Giving Up on Spring

 I woke up this morning to hail hitting my windows.  I took the screens down because the windows look better with no screens and because the cats spend a lot of time jumping up and hanging there when they're ready to come inside.  Now they have to go to the front door and wait.  It would have been a good morning to stay in bed, but I woke up to a text from Noreen asking if I wanted a cuppa - nice excuse for a visit.  We've only chatted through texts for about a week now, and it was time for catching up.  We did cover quite a few subjects and got a bit of world problem-solving done.  I always feel better about life in general when I leave one of our visits!

It was pouring when I left to come home.  And cold.  Looking at the 10-day forecast, I don't see us reaching 70 for that period of time and most of it with rain.  Ugh.  Once I get a little taste of sunshine, I'm ready to have it daily.  

Just got a video from Emily in Michaels showing me a bunch of 70s-looking vases and glasses and my sweet girl.

Our Harvest Gold and Avocado Green things were a little more tasteful than those, I think.

Yesterday was early-release Friday, and Graysen got here about 2:45 with some make-up work to finish and her book to read.  When Kate got here an hour later, they were glad to see each other and get a snack.  It isn't anything I plan, but I sometimes just stand in the kitchen and tell them what's in the cabinets and refrigerator, and they let me know if it sounds good.  Gray and I even went to the garage freezer, thinking I had put a cheese pizza in there the last time I went to the grocery story.  Unfortunately, there was no pizza.  They settled for some sausage links like we had at the beach - plant-based ones that they love.  Kate got excited over a bowl of grits, and I grated some cheese into it.  We rounded out the snack with a few handfuls of Fruit Loops I had forgotten about.  

They left to go home, and I did nothing the rest of the evening except what I wanted to do, but I can't remember what that was.  I'm sure I played a few games of MJ on line.  I've now won 68% of the hands on the 2026 card.  Some of them I'll never play, and some I've won multiple times.  

Since nothing is going on today, I'll post a few of the Spring Break pictures.  I've already forgotten where and what most of them are, but I'll remember what I can.

We left on May 8 and had a good short drive to the airport.  It was so nice it almost made me not look at all the traffic.  We were able to get a glimpse of Mt Rainier, but I wasn't quick enough to capture it.

It's such a production to get 5 people and all that luggage into the airport.  We parked, and Ryan and Emily ran the heavy suitcases to be checked inside while I waited with the girls with our carryon stuff.  Then Ryan ran out and took off to park while the girls and I went in and found Emily.  It wasn't crowded, and I had nothing to do but wait on her to do all the hard work.  

Once Ryan got back inside, we headed for the security lines.  We were TSA prechecked, or whatever that's called, so it was a simple matter to just take out IDs and show them.  There was no taking off anything or taking things out of bags, so that part was easy too.  It was a pretty long walk to get to our gate, and the girls gamely carried my laptop bag along with their things.  

    

             Kate wasn't unhappy here, just bored and ready to be on our way.

Once we got there to the gates - 2 or 3 at the end of the concourse, some with delays - there was no time to go to the bathroom or get a bottle of water. So many people.  I was definitely pampered this trip with early boarding on most flights, and it turned out I was the first one on the plane.  That was a new and welcome thing for me.  The only downside was that I had to sit by myself and the rest of the family were way back behind me. I ended up with a nice young couple who were friendly but not chatty - my favorite type of seatmates.  

We changed planes in Houston, and I don't remember much about that.  We just had to get our carryon stuff to the next gate and get on. 

 

This was the flight I had Kate as my seatmate.  She was fun to be with.  It looks like this was just 2 seats with the others across the aisle from us in some configuration.

I thought I would have taken more pictures, but I didn't.  This trip, I got a strap-on waist thing for my ID and phone and a few other little things.  That was the best, because it kept me from forgetting where my phone was and having to fish it off the floor.

Below may have been in Houston or New Orleans.  We made brief stops in both airports and tried to get something to eat at one of the food courts, but nothing looked interesting, and some of the places were closing for the day.  

The next step was riding a shuttle in New Orleans to the rental car place.  It was a nice big comfortable bus, and we got to rest a little bit.

The rest of the night was my least favorite time there.  We got a big nice car, but we filled it completely up and headed for the hotel.

I haven't traveled in a lot of years, and I thought I did pretty well with my anxiety.  But I didn't enjoy the drive to the area and finding a parking place and getting into our rooms.  I'll have to find out the name of the hotel for tomorrow.  

Not that it was any fun for the others, but Ryan and Emily are adventurous, and the girls went straight to sleep once we were in the car.  It was close to midnight in a strange city and no parking available near the hotel.  Ryan got out to walk around and look for a spot, and then Emily went to find him, and I was not that thrilled to be left in the car with the children.  Finally - not long but seemed like forever - we paid for valet parking, which was just unlocking a small parking area attached to the hotel.  Once again, deciding what we needed, getting groggy girls up the elevator, and getting settled is all a blur.  Kate slept in my room, and she was out so quickly.  

I don't remember anything about the room except that was the one with no hot or even warm water.  Right when I needed it the most.  It didn't seem worth it to complain, so I waited until morning and had a lukewarm shower.

We had little balconies, but I spent almost no time on mine.  We heard pretty music for a little while - what we finally learned was the calliope from the Steamboat Natchez going past on the Mississippi.  Nice touch before we had to hurry and get out to try to see some of New Orleans before meeting Rebekah, Emily's high school friend.

This girl had a long sleep and hardly moved all night.  I think that was true for all of us.

I took one picture in NOLA.  One.  I've been there a few times, but Emily really wanted to show the girls Jackson Square.  Our time eventually got used up, and I was not too disappointed.

I'm exhausted just thinking about it.  Maybe I'll have a few pictures for another day.  I'm looking for the name of that hotel now to see if there's anything interesting about it.

Just as I was finishing this up, my phone sent me another airport adventure from May of 2019.  I'll pick some of those pictures and post - so precious, those ages.

Heading back from St. George's another time.  In Tallahassee, we saw Millie and Allen to their flight and then found out ours had been cancelled because of storms in Dallas.  Speaking of anxiety, I was there nursing a swollen foot because of some infection that had come up that morning.  We ended up renting another car and driving most of the way across Georgia to Atlanta where we got about 4 hours sleep and then got a flight to Los Angeles via Charlotte.

These little girls handled it much better than I did, but look at those tired little faces!  

AND - 12 hours later - more hail!

Spring Break 2026

 I do realize I haven't posted very much about the trip we took to St George's Island and the places we visited on the way there.  It's so overwhelming when you don't write it down as it happens, and I was a little bit out of my comfort zone sometimes.  Once you stop travelling, it's hard to get back in the groove.

I don't have time to record it all, but I am looking at some pictures this morning of the Malaga Hotel in Mobile where we stayed for one night.  I could have stayed there much longer, even with the mini shower in my bathroom.  

I'm trying to reimburse Emily and Ryan for my expenses, and it's hard when they won't tell you what they are.  I did stay in my own room 3 nights, so I'm having to do a little research and find out how much I spent.  

I'll have to go back and find out where we stayed in New Orleans.  It had character for sure, but we were all exhausted and got in so late and left so early we didn't have much chance to enjoy it.

But I do remember this place.  The Malaga Hotel.  I sometimes didn't know exactly where we were, but I do know this was on Church Street near Government and close to downtown.  

The inviting room on the first floor, right corner was my room with a little balcony out the front French door.  I think it was called a Historic Suite and part of an original hotel (just overhearing some of the conversation about rooms as we were checking in).  It was perfect for me, and I enjoyed relaxing and being by myself for a little bit. The family stayed on the second floor. 

These are the pictures I took, but this website has a lot of pictures and reviews.

I wasn't the only one tired after a long day of car travel and car games with way too much luggage surrounding us.  We knew - and still carried too much!

 

I have to say the courtyard was my favorite spot.  I may already have these pictures posted, but we enjoyed the fountain and the flowers and just the quiet.  We saw very few people there even though they were pretty full.  

We were impressed by the beds.  Not your usual hotel beds but so very comfortable.  No complaints by me!

The little bathroom was fine, even if a little bit smaller than we're used to.  

We enjoyed exclaiming about the size of the shower - probably smaller than an airplane bathroom.  It takes a little planning, for sure.  Hot water though - which is something we did not have in the New Orleans hotel - not even a little bit in my room.  

I took my book along but read maybe two pages on the plane rides there and two more at each hotel.  Then it was lights out for me!

This looks like the former front entrance before all the additions. My room is there under the stairs.

The next morning, I found a cup of coffee and brought it to the courtyard.  Unfortunately, they only supply the bare necessities of a breakfast, and that's a carafe of already-made coffee.  I was late getting there, so I refused a fresh pot just for me.

 

I did read a few more pages of my book, but I was more interested in walking around looking at the flowers and smelling the fragrant plantings.  I didn't mind that it was a really warm day either!

I found this spooky-looking stairwell in my exploring.  I don't even want to know what's down there.

Emily and I found a few flats of plants over in a corner that we had to resist finding a hose and watering.  Overall, the garden was beautiful, but we worried about those neglected ones.

It was such a nice place, and I wish I thought I would get to go back one day.  I did leave my new phone charger plugged in, something I thought I had trained myself NOT to do.  

Thursday Mah Jongg

 I can't promise this week has been all I wanted, but it's almost over, and there have been good times.  

Yesterday the girls came over for just a small amount of time.  Graysen had a band concert that night and needed to get ready.  Elise and I wanted to go, but it didn't work out.  Emily sent me one video that's funny.  Gray made a face when I showed it to her and said, "We were SO bad!"  I thought they sounded like a beautiful orchestra myself, but I did enjoy the little funnies - the false start that everyone tries really hard to avoid.  It was cute, and they went right ahead and started over.  I'm still trying to find the composer for this short piece that I recognize from a hymn from childhood.  So pretty.  G is the 3rd from the right on the first row.  

I have little faith it will work.  I can play it fine on my phone and in my files, but getting it here is somehow beyond me.  Maybe there will be some Facebook pictures from the school soon.  

She said they were playing Hey, Jude, and when I found out I couldn't go and hear it in person, she promised to play it for me.  

Kate had been begging to play Mah Jongg Wednesday, and we had time for only some quick messy games.  She's getting really good at recognizing what is a good hand and what she doesn't want.  And lucky too. 

I knew getting out today would be good for me, and I had Thursday Mah Jongg to lure me out.  It was a really pretty day when I left with just a few gray clouds appearing as I drove to the Y.  For 2-1/2 hours, we were completely oblivious of the weather or anything else.  I love our group.  We are sticklers for the rules but still add some levity and fun along the way.  I won two games today, which is better than I have been doing.  On my last one, we got to test one of the rules.  We were down to the last maybe 10 tiles, and everyone was giving up hope and thinking we would have a wall game (no winner), but the very tile I needed was discarded, and I called for it.  But so did Sharon across the table. I think it would have given us both a MJ - the details get fuzzy - but I would have had the next turn, so I won by default.  Both of us had already won a game, so it was fine all around.  We are doing so well that even the losers are within one or two tiles every game.  

We've learned we can talk a little bit while we play and tease each other and still usually remember whose turn it was next.  Usually.  Sometimes we sit there with blank stares and have a long discussion of what the last play was.  

I'm so glad the Y gives us one of the nice rooms to play in and furnishes the sets.  On Tuesdays, we have a couple of tables, and I go if it looks like we'll not end up with an extra person or 2.  One group has been playing a lot longer than us, and we're a little intimidated by how fast they are.  We kind of like to sit and savor or frown at how the latest tile has affected our plans, but we got in four games in 2-1/2 hours today.  And learned there is an upscale-sounding store in Bellevue that we need to visit. 

When I got home, Elise said Graysen had come after school and had been doing homework, and Kate had just walked in from her school.  Lots of mac and cheese making and cold drinks, and I even put out a veggie plate with buttered sourdough bread for the girls.  I still seem to be the only one to like hummus.  

Kate made me get right back into MJ since the tiles were still out on the table.  We went through the whole process of building the wall and picking our tiles and then doing the Charleston.  She's getting the idea of the ritual of starting, which is fun for me.  Elise and Graysen steadfastly refuse to participate.  They could make our Charleston so much more exciting if they would.  I don't know what's wrong with them.  Kate did some more drawing and discarding and making a hand, but then she wanted to build walls, and we got pretty silly, making a fence from the Bams, cows from the Dots, and birds of course.  Even a horse and then a giraffe.  Who knew we could be so artistic. 

They headed home at 5:30.  It's always so sad to see them walking up the street and trying not to yell "BE CAREFUL"  They know I'm thinking it.  

Tomorrow is early release from school - Gray at 12:30 and Kate at 1:30.  I do hope they have some interesting plans for the afternoon.  They're usually tired after school and don't want to do much, but they need to get out and enjoy the warmer weather.

Noreen and I are scheduled to take a one-hour class on AI next week.  I do need to get a little understanding of how it works before I get in some sort of trouble with it.  I'm tired of new technology and wish I could just enjoy the things I know without new and potentially dangerous stuff coming at us constantly.  

The BLT I had for supper was exceptional tonight with my Crisp Apple Bloom, an energy drink that I'm obsessed with but have received no energy from yet.  It just tastes good.  Unfortunately, Gray feels the same way and is unhappy about limiting it because of the caffeine in it.  Kate is satisfied with the Capri Suns and has a few pouches every time she's here.  

I did have enough energy to wrestle my duvet into its cover after washing - all by myself - so I guess that's something.  

It's Going to be a Good Day

 I hope I'm ashamed of myself if I don't enjoy this day.  Temps are predicted to reach the 80s before it cools down tonight and goes into the usual bipolar spring rain and coolness.  

I don't have any plans, but I went to bed so early last night that I was up about 4:00 and greeting the day with a few games of Mah Jong.  Online.  I won two of the ones on the new card I have been wondering about - both using a sextet of flowers.  That put my percentage up to 67% of the 2026 card, but I still feel like I've just learned to play, according to my last week's in-person performance.  

I set up the pink set and my new mat so I could practice a few solo games.  I feel like I learn better by touching the tiles and getting in practice saying the names of the tiles.  We can't just throw one out on the board without announcing what it is, and sometimes I'll just be blank:  2 BAM - ugh Dot - or whatever that one is called.  Sometimes we'll mix up a flower and the Bird Bam or the 5 Crak and the South wind.  I enjoy looking at the table, but it's a lot of pastels.  I plan to get clear acrylic pushers soon and retire those colorful ones.  I might get some wooden ones for my traditional tiles and dark mat.  I'm not sure I care since I can't attract anyone to play on my sets.  When we play at the Y, we just use the tiles they furnish.

I got these artificial blooms some time ago from Amazon.  I think they're cherry blossoms and feel like they are pretty enough to display to get in the mood for warmer weather.

My goal for today is to seriously work on the porch since I ignored it yesterday.  I'll wait for the first sunshine and get out there and wash the windows and sills and water the few plants that made it through the winter.

I made 12 egg muffins yesterday and made a huge mess doing so.  I want to have something for breakfast that I can prepare ahead, and I'm tired of the berry muffins I sometimes make.  

The video included on this page makes it look like a piece of cake to make, but not me! 

https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/keto-egg-muffins 

The only thing I did remotely resembling the video was turning on the oven.  Then I looked for my rotating cheese grater that makes it so much easier to grate cheese.  I found it in the hall closet/storage pantry along with a few pieces that didn't fit but made me wonder what they were part of.  Even though it's easier, the cheese done that way is messy.  What way of grating cheese is NOT messy.

I decided to use some salami I already had and just cook a couple of pieces of bacon.  While the bacon was cooking in the microwave, I broke 12 eggs into a big measuring cup and seasoned them.  

The video shows putting butter into the muffin tins instead of spraying them or using paper liners.  I should have known that was too easy.  The liquid of the egg mixed with the butter and ran over the tops of the tins.  Luckily, I had an oven liner on the bottom of the oven, but that didn't keep it from smoking and smelling like a fire.  I can't imagine why the smoke alarm didn't go off, but it didn't.  

After getting it all done and cooked pretty much in line with the directions, it took forever to coax each muffin out, and a nice coating of eggy mixture was glued to the bottoms of the muffin tins.  Elise ended up washing them, although I told her I would do it, and now we both vote for throwing them away and getting some new ones.  

Luckily, they're just for me and luckily they're delicious, because there's nothing about the way they look that resembles the pictures in the recipe.  The only problem is that with all the gunk stuck to the muffin tin, two was not enough for breakfast.  I'm going to have some cottage cheese and strawberries this morning to add something there.  A little slice of avocado helps the looks and the taste.

My Mother's Day gifts are drifting in.  I got the roses from Elise yesterday, and Emily says I have some gifts arriving today.  Yesterday Elise answered the door to hear Ida (with Linda peeking around the corner) saying Happy Mother's Day and delivering a delicious candy that I've never heard of before.  

I almost didn't want to share half with Elise, but I did and then was glad I did.  Four squares was just about enough - but of course I ate my whole portion before the night was over.  I'm glad to know this brand.

Last week, Ida was an early morning visitor while her parents took her sister Carly to a doctor's appointment.

She prefered playing hide and seek, but after several rounds of that, we (I) ran out of places to hide, so she played with my Mah Jongg tiles and had a nice kiss from Wuffie.

It brought back a lot of memories to be back at Rooster Valley where we had so many pickups and drop-offs over 4 years.  I wish I had had time to hang around and watch the sheep shearing.  For some reason, I never got to watch ones when the girls were there.  

It's taking a while to warm up, so I'll get another cup of coffee and waste some more time.