Oh, my goodness! Not only do I hope (and pray) that Spring is real, but I really, really – we really, really need it to appear! Thanks to my good friend Zhong Gan Ling (disclaimer: I don’t use this brand; I get whatever my acupuncturist carries), cupping, along with some other natural/dietary helpers, we are finally nearing the end of acute bronchitis and sinus infections.

First it was A.W. with a couple scary asthma-like attacks, and then it went right down the line.  A.S. got it; I got it; and, finally, Matt is the last of us to get it, too.   I am sick of being sick and the worry that goes along with nursing the family back to health!  Spring!?  I need you!

Also, to me, Spring makes me think Easter dinner, Easter egg decorating and hunting, garden prep, and mucho outdoor time with nice, mild weather.   All great things!

Speaking of Easter, you may remember that at Christmas time, Matt and I decided to start having holiday dinners at our place.  Family members brought over different side dishes (some even do main courses – thank you for making me look like a great hostess! lol), and I made some side dishes and cupcakes.   We had such a good time with that, that we decided to do Easter dinner here this year, too.

The first thing that came to mind is more seating.  We have always made do and just added extra folding chairs, extra folding tables, etc.  But this year, we wanted to have a nice, sizable table that could seat more people.  As it is, whenever G, as the kids call her (my mom), comes over, we are already have to hunt for extra chairs as our table had four chairs and was on the small side.

This table has served us well, was fun to paint/refinish, but it was time for us to pick something out for ourselves.  (Thank you, G, for giving us this table when you replaced your dining set all those years ago!)

So where do Mr. and Mrs. Cheap do most of our shopping?  Yes, Craig’s List.   I might like Craig’s List almost as much as I like antique stores — and that’s only because of the fear I see in the clerks’ eyes at the antique store when I come in with my little rebels.  It’s easier to keep them home playing in the yard while I “shop” online than it is to go live.  (No breakables broken in an antique store, and no chances of me spotting another treadle sewing machine that I just have to have! )

Anyway, I had about ten minutes of actual searching time into the table when I gave up.  Matt is just a much better CL-searcher.  I knew he’d find one that was perfect. As usual, he delivered and found this perfectly-sized table for our needs.  It’s seven feet long and very narrow.  Just what we were looking for.  It came with six chairs, which is an upgrade from what we had.  We’ll still need folding chairs when we have extra guests, but not for permanent use!  Yeah!

Check it out:

So both Matt and I loved the table.  He was okay with the chairs, and I thought the colors weren’t “refined” enough to match the rest of the house.  He agreed to paint them this awesome shade of jade-black that we used for the vent hood in the kitchen.  (I have a thing for black paint and natural wood these days.)  Unfortunately, even though he sanded the heck out of the chairs, the two that he painted started to chip quickly under our two-year-old toddler mutant ninja turtle’s use.  Bummer.

But as the resilient craft-addict that I am, I decided to not let the chair make-over get me down.  I had to move on and shift my focus.   I quickly found something else to daydream about – a quilted springtime centerpiece for Easter dinner.  I am very new to quilting and thought that it would be a fabulous idea to make a table-runner.   And then comes the same issue I always have — where will I find the time?!

I decided to cheat and go to my wall of unfinished creations, and found this supposed-to-be springtime strip quilt:

I liked that it’s not too “Easter-y” and that the colors go nicely with the rest of what’s going on in the house.

So with a little measuring and tweaking of strip orientation, I’m almost halfway there on the runner.   Here it is, still sitting among the wall of the unfinished, but closer to completion:

I have until this weekend, and I think I’ll pull it off. :O)

In other Spring news, I was jazzed to see temperatures in the 50’s mentioned in our local forecast.  It’s a shame they don’t tell you that it will only be that number for about 12 minutes of the day!

No matter the temperature, I was determined to get out and turn the soil over in the garden this past weekend.  The kids and I went out and did the turning by hand and with shovels.  The soil was rich and black and full of earth worms.  Perfect!

And then I saw something I never saw last year — grubs.  Boo!

These nasty little guys eat the roots of your veggies, which is not cool.  And we have an infestation.  They are just everywhere.

So I researched what I could do without using chemicals, and saw some pretty good reviews about Milky Spore and nematodes.  I called my local nursery and decided to get the Milky Spore based on their feedback.  I’m hoping it will work well and not have too much impact on our harvest this year.

As I always do, I changed focus after I found out about the grubs.  A.S. grabbed something special while we picked up the Milky Spore, and we came home and did some indoor springtime gardening instead.

I’m being called by the TMNT (first T is for toddler, remember?) for morning snuggles, so it’s time to sign off for me.  Wishing for springtime weather and family time for all of us this coming holiday!

C