time for the redbuds

In southeast Kansas where My Darling Husband and I live, a sure sign of spring is the redbud trees. They are in bloom now. I see more redbuds in this area than in the Kansas City area where I used to live. Along with daffodils, crocus and muscari, the redbuds are a much-anticipated harbinger of warmer weather to come. An Even Smaller Town near us has a redbud tour. Hey, you have to make your own entertainment in small towns sometimes, and it's a joy for horticulture aficianados.

Take it inside, Buddy, this is my bathroom.

True story. This might be more information than some of you want to know, so if it is I apologize for embarrassing you. However, I won't see your cheeks turn red and it's a funny story.

Recently, My Darling Husband needed to use the restroom like any normal human does. It was occupied by yours truly at the time and our house has only one bathroom. (Yes, families still survive with only one bathroom per house.) He really had to go. So outside he went, to a secluded area of our back yard.

CutieDog likes to follow us in and out of the house, so he did his normal following or maybe he was already out there. My Darling Husband is standing there doing his thing, and up saunters our dog, stands next to him and simultaneously turns another patch of grass into a second bathroom stall.

Ok, here's my St. Patrick's Day post.

What do you get when you cross lime gelatin with orange gelatin? A sick-green gelatin side dish. I think that was crushed pineapple that I put in it. Don't try this at home. Looks gross but tastes okay as an accompaniment to a tomato pasta dish.Before I sign off, CutieDog wants to wish you Happy St. Patrick's Day!

the buck stops here

Spotted at a stoplight down in northeast Oklahoma:Look a little closer....

I feel nutty, oh so nutty, I feel nutty and cocoy and chewy!

Listed on the "good things on the net" section of this blog's sidebar is the blog Mennonite Girls Can Cook. Occasionally I check in with them to see what scrumptious recipe they've (it's a small group of women) posted for the day. Today was a day to check in. Glad I did!

This morning I had the hankering to have cookies in the cookie jar before My Darling Husband arrived home from an overnight campout with some men from church. Today's featured recipe, Coconut Crisps, appeared to fit the bill.In my version, I used unsweetened coconut, so I could've reduced the salt just a tiny bit, but the end result was still quite acceptable. I also used an ice cream scoop to produce uniform-sized cookies; mine were big and therefore yielded fewer cookies than stated in the recipe. These cookies are good. They are a mouthful of sweet, salty, coconut and chewy oatmeal all at once...a medley of sensations. They make an excellent companion to coffee.