…if I have to say so myself.
For a close up of this Avocado Mango Salsa and the easy recipe head over to Mennonite Girls Can Cook.
We had to cancel our small group meeting tonight due to the lingering bug at this old house. I feel quite unmotivated to do much of anything. Hope you are all well and the weather is improving where you are. We are in a steady rain pattern with threats of flooding and mudslides.
We are at the letter H with Denise Nesbitt’s ABC Wednesday Meme.
How timely since my Helleborus, Lenten Rose is blooming. I’m not sure exactly what variety mine is. It looks similar to a Spring or Angel variety that I’ve seen on line.
I had to get down on my knees to take the photos because this is a humble plant whose blooms bow their heads to the ground for the most part.
This is the first plant to bloom in the middle or late winter at my house. I love that it is blooming during the Lenten season.
Hellebores are perennial and largely evergreen. They are deer resistant for some of you who have asked in previous posts.
Noteworthy characteristics: Year round foliage persists through shade and snow and is fairly deer and rabbit resistant. Flowers in early spring with daffodils and tulips.
Hope you enjoyed seeing my Hellebore as much as I enjoyed showing it. I’ll be coming around to see your ABC offering for H.
I’m also linking up to Outdoor Wednesday with A Southern Daydreamer.
Our outdoors have been cold and rainy since Saturday. I know a lot of you might still be covered in snow so who am I to complain. Looking forward to this weekend and the opening of MLS Soccer season in the U.S.A. I’ll be at the Seattle Sounders opener against Sporting Kansas on Saturday. What’s new in your neck of the woods?
Although we were short on sunshine this past weekend we had some nice sunshine last week. I bought some daffodils that always have a way of adding sunshine to a table. They also make me smile. Today is Shrove Tuesday or Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras. The day before the season of Lent begins. Lent is a time of abstinence, of giving things up leading up to Easter Sunday. In the U.K. this is Pancake Day. Shrove comes from the old word “shrive” which means to confess. Will you be eating pancakes today?
We had a great visit with our middle son and his girlfriend this weekend. I did not take one photo. We ate, played games, ate some more. Now that Dan has his own house we are slowly sending over his leftover belongings from our house. You know how that goes if you have adult children. This time around he was able to load 2 motorcycles in the bed of his truck to take back with him. I really do hope he didn’t take Dear’s head cold back with him. The roads were quite nasty on their trip home and on Monday the pass that they took was closed to traffic most of the day.
Everyone was talking about March challenges this weekend. Maybe I’ll challenge myself to do something in March, too. I’m thinking along the lines of exercise. How about you?
Those daffodils are now 13 inches high. It’s amazing how fast they’ve grown.
My flashback this week is all about friends and family in Persia in the late 30’s and in the 40’s. These two friends got into trouble for applying lipstick before they took this photo. My mother on the left and our friend who we always called Aunt Zena on the right.
The same friends over 60 years later in California. Aunt Zena on the left and my mom on the right.
Most of the people in the following photos immigrated to the U.S.A. from Persia. Unfortunately my maternal grandfather died before he could immigrate. My maternal grandmother came to the states as a widow.
My mom is sitting down on the left. I need help identifying the other girls in this photo. I think some are Katkovs and the girl on the left is Vera (Leleland). Hopefully someone who sees my post that knows our extended family and friends can help me out with some names.
This is my mom on the left, her sister who died young, and her brother Paul.
My mom and my Uncle Paul
My mom and her cousin Luba
My mom on the right with her cousin Luba on the left and the two gals in the middle are Vera Leleland and Lyda Hamzaeff (married last names).
Nicolai, Aunt Nina, my mom and Uncle Paul
The Katkov and Shvetzov families in Persia. My parents and sister had left Persia already for America. My maternal grandfather is sitting on the right next to my maternal grandmother with my cousin Alex standing between them.
My Uncle Paul’s wedding day with my Aunt Nina and her family and friends. All the people in this photo are single except for my aunt and uncle. It was a tradition for the bride and groom to take a photo with their single guests and family.
Here we are in March already. We’re fighting off a cold bug at this old house. Dear is down for the count and I hope I don’t have to join him.
Have a good week everyone!
…in praying for the troubling situation in the Ukraine. Personally the Mennonite Girls Can Cook have an ongoing relationship with The Good Shepherd Shelter that is located in the Ukraine.
All of our author royalties from our first book have been designated for the shelter and we’ve been able to build a greenhouse where they are already growing food year round for the shelter.
We also are waiting news of a pending adoption of an orphan from the Ukraine. We just don’t know how the tensions and uprisings and invasions will effect the shelter or the adoption process but we do know the God who loves orphans. We know that He knows and He is sovereign. Praying for a peaceful resolution and that the country will be able to move forward without more bloodshed.
’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
And to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise,
And to know, “Thus says the Lord!”
Refrain
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!
O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me
’Neath the healing, cleansing flood!
Refrain
Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.
Refrain
I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.
Refrain
Words: Louisa M.R. Stead, 1882.
To send you off I’ll share some favorites from your last week. It was a nice mix of busy and quiet. Thank you Susanne for keeping us thinking about things we should be grateful for.
1. Last Friday Katie and I met Dear downtown and enjoyed a Happy Hour meal together and then a short drive to the Seattle Home Show. We had a good time talking to different vendors and seeing some new home products at the show.
2. On Saturday morning we met Judy and Elmer for breakfast at a restaurant close to their travel route. We had a good time enjoying some good food and carefree conversation. We sent them on their way in some sloppy snow.
3. We’ve had some nice dry sunny days in a row this week and I was able to get out and do a little trimming and cleaning up of some beds. I’m always grateful for some extra light in the day!
4. Although this photo isn’t from this past Sunday, this group was together with us for brunch here at our home and we had such a wonderful time getting caught up with each other and sharing the latest greatest. The food was good, too. Dear made his Swedish Pancakes and we had fresh strawberries and bacon to go with the fresh off the griddle pancakes.
5. A new look for our living room windows. Little changes are good every once in a while.
My bonus favorite this week is that our son Dan is arriving on Friday with his girlfriend to spend a couple nights and several meals with us. It’s been fun stocking the refrigerator and making one of Dan’s favorites for his time here this weekend.
What are your plans for the weekend?
I was a little tired of the window coverings in our living room so I went from sloppy to neat and I think I’ll enjoy the new look. Nothing major but a nice change for my eye.
The new panels are on the right and the old look is on the left. I blew it and didn’t take clear photos of the old look before I took down the panels to replace them with the new more tailored look.
I went with very sheer panels because we like to have all the light we can come through into the room. The panels were very reasonably priced at Home Goods. I also got a new curtain rod that Dear has not had a chance to install yet. A set of 2 panels cost $14.99. I bought 4 panels, 2 for each side. The new curtain rod was $19.99. So for a little over $50.00 I have a new look. Do you have HomeGoods or HomeSense where you live? I have gotten some great products from this chain.
The old look…
The New Look…
The thing that remains is that I take lousy photos of my front windows. Another thing that is different in the new look is the Blue Service Star flag/banner that you can see through the blinds. Our son in law is still actively deployed and that banner stays in the window until he returns from his deployment.
Have you changed something up at your place during this long Winter?
It has been ages since I joined in on A Southern Daydreamer’s Outside Wednesday Meme but low and behold I was finally able to spend some time outside yesterday. The sun was shining and the temps got up over 40 degrees. I had a good time walking about the yard and noticing what was budding or blooming.
The first thing I noticed was that my shrubs next to my Hellebore (Lenten Rose) were growing over it.
I headed to the garage to get my nifty trimmers and set out to free the top of the Hellebore from the shrub next to it.
This is always the first sign that Spring is coming in my yard. I love how gentle and humble this pretty plant is.
After I freed and enjoyed my Lenten Rose I moved over to the Camelia Bushes to take a photo of the buds on them.
Hydrangeas are shooting out their buds, too.
I’m really excited about these buds which are only two of many on my lilac bush. Last year I only had one bloom so it looks as if I’ll have more than one bloom this year.
Have you been able to be outside this week or are you still covered in a blanket of snow? I suppose if snow is your general landscape in the winter you know how to go out and about in it and enjoy it to the fullest, too. Looking forward to see if I can catch up with some old bloggy friends that I haven’t visited for a while. What’s new in your outdoors?
We have reached the letter G for Alphabet Wednesday. Thank you to the Alphabet Wednesday Team for keeping us going.
How about some Royal Gates? These were taken at Buckingham Palace in September of 2013 which happen to be in Great Britain.
Whenever I see mighty Gates like these I think of Psalm 100 in the Bible. This is the portion I think of, verses 4 and 5.
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.”
Do you think that there’s real gold in these royal gates? Maybe someone from Great Britain can tell us.
How about a Guinness? Notice the golden harp.
Hope your day is full of good things, good news, good food, and good thoughts!
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 