Never trust March...

For the past two days, we've been having the most exquisite weather--sunny, warm, breezy--just amazing. Even this morning, with thunderstorms and 62 degrees, it's been delightful. Tonight, possibility of scattered snow, followed by a few days in the low 50's and a Saturday with a high of 39 and more snow expected.
ROCK.
Thanks March! You continue to suck! Oh well, at least I'm not surprised.

Today's entry is a mixed bag of stuff I've been thinking about this week. I'll do my best to be coherent, you do your best to keep up, deal? ;)

I was going through the photos Matt took at the Wildlife Park in Homosassa when we were there with my mom and came across this gem. Sweet lord, can you tell we're related? It's like different colored versions of the same doll. I remember once seeing a picture of my mother and grandmother together that looked just like this. So, looks like we can see exactly where I'm headed in 27 years, huh? Thankfully I think my mom is adorable, but really, could I have kept my butt? Mom has absolutely no butt at all, it's concave, Hank Hill style. I, on the other hand (at least up to a year or so ago), had a butt, which in my mind made up for the fact that I did not get the boobs from that side of the family. And now, my butt has disappeared. Thanks, gene pool!

This evening is my first pottery class, and I can NOT wait. The pre-season Spring-like weather has got me all wound up to create. In addition to the pottery, I'm working on a little side project with the very creative KatieKate, I'm finalizing some paint colors for the first few rooms we're tackling in the house, and Matt and I have been relentlessly planning all the projects we have for our *outdoor* living space. I have a feeling we'll be on that deck all spring and summer long, and if you're using it like another room in your house, it should be decorated and accessorized as such, right? Right. So, the creative juices are flowing--lets hope the fruits of my labor are as wonderful as all the visions I have in my head!

Sunday was a glorious day--full of sunshine and puppies in the bed and breakfast on the deck (with lots of bacon). We sat out there sipping coffee and doing our March budget on the lap top, then Matt hit the yard for the first spring mowing (mostly to get rid of the leaves) and spreading of crabgrass preventative--yard work is the boy's favorite hobby. I spent my day with the kitchen doors open, making a big pot of spaghetti sauce and meatballs, and while it was simmering, I joined him outside and planted up several big pots of pansies. Good day, y'all. I think we're finally back in step after being gone, but I am still missing the Florida weather and my golf cart rides ;)

We returned to several stories of a new restaurant here in K-town, and I can't wait to try it this week--it's a real live English pub! The Crown and Goose! A Gastropub, to be precise, and being the gastrophile that I am, I couldn't be happier. I mean, come on, they have TWO cheese boards, y'all. I love me a cheese board. And Bubble & Squeak! Peas and bacon! Guinness fried onion wedges! They don't officially open until Thursday, or I promise, I would have already been and ordered all of the above. Knoxville is bad for having too many chains and not enough locally-owned restaurants, though Matt and I are good about keeping the small places on permanent rotation (if you ever come visit, I promise, we will not take you to Applebees), so we're really hoping this place does well. Keep your fingers crossed and we'll report back next week!

In the interest of fair and balanced reporting, we did go to our only Irish Pub last Friday, which was well decorated (authentically, at least for Knoxville, which means not decorated like a Bennigans mid-March), but I thought it was a little pricey, they had no cider on tap (boo, that means no Harp and Cider's for Cortney) and had a less than authentic menu. We had fish and chips and Corned Beef and Cabbage, which were both authentic and delicious, but over all the menu had too many things like "Irish Ceasar Salad", Mahi-Mahi Fingers, and "Wings of Kerry" chicken wings. Nice try, though. So the gastric adventure continues...

I have a broccoli casserole recipe to share later this week, complete with pictures, because I'm informative like that.

We took advantage of the glorious weather yesterday and took the puppies to their first dog park. Linus drooled like a rabid fiend the whole time, and Lucy wouldn't leave my side, except for about 5 seconds when the puppy game of tag was just too tempting, and she took out after the biggest dog I have ever seen. But, like I said, that lasted all of 5 seconds, then she panicked and ran straight back to her Momma. We think it was mostly a get-acquainted trip, I hope they'll join in more next time. It's a great facility, and literally 5 minutes down the road, so I see lots of outings in our future.

I suppose that's about all the random information anyone can be expected to handle from one post, and laundry calls, so I'll be off for now. Hope your week is going well!