A Warm Welcome Home

As chilly as it is today in New Hampshire, I was warmly welcomed home by my family. By noon today I had seen them all. In addition, granddaughter Lilly and I had our photo shoot, for which Lilly cooperated beautifully. The photographer, a brilliant young woman named Pam Pritzker, put us both at ease, and yielded some great shots. My article and Pam's photos will be in the May issue of Grand Magazine.

I woke up this morning a little unfamiliar with my surroundings. My husband had left for work and I didn't hear the familiar sound of laughing gulls I've grown so accustomed to in Fort Myers. As soon as I heard our dog bark, however, I remembered I was home.

Today I checked out the renovations that had been partly finished when I left for Florida in late January. It was hard to believe I was in the same kitchen and dining room. The bathroom still needs a bit of work, but is transforming beautifully. Our house is a ranch style home, built in 1954. We bought it for a song 18 years ago and did some work as needed throughout the years, but this is the first time we've actually done some things we wanted to do rather than just things that needed doing. It's all very exciting!

I will now head to the grocery store and stock up once again, as when I'm not home the pantry items dwindle. I am so excited to be cooking for a crowd. I expect we'll have 8 to 10 for dinner.

I see small, dirty snowbanks in the field in back of our home, but these are really the only remaining traces of winter I can detect for now.....with the exception of the lampost at the foot of our driveway that is still decorated for Christmas! That will be tops on my list tomorrow. It's embarrassing!!

A dear friend of mine and her husband called me a couple of hours ago, announcing their arrival at our condo in Fort Myers, where they'll spend the next week while I'm away. The sun is shining and it's 80 degrees.

Could that be why I suddenly feel so cold???