A Tour of My New Spring Garden

I’ve been weeding and planting and nourishing and coaxing for the past several weeks, and now I’ve taken the first photos of this year’s garden. To my surprise, some of the herbs from last year’s garden grew back on their own—and the thyme persevered throughout the entire winter beneath the snow! Others I discovered at Home Depot and knew I had to try out, like chocolate mint and swiss chard (one of my absolute favorite leaves to use in a salad).

Exploring New York: The Bronx Botanical Garden Orchid Show

I’ve been so busy planning for my move into the apartment downstairs with Todd in May and getting back into my editing career that I haven’t had much time to blog lately. But I did squeeze in a trip to the Bronx Botanical Garden, located only one convenient mile from my house. Once there, I saw that the orchid show was in full swing. I had never visited the collection in the past; why pay $25 just to see orchids in the conservatory, I wondered, when the rest of the grounds offered plenty of flowers and exhibits for free? But with the sun shining, the temperature inching toward 80 degrees, and the poem The Orchid Flower by Sam Hamill in my mind, I decided to just pay up and find out what all of the fuss is about—and I don’t regret that decision one bit.

Happy Easter! (Or Passover, or Anything Else)

Yesterday, Todd’s sister invited me and my parents to a delicious seder meal at her house to celebrate Passover. We had a great time with his family! When we got home, we dyed our Easter eggs to get ready for our own Easter celebration today, which includes eating our dyed eggs for breakfast, going to mass to honor Jesus’s resurrection, eating a ham, and finally opening the platter of struffoli (honey balls) that we bought! Maybe next year I’ll try to make my own. For now, I just want to wish everyone a happy Easter, Passover, or anything else you might celebrate. I’m so thankful for all of you.