I have a sneaking suspicion that I use a picture of daffodils every April. They’re my favourite flower and I especially love seeing a yard full of them when we’re out driving. In other news, we finally have a buyer for our house in Owen Sound; changes are brewing!

Read

I confess to adjusting my list of twenty books to read this year. I tried The Hearts Invisible Furies and I could not take the sexual content. I decided to replace it with This Is Happiness, also an Irish novel and by the author of Time of the Child, which I loved last December. I’ll get to it later in the year.

From my list I listened to The Impossible Fortune (fifth installment in the Thursday Murder Club series), which was a lot of fun, and I read Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions into Adulthood, which left me with some ideas and a lot of questions (mainly because it’s not from a Christian perspective). I also listened to The Great Gatsby for book club at the library. I don’t love it, but one of the podcasters at Close Reads calls it “a perfect novel” so I reserve judgment. (The next book club selection is a science fiction novel I have no interest in, but they’re also planning on Pride and Prejudice, Robinson Crusoe, and David Copperfield in the summer… I’ve read them all in the past, so maybe I’ll join in.) Two great school books I finished in April (second time through) are Canadian Fairy Tales and American Tall Tales — engaging readalouds.

Eat

We had some memorable meals in April. Juliet made a Russian themed dinner with cabbage pirog (including pickled mustard seeds and golden raisins), salad, cauliflower with sour cream, poppy seed chocolate roll, and a cranberry drink. Most of the recipes came from this book.

April is the month for the traditional Men Serve the Ladies Supper at church. The theme started out as “Brunch in Bordeaux”… Andrew lamented that it wasn’t closely followed, but we still enjoyed the fruit and cheese, French toast, French onion soup, quiche, walnut bread, tiramisu, and brownies with ice cream. The tables were all set with good dishes and flowers and the little boys politely served us.

Another time Andrew made all my food for a whole day, and it was not run-of-the-mill: amazing lemon rolls with lemon curd and icing; hamburgers on pretzel buns; cherry clafoutis; quiche with smoked salmon, asparagus, and dill; Boston cream pie!

Do

• We had to pick up a car in Potsdam so I took the kids to the North Country Children’s Museum. This time highlights were climbing up onto the viewing area on the roof and making little bug robots.
• One weekend I went to a church women’s retreat in Ontario with three other ladies. The theme was Christian discipleship and there was great teaching with ideas for meditating on Scripture and encouraging one another. I also enjoyed the food, hike, and breakout session I attended.
• My older kids went to a one-day VBS at Youth for Christ during “spring break,” so I took the littles to Sweet Emilies for a little ice cream and playtime (besides being a lovely place to sit with a fancy latte, it has a lot of toys and a selection of clothes and gifts for sale).
• I also took the kids to a science-themed birthday party, which ended with a good long time at a playground.
• We had an overnight visit with cousins near Pembroke. My kids especially loved the animals (pony, chickens, dogs, cats), the tractor, and going to youth group.

Grow

My seedlings didn’t fare very well despite the heat mat and grow light. Maybe the house is just too cold? I do have plenty of romaine and kale sprouts that I’m starting to harden off. Also, I bought compost, borrowed a wheel barrow, and mixed up my potting soil. We removed some plants along the side of the house to make way for the bucket garden and we’ve started a few seeds outdoors so far.

Listen

I had fun putting together a spring playlist on Spotify. (I think it will be easier to choose summer songs, so I might have to make more than one playlist next season.)

I’m reading the kids How the Heather Looks and since the family spent a while in Cornwall, I was prompted to play “Cornwall, My Home.”

Meditate

“And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ‘Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?’ And Jesus answered them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.'” – Luke 5:30-32

Any April favourites you care to share?