WALK THROUGH THE PARK

We visited Monmouth Battlefield Park and took the walk down the long slope, past the skunk cabbage and across the bridge towards the orchards today. The apple and peach trees are coming into bloom and velvety lambs' ear is popping up throughout the meadow.

VISIT TO THE SADDLE SHOP

Rick's Saddle Shop is in the historic town of Englishtown, NJ. It goes back to Revolutionary War Days and the oldest house in town is Dr. English's home where George Washington stayed during the Battle of Monmouth. We were visiting the Saddle Shop to purchase Chris's first riding gloves and helmet, he chose the adjustable model with a fashionable visor, and black gloves to match. After shopping we settled in to eating ice cream at Four Boys on the corner.

NEW BEGINNINGS

Ah, the promise of Spring and New Beginnings. We discovered Fred's purple thistle in the garden today, it starts out as a beautiful circular plant and by August has risen into a tall flowering super giant! The same with the Concord grapes, the vines are beginning to leaf and from these tiny buds emerge the tastiest fruit.

GARDEN WREATH

BARBARA'S BIRTHDAY BRUNCH

We helped Barbara celebrate her special day, and had a great time seeing friends from work, getting caught up on new business, and brunching! Hanna orchestrated the entire event and did a spectacular job.

WEEK GONE BY

What a busy week last week! It was wonderful meeting daughters Annie and Marie and their friends in NYC. Tuesday was spent in Princeton getting Chris's audiological done, a visit to the Art Museum to see the recent portrait acquisitions, and of course lunch. Getting Alice off to her new career, several meetings on Thursday and Friday and watching Chris take Finn out into the rain at his lesson -followed with a game of checkers on a stormy night with my little guy. Today, I am off on my own to Barbara's birthday brunch and some catching up with friends.

BAMBUSA!

The bamboo shoots have arrived on this cold, blustery April day. They are so small, we usually feel them first with our feet before we see them. Now we must be careful where we walk if we want them to grow tall and become part of the grove.

GETTING READY FOR EASTER

The week before Easter is quite busy around here with all the preparations. Today I began hand washing all of the vintage linens and tablecloths. Once a year I go through the ritual of taking them out of the cabinet and selecting the ones that I want to use. They must be washed in the tub and then hung out to line dry, I feel like Mrs. Tiggywinkle with all of the hand laundry! At the back of the cabinet I found a box marked with a card, it turned out to be my grandmother's wedding negligee from 1919. The fine fabric is embroidered in satin stitch and french knot and bordered with delicate lacework. It brought a smile to my face, as my mother saved everything and also wrote descriptions and notes with her treasures. It is amazing the fine needlework that was done a century ago. Tomorrow I will repack all of the newly discovered fabrics and then begin
the ironing.

HURRAH ALICE!

After much work and preparation, Alice started her CNA Clinical today, she looked ready and great in her uniform!

MORNING RAIN AND MANY SURPRISES!

There were many Spring surprises in the early morning garden, the magnolia has bloomed, tiny buds are appearing on the peach tree, the peonies and red onions are peaking through, and the young lettuces are ready for salad making tonight.

SPRING WALK & GENEALOGY

Part of my arthritis exercise regimen is brisk walking. Yoga practice is three days a week and walking fills in the other days. We started out on the Manasquan bike trail this morning. The trail was once a railroad track that went to Allenwood and then on to Camden and Philadelphia, it was built in 1870. The Atlantic View Cemetery runs alongside the trail and is the resting place of many of the area's original families. It was quite a surprise to find gravestones of the Mulfords, an old family name that goes back to South Jersey, and is worth further investigation. Another curious headstone was the one of Captain Asher Curtis, and it is a beautifully sculpted tree trunk. I later found out that this monument was created by Woodmen of the World, a fraternal organization, to honor their deceased. The founder, J. Cullen Root wanted all members to have a decent burial and gravestones were free of charge if a $100 rider was purchased when a member was initiated.
The practice ended in 1920, but Woodmen Memorial Day is still practiced on June 6 of each year.