Last week I visited a small town in Missouri. The closest neighbors were out for their morning constitutional. We eyed each other warily. How do you get along with your neighbors?

When I was growing up, my Easter basket always contained a toothbrush and toothpaste. The Easter Bunny continued that tradition with my children, and sometimes added other useful items like socks. My children complained, of course. Particularly when the Easter Bunny kept the toiletries coming through their college years. But one year after my daughter was on her own, my husband and I met her over Easter weekend for some spring skiing. The Easter Bunny didn’t leave her anything. “Where’s my basket?” she asked. “I was counting on new toothpaste.” What did the Easter Bunny leave your kids this year?

Wowza! My alma mater is still going in the NCAA men’s college basketball run. I didn’t fill out a bracket this year, but the top spot always goes to the Jayhawks! 🙂 Fingers crossed for Monday night! Rock Chalk!

For Christmas, my daughter bought me a working wood puzzle clock. It only took me 1/3 of the year to finally get around to attempting the challenge. Assembly was quite an adventure. I spent half of a Saturday building this intricate project. And it almost kinda works. Success! -ish

I’m not sure this is something to be proud of, but I believe our family owns the oldest bottle of Formula 409 cleaner in America. (If anyone can prove me wrong, please feel free to do so.) My husband is a firm believer in the powers of 409 cleaner to handle almost any household messes. The only things he’s found that it won’t clean are adhesives that require a very powerful 3M solvent he also keeps on hand. But everything in daily kitchen spills can be handled by 409. Formula 409 went on the market in 1957, which means it

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Last weekend my daughter and I hosted a bridal shower for one of her friends. I had so much fun playing around arranging the flowers! I’ve always thought that would be a fun job. What’s your favorite thing to do/bring for a party?

It’s March Madness, and this always brings a memory to mind. My mother was an Oregon Ducks fan. She graduated from the University of Oregon, and she and my dad (a University of Washington grad) had a friendly rivalry throughout their lives. My mother was not a sports fan, but she always rooted for the Ducks. In 2013, my mother, who by then had Alzheimer’s Disease, was in assisted living. One of the activities for the residents was to fill out an NCAA bracket form. I doubt she had ever filled out an NCAA bracket before in her life. Still,

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Even though almost all my writing and a lot of correspondence is now done digitally, I still love office supplies and paper products. I have journals and notepads and fancy folders, and I love wandering through card and gift shops that still carry such things. I carry a notepad in my purse, still make paper lists and use a paper calendar! Have you made the switch to digital everything?

It snowed again on Monday this week, and it might snow again on Friday. Such is March in Kansas City. So I’ve been thinking about beaches a lot. I love beaches. Unfortunately, my life has not been a beach for quite some time, though I want it to be. I haven’t been to a beach since 2019, and that was just in passing. I’m long overdue for a beach. Is your life a beach?