A Day In The Life Of.....March 2012

One of my favorite blogs that I follow is that of the The Clothes Horse.  Occasionally, Rebecca will have a post where she takes a photo each hour of her day A Picture an Hour.  That gave me an idea to do likewise.  I lugged my camera around the other day and took hourly photos to depict something about my day.

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Welcome Spring with Supper-time Eggs

Supper-time Eggs.

Dan and I like scrambled eggs, but we more often have them for supper than for breakfast--I call them our Supper-Time Eggs.  I thought this would make for a spring-like meal to officially usher in Spring. 

I used two whole eggs and two egg yolks.  The extra yolks make for creamier and more flavorful scrambled eggs and give the eggs a brighter yellow color. (Maggie gets the left over egg whites).  I usually add just a bit of milk or cream to the eggs before beating, and  I cook them slowly in the skillet with just a bit of olive oil.  A drizzle of basil pesto is just the right garnish, and a few spears of steamed fresh asparagus on the side suggest that indeed Spring has arrived.  I toasted some whole grain bread in the oven with the broiler setting and topped the toast with cream cheese with chives before serving.  We enjoyed our Supper-time Eggs!

Cherry Blossoms on Dover Road

Cherry blossoms on Dover Rd.

Washington, DC is known for its Cherry Blossom Festival, and I once had the good fortune to be in Washington at the peak of the cherry blossom season.  But not this year.  However, we have our own neighborhood display of Yoshino Cherry blossoms.  I think the loveliest display is in Murphy's yard around the corner on Dover Rd.

In 1912, a gift of 3,000 cherry blossom trees was bestowed on Washington, DC by Tokyo, Japan. To this day, the Washington D.C area is famous for cherry blossom season. And this year, Washington is celebrating the Centennial of the Cherry Blossom Festival during a five week spectacle from March 20 – April 27, 2012.

The Yoshino Cherry is a native of Japan, Korea and China, but it grows well in North Carolina. It creates a real stir when blooms are as beautiful as they are this spring. The white to pinkish slightly fragrant flowers usually appear in mid to late March. So if you can't get to Washington this year, come around to Dover Rd. here in Raleigh, but you better hurry, because the cherry blossoms are at their peak and they won't last long.

Redbud Out My Window

View from my desk to the west.

Now that we have rearranged our study. I have a wonderful view from my desk out the west window, and right now the redbud tree is blooming, and blooming a bit early I might add. Of course, it's an early spring here this year.  The redbud is a native tree, and this particular tree came up as a volunteer on our ivy bank, and we just let it grow.

Redbud flowers.

On the south side of our drive, several years ago we planted a cultivar of the redbud known as Forest Pansy.

Our Forest Pansy redbud.

This cultivar has heart-shaped leaves that are bright to reddish-purple when they first open and then when mature are a more muted purple.

Dark purple leaves of the Forest Pansy redbud.

An interesting feature of the redbud is how the flowers arise directly off the woody branches, a condition that botanists refer to as "cauliflory". 

Flowers arising directly from the woody branches of tree.

I like the redbud tree a lot, and it is a true harbinger of spring.

Happy Birthday Patrick

March 18, 1969, Watts Hospital, Durham, NC

Although Patrick was born just a few hours after St. Patrick's Day, that had nothing to do with our decision to name him "Patrick". But maybe that's the reason he loves everything Irish---the food, the customs, the country, the music.

Two years old.

Once a Tarheel fan, always a Tarheel fan.

Sixteen.

Patrick with his favorite "Maggie".

Happy Birthday Patrick Lane Palmer.