Spring has arrived, the containers are ready and I found three books that are going straight to the top of the list
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I have been your daily correspondent from the Pinecones & Acorns weather desk for a while now, and I will be honest with you — I am ready to retire. Hopefully soon I will be reporting on the water temperature at the beach club when I go paddleboarding. For now though, here we are: tomorrow it will be eighty-seven degrees and rainy. April in the South. We do need the rain, we are in a drought.
But this week — this week was something to see. The village is a rainbow of color. The azaleas are at their peak. The flowering trees are doing what they do for exactly ten days every spring, which is look so beautiful you cannot believe it. Wisteria dangles from the trees like Christmas baubles. The peony shoots are up and seem like they are growing an inch a day. Everything is chartreuse-dusted and beautiful. My eyes are itchy and scratchy like everyone else. The rain will help wash some of it away.
This weekend I am planting containers. Last week when I was out antiquing with my sister I stopped at the garden center and came home with every fern and flower I needed. They have been sitting on the porch waiting patiently for their new home. Between that and seeing friends and getting ready for Easter, it is going to be a very good weekend. Let’s get to the favorites.
Food
Four recipes that landed on Pinterest this week. It is all pasta but the good news is that they are all easy to make and delicious. Be sure to pin them so that you have them to make this Spring and Summer.
Italian Chop Pasta Salad — Half Baked Harvest
Creamy Italian dressing tossed with pasta, salami, pepperoni, fresh mozzarella, provolone, cherry tomatoes, olives and fresh basil. It is the kind of salad that looks like you spent all day and takes about thirty minutes. Perfect for a crowd and perfect for Easter.
Caprese Orzo Pasta Salad — What’s Gaby Cooking
Orzo tossed with roasted and fresh cherry tomatoes, mozzarella pearls, lots of basil and a balsamic vinaigrette. According to Gabby The trick of roasting half the tomatoes first gives this so much more depth than a standard caprese. Prep it Sunday afternoon and then you will have it to eat all week long.
Herby Chickpea Feta Pasta Salad — Ambitious Kitchen
Orzo with chickpeas, feta, cucumber, pickled red onions, green olives and fresh herbs, all tossed in a lemon vinaigrette. Twenty minutes to make.
Hummingbird cake is a family favorite and a classic. I will be making it along with a coconut cake for Easter. What is your favorite Easter dessert, aside from the candy?
LINKS TO READ+WATCH+LISTEN
Why languages are spoken at different speeds.
Wired Headphone Sales Are Exploding, are They Better Than Bluetooth?
The impossible task of caring for ageing parents who did not care for you: ‘There’s a lot of reliving old triggers’. Thankfully I have great relationships with my parents, but I know someone whose father tried to kill them not once, but twice and she cared for him the last 3 years of his life.
Drooling on your pillow can be a sign of a serious illness.
Is there an optimal time for a walk?
Can You Afford to Get Ahead in America
Vintage Sterling Silver is Trending, here is how to Buy.
Books
Three books that will make you smile, make you laugh and keep you up well past your bedtime.
After a rough breakup, Tiffy needs a flat she can actually afford. The solution: share with Leon, a night-shift nurse she has never met, using the same bed on alternating shifts. They communicate entirely through notes left around the flat. It sounds absurd and it is — delightfully, warmly, completely. One of those books where you find yourself grinning at strangers on the bus.
A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey
A woman inherits her grandmother’s cottage in a small coastal North Carolina town and finds, along with a family secret, that the life she thought she wanted may not be the life she actually needs. Kristy Woodson Harvey writes warm, character-driven Southern fiction that stays with you long after the last page — and if you have not found her yet, this is the place to start. If you love Elin Hilderbrand but wish she would move South, you will love this.
You Are Here by David Nicholls
Two divorced, slightly lost, very funny middle-aged people find themselves on a long-distance walking trail across northern England, thrown together by a mutual friend. David Nicholls wrote One Day, which tells you everything you need to know about whether this will make you feel things. The Times called it ‘One Day for midlife romantics.’ I call it essential reading.
You can find all of my book recommendations at My Bookshop. Most are also available from Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org and on Libby through your local library.
Shopping — Outfit of the Day
Don’t you just love a colorful skirt in the Spring and Summer? This vibrant skirt can be paired with a t-shirt, or a colorful shirt or sweater to match the print. I paired it with a with a plain white t-shirt, and a green sweater to wear in air conditioned buildings or on chilly evenings. A pair of sandals and a bag complete the outfit.
Click the images to shop the outfit separates.
Are you getting ready for Easter? What are your plans for the Easter weekend? Tell me in the comments — I always love to know.
I hope you enjoyed this week’s Friday Favorites. Don’t forget to join Kim and Juliet tomorrow for Weekend Meanderings.
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On My Radar
When I was an au pair in Paris (quite a long time ago), Madame made Carottes râpées often. The best hummingbird cake I ever had was from a bakery in Birmingham AL. The salads look delicious.
Re: Easter. I am finally home after nearly seven months. My sister is now resituated back in our home town. Family is joining her at her new residence for Easter brunch. Having dressed out of a carry-on all this time, I am going to put on a dress and heels. I’m signed up for yoga on April Mondays. So nice that I can walk there from my condo.
Lynda,
I need to hear more about your time in Paris as an au pair, what was your favorite place to visit in the city when you had time to yourself? Do you have a favorite park or museum?
As for the hummingbird cake, have you ever tried to find the recipe? Last year I brought my sister a piece of coconut cake from TN, a year later she is still talking about it and we are trying to track down another cake or the recipe!
I am sorry but I do not know what happened to your sister, was she ill? How nice to have her back with family.
As for you, get out your heels, your favorite dress and enjoy the day!
Enjoy yoga, my sister and I have signed up for early yoga glasses starting in April too.
Have a wonderful weekend and thank you for sharing your memories.
Favorites: Jeu de Paume, which held an Impressionist collection at the time, including a Degas ballerina bronze; Sunday Mass at Notre Dame with my Canadian au pair friends. I took a French course (an au pair visa requirement) through the Sorbonne. It was held in a small courtyard right next to Notre Dame. Every time I passed by it, I thought how lucky I was to see it every day.
Back in your Intentional Living post, I mentioned my sister was having cognitive difficulties. Bless the friend who contacted a family member to let us know she needed help. She lived in the opposite corner of the country, so we had no idea. She is not a “blank” person by any stretch. But without the ability to manage things, her life had unraveled quite seriously. We hope that she will do well now that she is in a supportive environment. With her two adorable kitties.
Lynda, I apologize that I did not remember the details of your sisters illness. Cognative difficulties are so difficult for families, especially if you live far away. My step-father is declining cognitively and my brother in law is as well. I see my brother in law weekly and it is heartbreaking to watch. Thank God that your sister is now in a supportive place and closer to family and two furry friends too. I will keep her in my prayers.
It sounds like you had a wonderful time in Paris. The grounds of Norte Dame are so special, and to be able to take a class on there grounds even more so. The Jeu de Paume with an Impressionist collection sounds lovely, small and intimate. Have you seen the story of the Little Ballerina that is in Washington DC? I believe and I could be wrong that it was part of Degas collection that his family sold after he passed away.
Thank you for sharing your Parisian memories and for reminding me about your sister.
Have a lovely weekend.