I am so ready for sunshine and warmth

We're experiencing a typical Midwest March with gorgeous weather for a few days and then a return to cold and damp. Today started out very chilly but by early afternoon, we were shedding our jackets and enjoying the warmth. A cool down is in the near future but each time the temperatures fall, they don't fall quite as much as before. That is always a good sign...

The birds have returned and I see peeks of green under dead leaves near the fence. It looks like my neighbor's bulbs are beginning to peek through. Life is returning and soon I won't be able to see the neighbor's red barn across the road and I'll forget there are houses on the other side of the forest. Although, there is only the hope of real spring at the moment... faith that after the cold and dark of winter... spring always arrives.

Hubby had to stop by Wal Mart today for a few items so I asked him if I could purchase some more canned goods for the pantry. I really, really needed some canned fruit (and frozen cherries and blueberries). The budget could handle such purchases and we both agreed we needed to add a few cans of pumpkin and "yams"... both very healthy additions to the pantry.

I must ask Stephanie to send me the recipe again for her sweet potato rolls. They would be good for Easter dinner. Easter is my favorite holiday dinner as it is so easy when there is only one cook in the kitchen. This year my husband rediscovered sugar cream pie so I've already put a sugar cream pie in the freezer (if you live in the Midwest, Wick's sugar cream pies are just as good as home made and I promise not to tell your secret... shhhhh).

My cousin owned a restaurant in Kentucky that was known for its' sugar cream pie but that recipe used brown sugar. The one he's become enamored with is definitely made with white sugar. My mother loved all cream pies but I think sugar cream was her very favorite. It's funny but I don't remember her ever making a cake. She purchased my birthday cakes at our favorite bakery (the same one that made my wedding cake years later).

However, pies were her favorites and when we would stop by our favorite cafeterias (there were two, the one we still go to once in awhile and one at the mall that is long gone), we would always have the same routine. She'd ask if I thought I'd like a piece of pie and coffee and of course, I'd always say yes. I don't know what she would have done if any of us said no. The entire trip to the mall was so she could get a piece of pie. :)

Sometimes when we stop by the cafeteria that is still open (although owned by a different company), I'll have a small salad so I can also have a piece of pie... always one of her favorites... and coffee. It is my favorite place to go for my birthday or another special occasion. She passed away in the 1990s but I feel sometimes like I miss her more now than when she passed. Perhaps I'm entering my second childhood!

I'm finding myself returning again and again to my Amish cookbooks for inexpensive inspiration. I'm also loving the Trisha Yearwood cookbook purchased with Amazon credit. I already have four or five recipes marked to try soon. I love how there is a picture along with each recipe.

I made venison chili for dinner this evening, using Beverly Nye's chili recipe (I think it is on my recipe blog, if not I'll add it soon). The only change I made for using the venison was adding about half a teaspoon or more of cumin seeds. It was yummy. After a long trip to the store and four loads of laundry, I was happy to have the chili ready to warm up this evening.

One of the libraries in a town close to me had a library sale over the weekend. I found a few Christian novels for my husband and a couple books for me. There wasn't as big a selection of books as this library usually had but it was well worth the time spent driving over.

Now I must set the dinner dishes to soaking (I should have done that already... oops!). I knew I forgot something.