Thirtysomething

I think I can finally call myself a thirtysomething...I turned 36 yesterday. When I went to the Post Office on Saturday this was in a box from my family in Chattanooga....along with a pair of Crocs. I used it tonight when I made chicken. Worked like a charm! They always do!

Thank you! I'll blog about the beautiful garden ornaments Jeffrey got me when I put them out. Ohh and tell you about a new product I found on my day out with Paula on Friday.

GH Memories

I just got off the phone with my friend, Miriam. I have known Miriam since the 1st grade at Tome. She lives in San Diego. Since I am a night owl...it is great to talk to her when I get home late at night with that East / West coast time difference. We were just catching up and then she said..."You're my General Hospital friend, right?" YES. I am the friend. We watched it when we were in high school and then when we went to Washington College together. I started following GH when I was in 1st or 2nd grade. I rode the bus home and it arrived at my stop in the afternoon between 3:30-3:45. My neighbor would pick me up with her son. We would ride home in her avacado green station wagon listening to GH on the radio because she didn't want to miss how it would end for the day. I knew all about Luke and Laura, the Quartermaine's, Bobbie, Scottie Baldwin and how can I forget heart throb, Dr. Noah Drake, played by Rick Springfield. My mom started watching it when she was in the hospital with her gal bladder, I actually had to catch her up with the story line. Her roommate watched it, so she got hooked around that time too. I rarely got to actually watch it, but I knew all the voices and I understood some of it. I kept watching it and when we finally got a VCR I could tape it. On and off through the years I would watch it. It's one of those things...you can watch one or two episodes and know what is happening.
I actually have two friends, husband and wife. I won't mention their names...but if they read this, they will know who they are. They have been watching GH for years together. They tape it everyday and watch it at night together in bed. Isn't that sweet.

Well...Miriam still watches it. She TiVo's it and watches it with her 3 year old son. He knows the theme music and knows when he sees that ABC logo that it is General Hospital...regardless if it is GH or not. ABC means General Hospital to him.

What fond memories of Port Charles, NY.

How many of you watch or watched GH?

Goodness from Chattanooga

Every year my mom makes Paska for Easter. I remember when I was little she would make it and let it rise in a bedroom with the heat turned up. She sent me a loaf in the mail and it was delicious! When we went to the bazaar I bought a small paska and it was okay, but not as good as the one my mom sent. She also sent me the cross made of palms on the bread. There were some extra palms in the box from Palm Sunday and I made a few of my own.

HAPPY EASTER

Happy Easter! Despite the not so spring like weather it's Easter! It's SPRING! Blooming flowers are starting to show their color, hyacinth's are smelling great in our yard, daffodils are blooming, and tulips are growing. I hope you enjoy a day with your family and celebrate with egg hunts, eating chocolate bunnies and enjoy time together...oh and lots of PEEPS!

Ukrainian Easter Bazaar

I have mentioned before that I am Ukrainian. My grandparents came to the U.S. from the Ukraine long ago. I grew up going to the local Ukrainian church in Chesapeake City, also known as "The Little Ukraine" because of the large Ukrainian population. A few weeks ago while looking for a Ukrainian Easter Basket cover for my mom online I found there was an Easter Bazaar in Washington DC that weekend. The bazaar was at the UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC NATIONAL SHRINE of the HOLY FAMILY. The church is across from Catholic University of America. So...Paula and I were off to the bazaar. Paula recently took a pysanky (Ukrainian Easter Eggs) decorating class. When I was younger my mom and I would make them too. It is very time intense and delicate, but what a beautiful product. We were on a mission to find pysanky kits, Pierogi, and the Easter Basket Cover. These are traditional Ukrainian embroidered Easter (Pascha) Basket covers that are used to cover your Easter Basket. There is a tradition in the Ukrainian Churches that a basket filled with the traditional Easter Bread, salt, butter, cheese, horseradish, kobasa and Pysanky. It is then covered by the cloth and taken to church on Easter morning to be blessed by the priest. After church, you take the basket home and have an Easter breakfast with those items with your family.

We took the metro from Silver Spring to the church. We weren't sure where we were going, but we found it, how can you miss a church with gold onion domes and a huge tower of bells?



We made it inside. The church hall was downstairs. They had a large display of kielbasa and other meats for sale, vendors, lunch and a pysanky class. We had a delicious lunch with stuffed cabbage, pierogies, saurkraut and kielbasa.


After eating, we bought pierogies to take home. We used the "Vera" Vera Bradley bag to carry our goodies.

We went into the church upstairs. It was new and very modern. The alter was typical Ukrainian and looked like the one in my church. The Ukrainian Church and the Roman Catholic Church are very similar, but different especially in the customs and traditions of each. However, they both follow the Pope. One difference in the Roman Catholic Rite and the Byzantine Catholic Rite (Ukrainian) is the art in the church. The Byzantine rite has lots of icons all over the church with gold. The Roman Catholic churches have more contemporary art work.


The church is raising money to have the ceiling and wall look like this:

In the hall they had eggs on display all over. We bought pysanky decorating kits (hopefully we'll get around to making a few after Easter). I also found basket covers, paska (ukrainian bread), and some wooden pysanky.
The art of making these eggs goes back many years, approximately the year 988 A.D. That is when the Ukrainians accepted Christianity, and that's when the egg's symbols took on different meanings. According to Ukrainian legend, people decorated eggs believing that great powers were embodied in the egg. To them, eggs symbolized the release of the earth from the shackles of winter and the coming of spring with its promises of new hope, new life and prosperity, and that as long as pysanky were decorated, goodness would prevail over evil throughout the world.



On our way back to the metro station we walked through Catholic University. This is the Roman Catholic Church on the campus.

To read more about the difference in the Ukrainian Catholic Church (Eastern Rite) and the Roman Catholic Church check here.

Христос воскресе (Xristos voskrese) Christ is Risen
воистину воскресе (voistinu voskrese) Indeed he is Risen

Parade Recap

The St. Patrick's Day Parade in Chesapeake City was a HUGE success. I was so happy. We not only had lots of participants, but many people on the side of the street watching. The weather was perfect, we raised over $1,000 for the Epilepsy Foundation of Delaware and everyone had FUN! Thanks to everyone who helped and participated in the parade. Here's some of the photos from the day...ohh and the wedding went really well!

Chesapeake City St. Patrick's Day Parade

Tomorrow is the Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. I have been the chair for the parade for 4 years. It is always a lot of fun. I am NOT Irish by any means...but I wear my green, get people involved, ask groups to participate and show a lot of enthusiasm. VOILA...the perfect planner!
The parade started about 15 years ago. My neighbors started dressing up and decorating their cars and driving them through town on St. Patrick's Day. It caught on and now it is bigger. Don't let me mislead you...it's not Chicago or NYC. It will maybe last a half hour. We give our prizes to best dressed, most creative, best float, etc. Then we have green beer, fish and chips, and corned beef & cabbage at the restaurant. It is always fun! I expect quite a big crowd. I did a lot of advertising and we decided this year to add something new. We are collecting donations for participants and asking people if they want to walk in the parade for the Epilepsy Foundation of Delaware. Those who donate or raise $50 or more will receive a t-shirt and have access to the Shamrock tent for hot dogs, soda and beer.

SLAINTE
"As you slide down the banisters of life may the splinters never point the wrong way."


I'll post pictures later...it's a big day. We also kick off our wedding season tomorrow at the restaurant. Steve and Stephanie will wed tomorrow at the Historic Wedding Chapel in Elkton, Maryland with the reception at The Bayard House.

HELLO MARCH!!!!

It's finally here...MARCH!
March to me screams spring, although I can remember March 1993 when we had a blizzard. I was in college and a group of us went to Puerto Rico for spring break. We ended up stranded at JFK until the next morning...the trip is an entirely different story. Despite my wishes for snow this winter...I am happy that spring is on it's way. I have a few small daffodils and crocuses blooming. March also hosts a few other interesting events...ohh and my birthday too!
Did you know...
***March is American Red Cross Month
***Women's History Month
***Last year, Ginger introduced me to Pi Day (March 14th)
***St. Patrick's Day, March 17th
***Easter is also this month, March 23rd

Lots to do in one month!!!