Lent Today, But Mardi Gras Yesterday!

Well, here we are. Today is Ash Wednesday for those who commemorate it. For Catholics, Ash Wednesday begins the season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Today is a day of fasting, which means that, although most days, I don't eat until noon, and eat just two meals and a small snack between them with no problem whatsoever, today I cannot eat between meals, making me unbearably hungry. That's how the cookie crumbles. And...there I go already!

Last night, we celebrated Mardi Gras, a celebration of yummy food and fun before the solemn season of Lent begins. 

 

I set the table with perhaps the best holiday purchase I ever made: the Mardi Gras necklaces and coins! I bought those necklaces and coins years ago when the kids were little; we use them yearly to celebrate. Madison and I made a delicious jambalaya with chicken, kielbasa, shrimp, rice, vegetables, and all the seasonings. Madison made some cornbread, and we were all set! After we ate, the kids indulged me in some of my Mardi Gras games, and then we enjoyed Madison and Flynn's monkeybread with cream cheese icing. Rhett found the baby in his piece, and was declared Mardi Gras King!!! This means nothing except that you have to wear the hat and take your picture, but they all seemed to enjoy it. After that, we watched the Mardi Gras episode of The Twilight Zone before calling it a night.

Today will be quiet inside, but supposedly windy and rainy with thunderstorms outside. I hope you have a cozy day, my friends. See you back here Friday!

Billie Jo

Monday Morning Coffee

 Good Monday morning, my friends. Care to watch yesterday's sunrise with me?

We spent the weekend at the condo, and I am always happy to be an early riser when I can wake up to that.

This is the view from the bridge when we head to the condo.

This is the view when I get off the couch and go swimming for some exercise! Now, this is only in the off-season. In the summer months, it is a bit more crowded!

There is quite a bit of this during the weekends at the beach. We also go to mass, watch movies, play games, and get takeout. Soon, it will be warm enough to sit in the sand. Until then, however, I am cozy and content. I think contentment is underrated and underappreciated these days. With the addition of so much outside noise invading our minds through various social media platforms, we are constantly being exposed to more things we need to buy, more places we have to go, more ways to make our lives better. I happily opt out of all that. What I embrace is peace and routine and ordinary days. 

Speaking of, today is an ordinary day around here. We are home at the house. There will be coffee, prayers, puppies and blankets. Then homeschool, coffee, dinner, shower, jammies, and Bachelor. A happy day at home.

Have a cozy day, my friends. Tuesday is Mardi Gras, so Madison and I are planning a delicious, fun meal to celebrate that. And then Wednesday begins Lent. Easter will be here before we know it! Thanks for visiting. I am always happy you do!

Billie Jo

Apparently All We Did Was Eat

Looking through my camera roll, I realized that the majority of the small number of photos I took this week were of...you guessed it...food. Riveting stuff, I know. 

Monday we had a quick change of plans and made homemade pizza and a delicious salad.

Tuesday, Madison and I made these yummy green chili chicken enchiladas. They were good, but the beef ones will always be my favorite!

On Wednesday, we tried a new recipe, and will definitely make it again. It was pasta with ground beef, cottage cheese, and sour cream.

And yesterday, I threw some chicken legs in the crockpot, mixed a sauce together, and let that cook all day. Then, I put some rice in the rice cooker and fresh broccoli in the steamer basket, and dinner was served! We make a meal plan each weekend for the upcoming week, usually for three meals, and this week we stuck to it, except for switching grilled cheese on Monday to homemade pizza. I plan my meals based on what we have on hand, and then buy anything that looks good! Those chicken legs were on sale this week, and I am glad I picked them up for a quick and delicious meal last night. 

Madison made a pan of brownies for dessert and for us to snack on during the week. She also makes the best homemade whipped cream that makes a great addition to my morning coffee.

I was holding on to winter and all the cozy this week...

While Steve was all about spring and walks on the beach!

Lastly, from the files of "How Did This Happen?"

March??? Last week was Christmas, right? March used to be right up there with dentist appointments and high school Physics tests, things you had to get through before something better came along. But as I get older, I don't mind the mostly uneventful days of March that serve as a bridge between the cozy days of winter and the brighter, warmer, promise of spring-filled days of March. Add in some leprechauns and March Madness basketball and you have a darn good month, don't you think?

Well, time to get going. I hope you all have a lovely weekend, however you are spending it. Thanks for visiting!

Billie Jo

Thanks to Google for the images. Also, the crockpot chicken recipe is Right Here. For the beef noodles recipe, click HERE.

 

Caption This?

 

Happy Wednesday, my friends!

Billie Jo

Monday Morning Coffee

Good Monday morning, my friends! I am enjoying my coffee this morning in my new favorite mug. Cinderella is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, and because I love Cinderella so much, I treated myself to this pretty mug from the Disney Store website. What does it say about me that two of my favorite mugs are Cinderella and Michael Meyers from Halloween?  

Friday evening, we drove the whole fifteen minutes to the condo for the weekend. It was a quiet, relaxing weekend. The clouds finally lifted Saturday morning, and the ocean looked again like winter was nothing more than a bad dream. Don't be fooled, though. It was still quite cold! We went to mass on Saturday afternoon, and apparently, we missed the memo that the entire heating and cooling system was being replaced. It was freezing in there! Of course, I am usually warm in church, and I thought I was being proactive by wearing a fleece jacket. I thought about what my mother would do and decided it was a good opportunity to "offer it up," as she used to say. The upside was that it was a beautiful mass, and the air outside didn't feel too bad afterward!

 

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After mass, we did what any other family with an entire evening in an exciting ocean town ahead of them would do. We went back to the condo and played Yahtzee Word! To be fair, we were really thinking of the pups being alone, so we decided to get pizza and have a cozy night in. And it was fun.

Sunday morning, I went to the indoor pool for a swim. The pool is empty this time of year, which is always a good thing, right? Afterward, I showered, read my book, and visited with Flynn and Kyrstin, who came to visit after work. Steve went for a walk on the beach and took some beautiful pictures.

And if you aren't tired of beach photos yet, I snapped a couple before we packed up and headed home. My mom loved the ocean, and I felt like she was telling me goodnight.

Today, Flynn and I will homeschool. I have laundry to do, and dinner will be grilled cheese and tomato soup. And then it's Bachelor Monday! Honestly, this is a rough season, but I am in it for the long haul. I hope you have a cozy and happy Monday. Thank you for visiting, and if you are a praying person, please join me in praying for The Holy Father, Pope Francis. 

Billie Jo

Just A Friday In February

 

Happy Friday! I was just thinking how, when I was much younger, a day like today would have been a normal one—just a Friday in February. Thinking back, I remember sitting in class, counting the days until the next big event in my teenage life: Easter Break, Prom, Majorette Tryouts, and finally, summer! All the other days were just normal, regular days in between. 

Now, much older and a bit wiser, I understand that it is these days, days like the normal, average Friday in February, that I love the most. They are the best days for me because I know how quickly they pass. It is easy for me to recall the special days, what we did on Christmas, or what we ate last Easter. But the regular days? The days that I stay in my pajamas, run the vacuum, load the dishwasher, homeschool with Flynn, and heat up leftovers are the ones I cherish the most and that seem to blend together into the fabric of my life. Today is one of those days. 

Here is the spot where I sit and homeschool with Flynn. She and I look forward to our afternoons together each day, and the time we spend together learning is so much fun! I am thankful for all the time we share and the memories we are making. As an early childhood and elementary teacher, I was concerned about teaching some upper-level courses. Biology and Algebra, I'm looking at you!. However, there are an unlimited number of online classes taught by people who are much more versed in those subjects; thank Heavens! 

Steve dragged took me out to dinner last night at a local Mexican restaurant, and I ordered my favorite shrimp meal. Weird Fact About Me Number 265: I prefer to eat meals like this with a fork instead of using the tortilla wraps that come with it. I actually eat everything separately. 

And that's a wrap for today, my friends. I plan to visit you this weekend while cozy on the couch with my pups and some coffee. Other weekend highlights include setting out some St. Patrick's Day decorations, attending mass, and changing bedsheets. It is the normal days I cherish, after all. 

Have a cozy weekend, and thanks for visiting!

Billie Jo

Wednesday Wondering

 I wonder...

1. Do you know the name of this show from the 70s? 

2. How about this one?

3. Did you ever drink from these? Bonus! What did you do with the bottle after you were done?

4. Did you do this in middle school? 

5. Do you know what these are?

6. How about these?

Just for fun today, my friends! Answers are down below.

Have a cozy Wednesday, and stay warm and safe!

Billie Jo

1. Land of the Lost 

My sisters and I loved this show! We were terrified of the creepy creatures called sleestaks!

2. Alice

My dad loved this show. It was about a group of women working at Mel's Diner. It was on Sunday nights, and it was so funny.

3. Glass Pop Bottles

I remember drinking from these in high school. The best part was peeling the labels and seeing how long of a piece you could get. See how we amused ourselves before phones?!

4. Square Dancing

 Oh, man. I remember those days. My friends and I would always frantically try to plan our strategy for getting into the group with the boys we were crushing on! It was silly, but it sure beat getting pummeled by those rubber balls in Dodgeball!

5. Notes

Remember these? It was a good day when you opened your locker and saw one of these inside. Of course, you always had to look nonchalant in case the guy who wrote it was watching you!

6. 

Candy Land

Just seeing these makes me happy. They are the original cards from one of my favorite games, Candy Land. Remember going through the Gumdrop Mountains and hoping you picked the Ice Cream Floats?

( Thanks to the magic of the internet for the memories. )