Speaking of summer, my one-pound bag of giant Zinnia seeds arrived! It contains approximately 50,000 seeds (yes, you read that correctly). My 2,000 Calendula seeds for my Christina Gardens, and my 500 Mexican sunflower seeds also arrived. Can you say overkill? It's not actually, because, really, can you have too many flowers? Look at that thick, beautiful foil package the Zinnias arrived in! It's resealable, too. Any extra seeds should keep well for next year as long as I store them inside the house where they remain at room temperature or slightly cool.
Are you familiar with Calendula? They're gorgeous. They remind me of a cross between a Gerbera Daisy and a Zinnia, and they are either yellow or orange.They'll be put out in front of the house in the large beds that housed the African Marigolds last year. Those were beautiful, too, but this year, I want a yellow and orange cutting flower that lasts through the first hard frost so that I can have autumn colored bouquets. The Marigolds were gorgeous, but they were more of a bush, which doesn't lend itself to cutting and arranging in vases. The orange flowers on the package below are my Mexican sunflowers. If you've ever seen one of these in person, you've probably noticed the spectacular orange color. To me, it's probably the prettiest orange I've ever seen - brilliant and clean and pure and bright. I've not yet found any other orange color that compares.
I'm already thinking ahead a bit to my summer scary movies list, as well as the local county fair and the funnel cake that I missed out on last year. Maybe not a big deal to some people, but for me it's a precious tradition that I missed very much last year due to Covid cancellations. Onward and upward, as they say, but I also don't think there's a thing wrong with expressing past disappointments, particularly if they involve not getting the annual funnel cake topped with apple pie filling and drizzled with caramel.
I'm going to order my cake-heavily-frosted-bunnies and cake-heavily-frosted-eggs from Peggy Ann next Monday for Easter weekend. Good Friday is in two weeks, so that should work out just right to pick them up on the morning of Good Friday. It rolled around fast.
I know for a lot of people, this new normal has slowed things way down. For me, it's just made life pick up steam. Funny how that works. That expression "the days are long, but the years are short" (Gretchen Rubin??) is both true and wise. I've always been a bit of an old lady at heart. I've ranted about the weather and increased cost of food for sooo many years now, but as I truly age, I find that saying to be a reminder to ask myself "how do I want to spend my time?" It's not even a profound question! I quite literally mean "what do I want or need to do today?!!!" I've not got any secret to living other than to 1. Know what is important each day so that you can prioritize correctly and 2. Understand that sometimes, other priorities must float to the top and take over whatever you already prioritized under number 1. That's it. That sums me up.
My first priority on this first day of spring was breakfast, ha ha. As you can see, I've started in on a Pals buttery biscuit and cheddar rounds. I smothered one-half of the biscuit in peach jam, and it pretty much tastes like peach pie or peach shortcake. I bought these yesterday morning as part of our food budget (yes, I budget in any eating out, no matter how cheap it is) so that when we woke up today, we could start the day with a really good treat. Pals is regional, so if you're not from here and aren't familiar with Cheddar Rounds, they're round, bite-sized hash browns with real cheddar cheese that are then deep-fried. And, yes, they're killer good.
Y'all, look at this gorgeous cupcake! A friend from work made them, and they were truly homemade! Almond cake with almond, whipped icing. Isn't that swirl just gorgeous? The girl who made them is gorgeous, too, a lovely person with a great sense of humor. I love talking to her and her office mate. Ever been around people who, after you talk with them for a couple minutes, you just feel better? That's those two ladies! The cupcakes have been eaten already!
I'd be remiss if I didn't share a critter picture, so today, we have Mama Bunny! Isn't she adorable? I love to watch her play and get to be a real kitty with a home and lots of love rather than having to worry about taking care of babies constantly. She was such a good mama, and - if you've followed the story - you know that she got to keep all three of her babies. They all live with us now, and I'm so happy that they're all finally healthy and fat and incredibly spoiled. They can be sassy, which is hilarious. There's nothing better than watching an animal grow and thrive and know that it's loved and safe. I think that's what humans want, too. We are not so much different from them, are we?
That's it for now. I hope your first day of spring is lovely and calm and sunny. Our weekend looks nice. A bit breezy, but we are heading into the 60s with full-on sun! Really, I cannot ask for better than that. Love to you in this new season of hope and looking forward!
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