What's Up Wednesday Hodgepodge - March 2023

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I'm going to be challenging myself to keep my answers short in What's Up Wednesday this month (and going forward) because it's also time for the weekly Wednesday Hodgepodge. Combining the two means I'll have to try to keep my Hodgepodge answers brief as well, and you'll find them after all the What's Up questions.

On the last Wednesday of each month, Shaeffer & Shay host a link-up to talk a bit about what's going on in our worlds - food, entertainment, plans, fashion, work, whatever - in the What's Up Wednesday linky party.

What We're Eating This Week . . . I am really taking the easy way out of meal planning this week, and don't even know what we'll have for dinners the next couple days! We had corned beef hash yesterday, and crustless pizza on Monday. I am starting to plan out the Easter weekend menu though, and it will definitely include lamb kebabs. 

What I'm Reminiscing About . . . my brother, one of my best friends, and my daughter-in-law all celebrate birthdays during the last week of March, so I've been thinking back to times spent with them. Haven't seen my brother or friend in many years but hoping to get together with them this fall, as my husband and I are tentatively planning a trip to Canada. Will see my daughter-in-law next weekend when the kids come to visit! 

As a family, we celebrated Meaghan's birthday by going to a hockey game in 2019, and by going to a favorite Korean steakhouse last year.

What I'm Loving . . . the church we're attending has a weekly Dinner + Discipleship on Wednesday nights, and we've been going to that regularly. They do a great job of it, with top-notch food, so we really enjoy getting out of the house for a meal every week and sitting around the table with others and getting to know people just a little bit. The small group study following the meal has been so good as well.

What We've Been Up To . . . my husband has been working a lot as it's a very busy season at the greenhouse, and they are somewhat short-staffed right now. On weekends we get together with our son and his family here and try to explore local places of interest. A couple weeks ago we went to the art museum (which is free on Sundays) and this past weekend we went on a little nature walk at a nearby park. I went back to the park yesterday for a wildflower walk.

What I'm Dreading . . . I'm both dreading and looking forward to getting my tooth fixed. A filling broke out quite awhile ago and I'm enduring a long wait to see an oral surgeon. I'm also dreading sorting out the medical bills and so on after a really weird mix-up with our insurance over the past month. And speaking of insurance, I'm also dreading sorting out all the logistics with updating our auto insurance and licenses and all of that. Again with the weird mix-ups. I could do without weird mix-ups for awhile!

What I'm Working On . . . getting the spare room ready for company next week; looking (somewhat half-heartedly) for a part-time job that would interest me and work with our schedule; and working towards getting a freelance project ready to go.

What I'm Excited About . . . warmer weather and finally getting a birdfeeder set up where I hope I'll be able to spot some visitors. I got a new feeder awhile ago, but didn't find a good shepherd's hook to put it on until yesterday. I have a spot chosen right outside a window where this will go tomorrow.

What I'm Watching/Reading . . .  I've actually been watching a bit more hockey recently, rather than just checking the scores. My husband and I just watched (pre-release!) a movie that's hitting theatres on March 31st, His Only Son. It's from the same people that make The Chosen series. It's so, so good and I highly recommend it. In fact, you can read my review and there's still time to enter the giveaway that goes with it. 

This week we'll be watching an advance screening of The Journey: A Music Special from Andrea Bocelli, which I'm also very excited about. I'll be sharing a review of that one on the weekend.

For all the details on what I'm reading, see my book blog at Just A Second.

I'm currently working on:

In The Shelter Of Hollythorne House by Sarah E. Ladd

After the Boxes Are Unpacked: Moving On After Moving In by Susan Miller

A Perilous Perspective by Anna Lee Huber

When Tomorrow Came by Hannah Linder

This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession by Daniel J. Levitin

Recently completed:

In Spotlight and Shadow by Rachel Scott McDaniel

The Cairo Curse by Pepper Basham

Shirley, I Jest: A Storied Life by Cindy Williams

If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't) by Betty White

Up next:

Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

Radio's Greatest of All Time by Rush Limbaugh with Kathryn Adams Limbaugh and David Limbaugh

Murder Most Fair by Anna Lee Huber

A Certain Darkness by Anna Lee Huber

What I'm Listening To . . . in addition to my favorite podcasts and music, I'm also listening to rehearsal recordings for a women's barbershop chorus I'm joining. I'm learning my parts and trying to get up to speed and I'm so excited about singing with these ladies!

What I'm Wearing . . . lighter weight jackets, although it's not consistently warm enough to forgo jackets altogether, and I'm not ready to give up my jeans in favor of capris either.

What I'm Doing This Weekend . . . Our church is having a big kids activity on Sunday to celebrate Easter, and we're hoping our son will come with his wife and daughter. We think our granddaughter will really like the event, especially because we hear they will have a petting zoo and she adores animals. I expect we'll spend the rest of the day with them as well. I'm also hoping to check off at least one more local coffee shop off our Columbus Coffee Trail list. 

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month . . . time with the Maryland family! Spencer, Landon and Meaghan are coming here for the Easter weekend, which I'm so excited about! I can hardly wait to get some grandbaby cuddles! And then in the second half of April I'm going to visit Maryland for almost two weeks. I'm going for Kennady's senior recital and opera workshop recital, but I'll also get to spend time with the other kids again and get some more grandbaby cuddles! Also looking forward to spending time with friends, visiting our old church, and even guest teaching at least once at the co-op.

What Else Is New . . .  not much . . . This is the latest puzzle my husband is working on. Much bigger than any he's done in quite a few years! I hope he'll have it finished by the time the kids come!

This little one has learned some fun new tricks since we saw her last, and this photo is from her first time sitting in the big girl high chair at a restaurant. I can hardly wait to see her again!

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A hodgepodge is a jumble or assortment of things that might not appear to belong together. Joyce at From This Side of the Pond hosts a weekly link-up called Wednesday Hodgepodge that is a little collection of questions for bloggers to answer just for fun and to get to know each other. I always look forward to chatting with friends over coffee, so pour a cup of your favorite and let's visit for a few minutes!

Here are this week's questions - and my answers - for this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. Why do you blog? Have your reasons changed over time?

These days I blog mostly because the writing is a hobby I enjoy. I have affiliate links on my blogs, but I don't actively look to make a profit from my blogs. My reasons have changed quite a bit over time. I started blogging about what we were doing in our homeschool, thinking my family and few friends might be interested. My family rarely read the blog, but I did get into reviewing homeschool curriculum and built up a respectable homeschool audience and a little bit of a name in that sphere. Then my kids all graduated, and now I don't even actively teach at a co-op any more, so it's all hobby writing now. 

2. What's a typical Friday night look like at your house?

 

Sometimes we eat out or go do something, but at this point, Friday nights are usually like most other weeknights. We eat dinner, clean it up, and watch TV or work on puzzles or read or whatever. We tend to save the exploring for Saturdays and Sundays.

3. Do you like donuts? Your favorite kind? How often do you treat yourself to a donut? Have you ever made homemade donuts?

 I adore donuts! All kinds! My favorites are the jelly filled or peanut butter filled. I allow myself the treat maybe once a month. I haven't made donuts myself, but I have made Niejoashe Koake (Low German for 'New Years Cookies') which are not really cookies, but fritters, so I think that's close enough!

 

4. How do you feel about shopping? Are you an online shopper? Catalog shopper? Brick and mortar shopper? Do you order groceries online or prefer to select items with your own two hands?

 I'm pretty ambivalent about shopping. I don't love it, but in general I don't hate it either. I buy some things on Amazon, but with so many things I prefer to be able to touch it, so most of what I buy is from a brick and mortar store. Including groceries. I don't think I've ever bought groceries online.

5. Next week's Hodgepodge finds us somehow in the month of April, which just so happens to be National Poetry Month. Sum up (or tell us something about) your month of March in the form of a limerick. You can do it!!

There once was a new couple in town

They arrived when the grass was still brown

She found somewhere to sing

Noticed sweet signs of spring

And now they are feeling less "down" 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Can I repeat my recommendation to read my review of His Only Son without sounding too much like a salesman? I liked it so much, and it is ideally timed for the Easter season. 

 

What's up in your world this week? Leave a comment and let me know!

I'm sharing in this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

And this post is linked at What's Up Wednesday for March, with Sheaffer & Shay.

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