In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb?

As I type it's snowing. 

In March.

In North Carolina.

Of course, had I not been Twittering this weekend, I'd have never been forewarned. 

You see, keeping track of the weather rates right up there with keeping the gas tank full, or knowing the toilet paper status in this house.  Unless I am in need of the aforementioned information, I'm not going to be keen on its status.

Unfortunately, this neglect of details has found me in predicaments of some kind...or another.

Let me tell you what really gets me uptight about cold weather: Running out of coffee food to feed my family.

Truth be told, it was the end of the month, and while I had enough food on hand to get us through until Monday or Tuesday, we only had about 5 slices of bread, half a gallon of milk, a couple of cheese sticks, and an apple left in the fridge. 

I was running out of supplies.

I wasn't actually in any danger of running out of coffee (I mean really, I'm the CoffeeGal), but one can never be too careful with her coffee supply.

Anyway, this is one of the few problems with doing the bulk of my shopping once a month: when a storm hits the night before the big shopping day, you're hosed.

Which is why I found myself yesterday running into Costco in the pouring rain (the hardest rain I have seen in some time), along with every other harried parent grabbing bread and milk and wood to build an ark.

I now know why they say March comes In like a lion, out like a lamb. 

If I had run out of coffee and been stuck without it due to ice, you'd've heard some roarin'. 

The good news is that I don't have to run out for "big"groceries for another month. And the Mister was home to unload all my bulk food while I went inside to brew a pot of hot liquid goodness to warm up with.

I was hoping today's post would be all about The Nest. I rearranged and reorganized and I'd like to share the fruit with you, but it was so overcast and dark outside this weekend I couldn't get any good pics...I will share on Wednesday.

I hope its warm where you are...if not, go get some coffee or tea. It's good for you!

La Vida Dulce!

Thinking in the Rain

Well, I'm not actually in the rain, but as I type it's raining outside.

It's fantastic.

This week is going so slow. Does anyone else feel that way? 

Maybe it's because I haven't seen much of The Mister this week. I am missing him. 

Maybe it's because sleep hasn't come so easily in the last couple of weeks, which makes the days feel longer.

Who knows, but whatever it is, I cannot believe it's only Wednesday! 

I've been in a bloggers slump recently. Not sure why. 

I hope it doesn't last as long as my cooking slump. 

Have a mentioned I have been in a cooking slump?  It's not a rut. Well, on second thought, it might be that too. I've been in this slump/rut for a long time now. Maybe even as long as a year.

Anyway, I used to be super organized about meal planning, and shopping, and yadda, yadda, yadda, and somehow, it just stopped. 

Now I just buy a big bag of Costco frozen chicken and use the same four recipes over and over in a mix and match type style with carbs and veggies, and the same old salad.  It's boring, but it's what's for dinner.  

My kids have been complaining about this rut for a very long time now. 

The Mister never complains about what I cook for the family.  Even when it's not my best, he eats it happily. 

That is a quality I love so much about him. 

I could feed him saltines with peanut butter for the next twenty years and he'd be fine. He has many talents and abilities, but he can't cook, so he's grateful to eat what I fix.

When I was talking to him about my cooking rut he offered to get me a subscription to Cooking Light for some inspiration. He knows I love that magazine.

Have a mentioned lately how cute The Mister is?

Back to the rut.  What do you do in a cooking rut? Do you ride it out and hope for better days? How do you find motivation to get back in the kitchen groove? 

OK, that's enough thinking in the rain...

It Happened Last Night...

...the event all desert dwellers wait for.

A strange phenomena happens here when the temperatures never gets below 100, and land is especially parched.

Desert dwellers begin to dream of rain and moisture. Relief. We talk about it. Dream about it. Live for it.

It happened last night. After the sun had set, and the evening darker than usual.

The big clouds came that billow and tease. Often it's so dry that you can see rain falling but it evaporates before it hits the ground, teasing us with the delicious smell that comes from moisture in the desert. Not last night.

We watched the lightening as a little squall rolled in from south. It's a show I have never seen else where. Lightening that doesn't just strike from sky to ground, but plays in the clouds like children on sugar.

The wind started to kick up with a cool, comforting, feel.

We piled in the car and got some ice cream. Then we went to our local park, where the kids ran around as if they had never been outside.

The Boy, who is a country boy at heart, ran around with his hands in the air, catching large droplets of water on his face and saying, "I'm actually COLD! I'm actually COLD!"

The Girl got back into the car. Lightening, even when it still far away can be scary when you're eight.  I know, I remember.

On the other side of the park stand the baseball fields, lit up by giant flood lights. The rain, began to fall heavily on that side of the park. We could see the rain drops shining under the lights. We remained dry.

The Mister said, "Here it comes."

And two minutes later, it was raining on us. 

And then...

...then we just sat there in the car and watch the wonder of monsoon. 

The beauty of water in the desert.

Y'all, it made me happy. Which is saying something, cuz I'm already a pretty happy girl.

What makes you happy today?

Because I provided water in the desert, 

   rivers through the sun-baked earth,

Isaiah 43:20 (MSG)