / Ranch Dip
Red Grapes

Thursday
Lemon Linguine
Green Salad
Garlic Bread

Friday
Grilled Chicken
Veggie Packets on the grill
Cole Slaw with Peanuts
Cornbread

Saturday
Lunch ~ Fridge Food
Supper ~ Homemade Pizza with Portobello Mushrooms

Sunday
Crock Pot Turkey We were invited to Easter dinner with friends, so didn’t have this last week. Too good to pass up, so we’ll have it this week.
Mashed Potatoes
Spinach Salad with Strawberries
Corn
Green Beans

You’ll find more menu and recipe ideas at Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Comments (0)

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!

April 4, 2010 – 10:43 pm

We had a wonderful Easter day. I especially enjoyed the hymns at church this morning. Triumphant! After church we enjoyed dinner with friends, and then I spent a quiet afternoon, with some reading time on the porch swing. The evening light across the yard was so pretty.

The spring blossoms are wonderful reminders of the promises of the resurrection. New life in Christ! Happy Easter!

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in spring | Comments (0)

friday flowers

April 2, 2010 – 5:15 pm

The high winds we’ve had the past few days have knocked a lot of petals off the star magnolia, leaving a white blanket on the ground.

I took this picture of the apricot trees a few days ago. The winds have shattered the blossoms, but I can still smell their fragrance from the house.

Magnolia ‘Jane’ ~ This shrub has been in our yard for three years. It’s a great bloomer!

DH plugged the fountain in and it started right up!

The daffodils are in full swing. The front yard is full of them. Here’s a view looking toward the neighbor’s house across the street. That’s our driveway in the middle. The fence at the back of the daffodils marks the northern border of our yard.