March and January both have 31 days, so I’m not sure why March feels so much longer. Maybe it’s because I know spring is approaching and the back-and-forth winter-to-spring weather of March makes the month drag on. Whatever the reason, I felt ALL 31 days of March. Here’s our monthly roundup of What We Did (birthday!), What We Ate (cake!), What We Watched (Murderville, anyone?) and What We Read (so many books!).
What We Did
At the very start of the month, our son had a basketball playoff game to close out the season. The loss was tough on the boys but we celebrated a great season. They were such a fun bunch of kids to watch.
The end of basketball season rolled right into lacrosse practices, which led right into the team’s first scrimmage and first game. Outdoor spring sports are a whole mood in March. The scrimmage was 70 degrees. The first game was 40 degrees with a wind chill.
One afternoon after work, I stopped by the local police station and filed a police report about my stolen social security number. They fingerprinted me, which is more concerning when you’re standing in the place where they book people accused of crimes. But at least my identity theft is officially on the record now.
Our daughter turned 14 during a bomb cyclone snow event, which is basically par for the course for her birthday. It’s either snowing or the world is shutting down for COVID when her birthday rolls around. We had a small celebration at home, then the following week, she took a friend out to dinner, then a week later, we celebrated with my parents.
Middle school play. FINALLY, after months of rehearsals, it was showtime for Hurricane Smith and the Garden of the Golden Monkey.
I’ll be honest: I was expecting an awkward, cringey middle school play, but this performance was stellar from the entire cast.
Our daughter went to the cast party afterward and our son slept over at the hotel with his grandparents so Phil and I hung out at a pub and ate some food while we waited for the cast party to be done. The life of teen/tween parents is not so different from toddlers: late nights, little sleep, lots of worry, epic meltdowns.
I asked my parents to stay an extra day so I could take the day off and spend it with them. We bummed around a few shops in Lancaster and Lititz and bought a few things at Costco. We ate lunch out, too. It was an enjoyable day.
That same day, Phil’s truck broke down on the way to work, so on the plus side, we’re only using gas from one vehicle right now and I know where he works because I’ve had to drive him there several mornings.
What We Ate
It is still soup season until the weather says it isn’t, and even then, I could eat soup. This month we had Coconut Curry Lentil Soup and Chunky Vegan Potato Soup. (If I were ever to become a full-fledge vegan, I think I’d call myself the Chunky Vegan).
For the impromptu birthday celebration, we grabbed some food from Central Market including soups from Isabelle Cuisine, empanadas from Empanada Gourmet, and cake from The Goodie Shop.
As per usual, we ate corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day.
Our meal out for the birthday celebration was Mexican food from Cocina Mexicana. I had chilaquiles verdes. Other food consumed included burritos, tacos, queso, chips and salsa.
We also had ice cream cupcakes for dessert from Good Life Ice Cream. A week later we had a mixed berry cake and two kinds of ice cream for the birthday treat with the grandparents.
As we waited for the cast party to wrap up, Phil and I hung out at Quip’s Pub and ate a Scotch egg and whiskey-butter parmesan fries.
We also tried a new-to-us pizza place near our church: UnCommon Pizza. They have a breakfast pizza which intrigued me: it has a garlic butter sauce with scrambled eggs and two cheeses. We added bacon. We also ate salads and garlic bread.
What We Watched
SNL clips. When I need to laugh at the state of the world and other random stuff, this is where I go.
State of the Union address. Gosh, this seems like so long ago. I know I didn’t stay up for all of it.
Murderville. Laugh-out-loud funny. Netflix. Will Arnett is a goofball but the guest stars are the ones that really get me.
Bake Squad. The girl and I were on our own for dinner one night because of schedules, so we watched an episode of this baking competition for a good cause on Netflix. Enjoyable.
Welcome to Earth. The Will Smith documentary on Disney Plus. An episode about scent. Pretty much always blows my mind.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. This revamp of the classic with The Rock, Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Karen Gillen is HILARIOUS. We laughed so hard we missed dialogue. I loved this one. So much better than the original.
Outlander. It’s back! Finally. Episode 1 was epic and sets up this very dramatic season. I am both thrilled and terrified about what’s to come.
Turning Red. What an amazing movie. Don’t believe all the negativity you might read about it.
Mulan. The live-action one. Also so much better than the animated “original.”
The World According to Jeff Goldblum. An episode about barbecue that also featured cricket farming!
Around the World in 80 Days. We finally got back to it. Our schedules have been busy and TV has not been a priority.
College basketball. I filled out a bracket this year so I had some more-than-usual interest. Also, Illinois was in the tournament. For a bit. My interest waned after the first weekend.
Supermarket Sweep. Leslie Jones for life.
Sanditon. The second season. I had feelings two minutes into the first episode. I’m going to watch more because I can’t quit a Jane Austen inspired show. But I’m still mad about season 1.
Bridgerton. Everything returns! I’m balancing three shows in my limited free time.
What We Read
Books I Finished:
Chirp by Kate Messner. Two reasons: It’s on the Pennsylvania Young Readers Choice Awards List for this year and it takes place at a cricket farm in the Northeast. I’m intrigued by this kind of farming. This story surprisingly tackled a serious issue in the midst of a minor mystery. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. It’s on the younger side of what I normally read for YA/middle grade, but still important and valuable.
What The Wind Knows by Amy Harmon. A friend who knows I like Outlander recommended this time-crossing novel, and I’m so glad she did. While Outlander is in a class of its own, this story kept me turning pages and wanting/not wanting to find out what happens. The historical part is set in 1920s Ireland during the Irish Civil War. It was fascinating to read about this time in history and I loved following Anne and Thomas’ love story.
Pride by Ibi Zoboi . This is a Pride and Prejudice remix I picked up at a school book fair, and it is so well done.
One To Watch by Kate Stayman-London. Plus-size fashion blogger Bea Schumacher agrees to go on a reality TV dating show to find love and bust stereotypes about who is worthy of love. One of my favorite recent reads. I’ve never seen an episode of The Bachelor or any other shows like that, but this book almost made me want to get in on the drama.
Harry’s Trees by Jon Cohen. An unforgettable, magical book that I will love for all time. This goes on my list of all-time favorites.
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie. I’m hooked. I realized there are about a bazillion books by Agatha Christie, so at least I know I’ll have books to read for the foreseeable future.
Reading with the kids:
Spy School Goes South by Stuart Gibbs. Another in our series.
Other reading:
The Bible. If you’ve been around here for a while, maybe this doesn’t sound like it should be noteworthy, but over the past few years, I’ve struggled to read the Bible because of my own personal struggles with my faith. So, the fact that I’ve picked it up again (not a lot, mind you) is significant. I’m still working out my relationship with the Bible.
Books in progress:
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. A friend who read Redeeming Love after I talked about it recommended this one. I’m about halfway through it and I’m not sure what to think. I can’t wait to talk with her about it.
I Am Malala. Still working on this one during my lunch breaks at work.