This weekend felt like the first weekend of spring. Saucer magnolias and fruit trees are blooming, and it got sunny and warm today despite the predicted all-day thunderstorms. I sat on the back deck and alternated between weeding and working on my laptop. I even started some seeds for the first time in four years.

Our progressive dinner last night was really fun, especially seeing Sal and Ann's new house in the Sixth Ward. They are renovating it and have added a great big kitchen, perfect for the entree course. I especially liked their front door, which had a knob you twist to ring the doorbell. It was so much like the house I lived in in Pittsburgh.