sometimes fortune cookies are true

The last time I pulled a fortune out of a cookie, it said "An unexpected event will soon make your life more exciting".  I liked it so much that I stuck it on my fridge, and forgot about it.

Now a wonderful opportunity has fallen in my lap and it looks like I will be making a big life change in the next few months.  I saw the fortune on the fridge this morning, and it just made me smile.

I don't want to reveal the details quite yet, until things get ironed out, needless to say it is something I feel like I have been preparing to do for most of my life.  (here I am contemplating my future, this past September:)

While the timing initially felt quite off, with everything going on at ACES right now, all signs seem to be pointing me down this path.  And having just turned 50, it's a good time to reinvent myself!

Blogging will not be on my to-do list for the next few weeks, but I promise to share my news when I can.

In the meantime, perhaps you need some Chinese food and a cookie!

February has arrived!

Each year I am always so happy to say goodbye to January.  It may be my least favorite month of the year.  February brings thoughts of chocolate and cherries, you can notice the days starting to get a little longer, and it means that spring is that much closer.  Not to mention it is the shortest month of the year, so I try to make sure it is very productive.  How many books can I read?  How many socks can I knit?

And will the Groundhog see his shadow tomorrow?


(image from Google, I have never been fortunate enough to capture a Groundhog enjoying some flowers!)

By the end of the month, my tax package will have been delivered to my accountant (can I get a big WOOT WOOT from the crowd?), and I will have started perusing my old garden magazines for planting ideas.  YES!

I have been feeling the need to plan a project, beyond the usual of cleaning out the basement and attic.  I saw somewhere that a woman was planning to cook one recipe from all of her cookbooks, and I think that might be a fun idea.  Right now I won't tell you how many cookbooks I own, it is rather embarrassing, but needless to say I have lots of material to work with.  So starting next week, look for a new recipe to be tried and tested each week, along with a review of the cookbook I used.  It should be fun, and perhaps a way for me to get back to regular blogging.

What does February mean to you?

another 'blogiversay '

I have been completely neglecting my blog over the last several months, just no free time in my days for writing. Today I realized that it was five years ago, on the 27th of January, that I started this blog.  I feel like I don't deserve cake with candles, as my writing has been woefully absent lately.

With my days so full of everything else, I have let my blog go.  I am not sure that I am ready to do it again, this next year will be challenging in so many ways.  Even now, as I type this, I am feeling guilty as I should be working on my profit and loss forecast for the year.  These are the days it is hard to have a home office, I find myself working into the evening to get things done, in between making dinner and doing laundry and making sure to find time for friends who need me.  Even when I put everything away, into the office, away from my sight, I can hear it calling me, reminding me of the huge list of tasks I have not yet crossed off.

Oh woe is me, first world problems, right?  Time for a flower picture from gardens past.  I loved this one so much I had it printed on to a 11" x 14" canvas, and it hangs in my office.

Time for a deep breath, and some perspective.  I WILL find time to write this year.  It is a small thing I can do for myself, to keep that spoke on my wheel of life strong.

In the meantime, my dear cousin Shelly has been posting some beautiful pictures on her blog, go and give yourself a smile http://rachelleann41.blogspot.com/

cookies!

No time for baking yet this year, but I am hoping to go and make a mess in my kitchen tomorrow.

It's not Christmas Day yet, right?

I won't have orders to process or go to the post office, it being Sunday and all, so cookie baking is on the list!

I absolutely will be making my new favorite cookie ever.  My dear friend Tracy already delivered some to us yesterday, and since they are nearly gone I need to whip some up.  I like them for breakfast, I will have one after lunch, I need one to go with my afternoon coffee, and perhaps one after dinner, and FOR SURE before I go to bed.

Clearly, they are a favorite.  And now you want to make some too!

Click on the link for your very own copy of the recipe for Ricotta cookies from my Recipepages site:  https://sites.google.com/site/ohfercuterecipepages/ricotta-cookies

And if you are interested, here is a link to the blog post I originally wrote about them:  http://ohfercute.blogspot.com/2009/12/recipe-box-wednesday_23.html

May you be done with your shopping and wrapping soon, so you will have time to bake some of these sweet treats!

I do believe I will need to schedule a long walk to work off my indulgence....

Blessings

December 18th is here.  One week from today, our little family, we three, will be sitting by the Christmas tree. Snuggled in warm pajamas, Charlie will be rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Mike will have a terrific yawn, and I will be clutching my coffee cup.

In years past, we would have been awoken, much too early, by the sound of Charlie's small feet climbing the stairs to our bedroom.  He would lean in, on my side of the bed, and whisper in my ear "Santa was here!"  Trying to rouse myself from a soon forgotten dream, I would smile and wrestle with my robe, and use my feet to search the floor for my slippers.

His small hand was in mine, tugging me gently down the stairs, as grown ups move far too slow on this morning.  Mike followed us, heading to our office to grab his camera.

Charlie would pad eagerly over to a large wrapped package, Santa would use the same wrapping paper each year. Tearing it open, he would exclaim "Santa got my letter!" His cheeks flushed with excitement, he would pull each item quickly from the stocking tucked safely in his lap, and exclaim over a toy car, a candy cane, a chocolate Santa.  The stocking now empty, he would head over to his newest Lego set, ready to build, so early in the morning.  Cheeks flushed, he would clear an area on the floor.  Kneeling on the floor he would bend over the book of instructions, giddy to start.  He would look up at us, a huge smile on his face, so happy to have a dream fulfilled.

That little slice of childhood magic is now past, but oh how we have preserved it lovingly in our memories.  This year we will be warm in our pajamas, by our tree on Christmas morning, and Charlie will be unwrapping gifts that will make a fifteen year old boy happy.  He will  have done his own shopping, and will wait in excited anticipation to watch as we unveil his choices for us, eager to please.  It is a new page in our book of Christmas joys to be savored, and never more so than this year, when too many families will have a gaping hole in their holiday hearts.

My grief over the events of last Friday is no longer as raw, and anger has crept in to replace the tears.  I will find a place to tuck that away, and on Christmas morning send out a silent prayer, to wing its way east to those families who will never have enough comfort to wipe the pain away.

If anything is to be learned, we have been reminded just how fragile life can be, and how important it is to let them know, those that we hold dear. how much we love them.  Every day, every night, as often as we can.  The quote on the top of my page for December rings especially true today.

Loving hugs to you, my dear readers.  Whether you are my sister, my cousin, my very dear friends, or friends who I have not yet met, you are loved. May this week leading up to Christmas find you with a quiet moment to contemplate, and give thanks for your blessings.