Today's Joy: Feeling Good.
Worked hard today, Reader, and took care of everything that needed doing. Now it's time to relax and pay attention to the man in my life. The cat.

Today's Joy: A Successful Interview.
It was a good, productive day all the way around, Reader. I gave it my best shot and helped some people. Now we wait and see what that good energy does.

Today's Joy: Taking the Good with the Bad.
It was an odd sort of day, Reader. It started out rather poopy and I was afraid it might continue that way. But a little prayer for guidance & help, a nice visit with Mom and 2 exciting pieces of news (one job-related & one business-related--yes, in my world they are separate things) brought me out of my funk. So, now I'm facing tomorrow with all kinds of possibilities that weren't on the horizon yesterday. Isn't it funny how God knows just when it's time to bolster our hope and faith--usually when we're holding on by our fingernails?

Trust me, he says. Yessir.

Today's Joy: Catching Up on Guilty Pleasures.
I have a confession to make, Reader. I am a Grey's Anatomy junkie. A bonafide, can't-tear-my-eyes-away fanatic. From the first 2nd season episode I happened across one Sunday night--I was hooked! The snappy dialogue! The juicy plot twists! The shocking, illicit love affairs playing out in on-call rooms and O.R.'s across Seattle Grace Hospital! It was all so good you never knew what was going to happen next. I had to go back and watch the 1st season just to get caught up!

After that, I never missed an episode. It was only a week or two before I had most of my family roped in as well. It became our weekly ritual to gather and have dinner, chatting amiably through Ugly Betty. But all conversation stopped mid-sentence as soon as Grey's came on. It was an unspoken rule: you could talk through the commercials but not a word would be spoken (or acknowledged) once the show was back on. Thus we watched the next 2 seasons.

In all that time, I only missed one episode. Unfortunately, it was the episode after Cardiac Surgeon Erica Hahn found out Izzie was the intern responsible for hijacking the transplant heart earmarked for Erica's patient during season 2. It was the crucial season 3 episode where Erica left the show, Izzie acknowledged she was seeing her dead fiance and Meredith's reckless former med school friend showed up. And yes, I know how this sounds. But if you've ever watched the show, you will understand. That one episode changed the whole season and without it, I didn't have a clue what was going on. Ever since, I've been trying to catch the re-run of that single, missing episode. To no avail. I always seemed to just miss it.

Then fast forward to tonight. I was perusing the usual Lifetime line-up of Grey's re-runs and there it was! Finally!! So I watched it. And you know what? It was just as juicy and scandalous as I imagined. Totally worth it!

It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so! ~Mark Twain

Today's Joy: Wiggling My Toes in Green Grass for the First Time This Season.
What a glorious feeling! Here, Reader, are a few of my favorite quotes regarding this wonderful season:

April hath put a spirit of youth in everything. ~William Shakespeare

The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring. ~Bern Williams

If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. ~Nadine Stair

In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours. ~Mark Twain

In springtime, love is carried on the breeze. Watch out for flying passion or kisses whizzing by your head. ~Terri Guillemets

Quotes courtesy of The Quote Garden.
Photo: Gardenia, Chicago Botanic Garden, March, 2010.

Today's Joy: The Garden Comes Alive.
My aunt's herb garden and flower beds sprang to life this weekend. These cute little purple guys suddenly have the front lawn jockeys surrounded. While the white Star Magnolia (below), which didn't bloom at all last year, now has blossoms popping open like microwave popcorn. Delightful!

Storybook Easter: A Photo Journal

Today's Joy: Happy Easter!

Reader, I hope this post finds you content after a day spent celebrating life & rebirth with your loved ones. For me, this Easter was the best yet--full of love and fun. Here is a photo journal of all the day's doings from our big Easter Brunch to a low-key but delicious family dinner.

As a hospitality junkie, I must first tell you about the table setting. This year's table was a masterpiece! From the foil bunnies I discovered at Platt Hill Nursery to the fresh tulips & hyacinth, 3-D floral bowls and the Easter-themed accessories, it was the most inviting table we've set to date.

Yes, it's a lot of work. But Reader, I enjoy every moment of the planning. There's something about sitting down at a well-appointed table that makes any holiday twice as special. This year, we mixed and matched floral bowls, pastel napkins, Easter Egg napkin rings, chick place card holders and an assortment of egg cups.

I printed the place cards myself and cut them out with pinking shears. One guest's name was perfectly suited for a little themed play on words.

Another view of the centerpiece. The foil bunnies were not made of chocolate (much to my Uncle's dismay) but they added a wonderful storybook feel to the meal.

If you're looking for a how-to, here's an individual setting for reference.

The other side of the table. This is a brunch seating for 10.

These faux chocolate eggs (Pier 1 Imports, 2009) dressed up an apothecary jar on the server.

Once the Brunch crowd began arriving, Lonnie produced a pair of kites to keep the 2 youngest guests occupied. It was a sunny day with a fair amount of wind and the kites turned out to be a big hit. She instructed the boys that the proper way to get a kite into the air is to do so while singing the kite song from Mary Poppins.

Tommy hit the deck after a sudden change in wind direction sent his kite swooping down on his head!

A short while later, the Brunch Crowd gathered around the table for our favorite Easter tradition: the highly-anticipated Egg-Off!

The Egg-Off became a family tradition after Aunt Judy first tried it at the home of her Greek college friends.

Rules for a proper Egg-Off:

#1 Hard boil a lot of eggs. This year we did 5 & 1/2 dozen.

#2 Dye the eggs fabulous colors. Think along the lines of Nascar--your egg is your vehicle to win. Shouldn't it look snazzy?

#3 Each person receives one hard-boiled egg (no cracks!).

#4 Hold your egg with the large end nestled in your palm. The small end should be facing out horizontally.

#5 Face the person next to you and at the same moment, you both whack the small ends of your eggs head-on. The egg that cracks is eliminated. The winner goes on to face other winners around the table. If both eggs crack, both contenders are eliminated.

#6 Repeat until only one winner remains. This person is crowned the Egg-Off Champ for that year. A prize can be awarded but the sheer joy of whacking your neighbor's egg is usually reward enough ;-)

Be warned--some people are overly-enthusiastic whackers!

Once the winner of the Egg-Off is determined, we eat! Thanks to the efforts of several talented cooks, brunch was a mouth-watering success. Below: Lonnie soft boiling eggs for the Eggs Benedict.

Holy Hollandaise! The Eggs Benedict was delish!

Add to that all the delicacies laid out on the buffet: potato latkas with caviar & chives, fresh scrambled farm eggs, mini cinnamon rolls, crepes, our home-raised pork sausage & cottage bacon and Reiner's decadent new salmon and cream cheese rolls--made here with puff pastry.

As Lonnie is a chef and several of the Brunch Crowd are gifted bakers, the post-feast conversation turned into a cooking round table. Imagine: everyone relaxed and the usual food coma sets in as someone switches on the game and the guys start talking sports. It was the same thing, except they were discussing hollandaise, how to make healthy oatmeal cookies and then held a demonstration on how to pipe cookies using a pastry bag. I LOVE hanging out with Foodies!

A 2nd Egg-Off and a cozy family dinner capped off the evening with a gorgeous home-raised ham, potato casserole, asparagus and Lonnie's incredibly decadent Strawberry Basket dessert made with layers of chocolate shortcake drizzled in chocolate and piled with fresh blueberries, blackberries & strawberries and topped with fresh whipped cream. It was so good, it hurt!

And just when we thought the holiday couldn't get any better, the Easter Bunny showed up.

Well, the Easter Dalmatian, anyhow.

All the best to you & yours, Reader! May your Easter be full of Egg-Offs and delish recipes!