kale and sunshine

Last night for dinner, I made this recipe: Sausage and Kale Mock Lasagna Casserole. Personally, I wouldn't call it mock lasagna, I would call it hotdish. It's a hotdish with kale and sausage, really not like lasagna at all. I like it and Regis said the cheese and sauce did a good job of disguising the flavor of the kale which is a desirable thing for him. I used more cheese than the recipe called for because it seemed like a skimpy amount. Who measures shredded cheese by the tablespoon?

Kale is one of those vegetables I never ate until I bought a share of a CSA. I'm not sure I even noticed it in the store. Now I like it. We usually eat it in salads and once I made chips out of it. That was interesting. It takes about two pounds to make a little bowl of chips. 

I had the nicest surprise last week. Rita, a very sweet woman I met through my job at River Rock, came in carrying this beautiful bulb basket...for me!

These are my daffodils in the front yard. I was worried about them with the hot wind we've had in the past few weeks but they waited until this week to appear so they're safe. Last year, the blooms lasted a month. One of my frequent walking neighbors kept track of it and reminds me often.

I was taking random pictures this morning and took one of these tiny pitchers that I bought about a month ago. They're individual coffee creamers but I use them for sauces. Aren't they cute?

Another picture of blooming sunshine. They smell wonderful, too!

Ella and I went shopping for an Easter dress yesterday. They had quite a crop of dresses at Kohl's and it was a little bit overwhelming. I finally said I would pick three and she could choose from that which worked much better. She also liked the accessories as she calls them...bracelets, sparkly purses, and socks. She takes after this Nana, I think.

I told her I might want to make one more stop and she said, and I quote: "Nana, you don't need to buy any more clothes. Not on my watch, you don't." Haha!

I've been shopping for something to wear to my birthday party. I found this skirt on etsy and I'm negotiating with the maker on length and color. I thought I wanted it in brown but when I showed Ella the red one, she said oh, that's the color, right there. She's a hoot. My cousin thought I could make one like this but in my experience, the way I envision clothing never turns out in the execution. 

I am worrying about this now because I have some obsessive tendencies when it comes to events. We're serving dinner to the band the day of the party because we are responsible for a meal and I would rather cook for them than send them to Arby's. (Ha!) So, in my mind, we make ribs. I want Regis to call them and make sure there are no dietary restrictions but he says that's crazy ten weeks out. What the hell, I said. If it turns out we have three koshers, a vegan, and a cardiac diet, there will be trouble. I'd rather have that information now.

I should list all the things that are "of concern" to me now and maybe the ridiculousness of it will stun me back to reality. Doubtful.

I write the bios for the program for the retiring teachers. I can't remember how I got this job, but I get a kick out of it. This morning, one of the teachers called me to see what kind of information I wanted. I said I didn't want them to be like bad obituaries but something interesting that a person might want to read. If, for example, you have a tattoo, that might make its way into your bio. 

Yesterday, one of our birch limbs went down. I think it had cracked before and just chose that day to fall. I was worried and thought oh, great, now that I have filled my garden with shade plants, I'll lost two trees and all the shade. Not to worry. Karl Struck must have read my mind because he drove by, said it happens to trees, and helped Regis and a neighbor cut it off then he hauled it away. I love small towns.

I have to go in to work this afternoon for a while, so I think I'll take a nap. Life is good.