March Bucket List

***Please note that some of this bucket list was completed before the current quarantine. I find it very fitting that when I came up with the bucket list idea last fall, I thought how great it would be to have something to look forward to in the New Year and throughout 2020. Little did I know that these little jollies would be VERY useful in keeping my sanity sitting at home. My plan is to continue with the bucket lists in the coming months to the best of my ability. Maybe you can join along in doing some of the tasks as a release for boredom and creativity! I’d love to know what all you get up to!***

Green Manicure

As much as I hated my blue nails from January, I actually loved both sets of this month’s nails. Maybe it’s the Slytherin in my heart but deep shades of green are just gorgeous. The reason I chose to do two sets is because the first polished didn’t really photograph as being green. This color is fun because it’s iridescent but no matter how I tried, it always looked purple in the pictures which is why the TERRIBLE picture is being posted. It was the only time the light semi-cooperated to look green.

I did the second set as my “true” green nails. Let’s be honest, with a quarantine going on painting my nails in an obvious Slytherin motif was not as embarrassing as it could be on the regular. I still think greens with a cool undertone are lovely even if, like January, they give me the 1997 shopping at Claire’s vibe. According to my kiddos, the 90s are back so we might as well lean in to it!

Spring Cleaning/Clean Out Closets

Do you ever get in the mood to just get your life together from top to bottom? For me, these moments always come with spring cleaning and a good closet purge. I know I purged my closets in January but this is a bit of an ongoing process with the change in seasons and I didn’t really go through my drawers like I should have. As always, I suggest donating your clothes to an agency that will pass them on to those in need.

Sunrise/Herb Garden/Bird Feeder/Flowers

If you know me well you know I’m incapable of growing ANYTHING of substance. I’ve grown an herb garden in the past that I was quite proud of and one from which I actually used in my cooking. However, this garden sat on my window sill behind my curtains and one day I just forgot that I owned it and didn’t remember again for about a month when I found a dry clump of dirt and some twigs. Like how did I do that? I’m a very responsible and dependable person and yet I forgot that I had been daily watering plants for months. Insane! I’m going to try again to be naturey when I can get some soil. I have tons of seeds that I purchased prequarantine but I’ve yet to get soil or a container. I should probably get signs as well since I have no clue what I’m actually planting. Wish me luck!

I have all kinds of birds around my house that are just precious but I typically don’t have a feeder because I have an outside cat, Patch, and I don’t want to lure them to their deaths. This is another project that is being set back by the quarantine. I had brilliant plans for Spring Break but spent a good bit trying to figure out how to teach online. That being said, I think I’m going to try to make a creative/Pinteresty feeder and steal seed from my parents. (They have a gazillion feeders for birds and squirrels and I adore watching them!) I’ll also try to put this one in an area that Patch can’t easily reach.

I’m not a huge flower person probably because I kill every plant I touch and they seem to have an inflated price for their value but I do think they are beautiful and a great way to bring spring indoors. Since I can’t go get flowers, I decided to bring in ones I found in my yard that I’m calling Violets that 100% are probably not Violets but that seems like a romantic, Anne of Green Gables flower so that’s what I’ll call them. Unfortunately, unlike Anne, I am not gifted in flower arranging. Also, I apparently don’t own a vase so this watering can seemed appropriate to the Avonlea feel I was trying to invoke!

Update 1: While flowers bring in beauty, do you know what else they bring in? Bugs…they bring in bugs. I don’t do bugs!

Update 2: I looked up these flowers and apparently they are called Purple Spiderwort which is real unfortunate. I think I will continue to call them Violets...Avonlea Violets!

Update 3: These flowers go to sleep at night which is freaking brilliant because even I am having trouble managing that task currently. See the picture below of their sleepy selves.

Pi Day (March 14)

Fun fact, this is my mother’s birthday which makes a birthday pie seem like a good idea. So how did I commemorate my beloved mother’s birth and celebrate pies? By purchasing a Patty LaBelle pie because my kids have been arguing over its merits for weeks and I have one kid who eats at least one a class period.

Yep, in the midst of grabbing “quarantine” groceries I purchased several cute, little Patti LaBelle sweet potato pies. Mother, Meg and I shared them and I must agree with my kiddo…they’re pretty dang good! Please note that I might not sing the praises of said pie under non-quarantine conditions but for right now I think they are tasty!

Barbie Day (March 8)

I love Barbie! Not only was she one of my favorite toys but she has got to be the most brilliant, hardworking woman on earth because of her many degrees and career fields. With all of these credentials my favorite thing is Barbie’s wardrobe. What can I say? I’m a simple woman and I love shoes. Barbie gave me my first trek into fashion and sewing which is something I love as an adult. I was able to pick out her outfits long before I could pick out mine. Admit it…The girl’s got killer style!

Corned Beef and Cabbage/New Produce

I’ve never made corned beef and cabbage so I just found a random recipe on Pinterest that I'll link here and it worked out great. I’ll say I didn’t include potatoes because I’m trying not to be as starchy and I didn’t fry the cabbage for the sake of fat. I just threw it in at the end of the cooking process. Everything tasted amazing and the meat was absolutely delicious! I highly recommend this version if you’ve never cooked corned beef because it seems pretty fail proof.

Fun Fact: Corned Beef is so named because of the “corns” of salt used to preserve the meat. Traditionally, three different sizes of salt are used to penetrate the meat at different levels and to remove moisture while making it “shelf stable”. This is why you are supposed to wash the meat off thoroughly under water or if you LOVE salt like me you can wash it off just a little and suffer the high blood pressure.

Unfortunately, I didn't think to get new produce when I went on my emergency run to the grocery so I will have to wait until the next shopping trip in a few weeks to attempt this project but I promise I will try it.

Luckily, I was able to complete most of this month’s tasks prior to going into a semi-self imposed lockdown. I’m interested to see how next month shakes out but I’m glad to have a fun and creative outlet for my “free” time!